American Government 3.4 The Amendments

DRILL: Impeach  & Petition
Impeach  - to accuse a government official of a crime.
Petition – to request a hearing

LESSON OBJECTIVE
Students will be able to classify amendments by researching the following types: those dealing with individual rights, those that reflect societal change, and those affecting the structure and powers of government.

The Bill of Rights 
A. The First Amendment (Bill of Rights) protects individuals’ right to worship, to speak freely, to assemble, and to petition and criticize government.
B. The Second Amendment ensures citizens’ right to own firearms.
C. The Fourth Amendment protects individuals from unlawful searches and arrests without court warrants.
D. The Fifth Amendment protects people charged with a crime: 
1. a grand jury must indict them before trial; no one found innocent can be retried for the same crime; 
2. people cannot be forced to testify against themselves; 
3.no one can be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.
E. The Sixth Amendment guarantees accused persons the right to know the charges against them, a defense attorney, a speedy jury trial, and the right to question all witnesses and compel them to testify.
F. The Eighth Amendment prohibits excessive bail and fines, and bars cruel and unusual punishment for crimes.

Odds & Ends
A. false speech is slander
B. libel damages a person in writing
C. probable cause is needed for a search warrant
D. Individual liberty-People are free to develop their own capacities.
E. Competing political parties allow voters choose among candidates of several parties & their presence helps focus attention on key issues.
F. Free elections -Everyone’s vote carries the same weight & discrimatory tests cannot be used to restrict voting.
G. Majority rule/minority rights -Constitution protects minority rights.

American Government 3.4 The Amendments

1. D 			6. B
2. A 			7. D
3. E 			8. A
4. B 			9. C
5. C 			10. B		

Matching:
1. A 		4. C
2. D 		5. B
3. C 		6. D

1. article
2. poll taxes
3. search warrant
4. executive agreement
5. impeach
6. balanced budget
7. judicial review
8. popular sovereignty
9. treaty
10. prior restraint
11. lame duck
12. change of venue
13. covert

BCR 1. These amendments prevent government from depriving people of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.

BCR 2. The ERA died in 1982 when it fell short of the needed approval by three-fourths of the state legislatures.

Summary: In today’s lesson we classified amendments by researching the following items: individual rights, societal change, and structure and powers of government.

Homework: Libel & Electoral College
Libel- to damage a person in writing
Electoral College - elects the president of the United States

Name ____________________________________________Class ___________ Date______________

American Government  3.4 The Amendments
SECTION 4 
Match each item in Column A with the items in Column B. Write the correct letters in the blanks. 
Column A
______1. first 10 amendments
______2. protects freedom of speech
______3. false speech
______4. damages a person in writing
______5. probable cause
	Column B
A. First Amendment
B. libel
C. search warrant
D. Bill of Rights
E. slander

In the blank at the left, write the letter of the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. 
______6. The purpose of the Bill of Rights is to protect rights of individual liberty and
A. the rights of states. 				C. the rights of the federal government.
B. the rights of persons accused of crimes. 		D. the rights of legislators.
______7. The First Amendment protects the American press from this.
A. libel 						C. slander
B. due process of law 					D. prior restraint
______8. This is asked for when a defendant cannot receive an impartial trial in the original location.
A. change of venue 					C. due process of law
B. eminent domain 					D. prior restraint
______9. How did the Twenty-first Amendment affect the Eighteenth Amendment?
A. changed its venue 					C. repealed it
B. supported it 					D. ratified it
______10. The Twenty-fourth Amendment helped some low-income African Americans to vote by
A. change of venue. 					C. ratifying voting laws.
B. eliminating poll taxes. 				D. prohibiting government intervention.

DIRECTIONS Match the example of democracy in Column A with the characteristic of democracy in
Column B. Write the correct letter in the blank.
Column A
______ 1. People are free to develop their own capacities.
______ 2. Voters choose among candidates of several parties.
______ 3. Everyone’s vote carries the same weight.
______ 4. Discriminatory tests cannot be used to restrict voting.
______ 5. The Constitution ensures protection of minority rights.
______ 6. Their presence helps focus attention on key issues.	Column B
A. Individual liberty
B. Majority rule with minority rights
C. Free elections
D. Competing political parties

American Government  3.4 The Amendments

The Constitution
Select the term that answers each question below. Write the correct term in the space provided.
balanced budget 		search warrant 		poll taxes 		treaty
popular sovereignty 		prior restraint 		article 			impeach
executive agreement 		change of venue 		lame duck 		judicial review

_______1. What word refers to any of the seven divisions of the body of the Constitution? 
_______2. What are the taxes paid in order to vote? 
_______3. What is an order, signed by a judge, to look for specific items in a specific place? 
_______4. What is an agreement, not requiring Senate approval, made directly between the president and the head of state of another country? 
_______5. What word means “to accuse”? 
_______6. What is it called when government spending does NOT exceed its income? 
_______7. What is the power of the Supreme Court to declare laws unconstitutional? 
_______8. What word describes rule by the people? 
_______9. What is an agreement between nations? 
_______10. What is government censorship of information before it is published or broadcast? 
_______11. Who is an outgoing elected official who lacks influence? 
_______12. What is a new trial location? 

BCR 1. How does the due process clause in the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments protect individuals?

BCR 2. A famous amendment to the Constitution approved by Congress in 1972 was never ratified. The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) provided that “equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any state on account of sex.” A similar amendment had first been proposed by the National Woman’s party in the 1920s. 
What happened to the ERA amendment?

In your own words, summarize today’s lesson.

CTIVITY 10