The Constitution Chapter Notes | Social Studies for Grade 7 PDF Download

The Constitution

Structure and Principles

• The Constitution is the foundation of the U.S. government.
• It was written in 1787 at a meeting called the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia.
• It replaced the Articles of Confederation, which was the first set of rules but was too weak.
• The Constitution divides the government into three parts, called branches:
  • Legislative Branch: Makes laws and is made up of Congress (House of Representatives and Senate).
  • Executive Branch: Carries out laws and is led by the President.
  • Judicial Branch: Interprets laws and is made up of courts, with the Supreme Court as the highest court.
• The Constitution has a plan called separation of powers.
  • Each branch has its own job so no one branch gets too much power.
    • For example, Congress makes laws, but the President can veto (say no to) them.
• Another important idea is checks and balances.
  • Each branch can check the other branches to keep them fair.
    • For example, the Supreme Court can say a law is not allowed if it breaks the Constitution.
  • The President can veto laws, but Congress can override the veto with a big vote.
• The Constitution is divided into parts called Articles:
  • There are seven Articles in the Constitution.
  • Article I explains the Legislative Branch and how laws are made.
  • Article II describes the Executive Branch and the President’s job.
  • Article III sets up the Judicial Branch and the courts.
  • Article IV talks about how states work together.
  • Article V explains how the Constitution can be changed.
  • Article VI says the Constitution is the highest law in the country.
  • Article VII explains how the Constitution was approved by the states.
• The Constitution also uses the idea of federalism.
  • This means power is shared between the national government and state governments.
  • The national government handles things like money, defense, and trade.
  • States handle things like schools, local laws, and roads.
• Another key principle is popular sovereignty.
  • This means the people have the power to choose their leaders through voting.
  • The government only works because the people agree to follow it.
• The Constitution protects individual rights.
  • It makes sure people are treated fairly and have freedoms.
  • These rights are listed in the Bill of Rights and other parts of the Constitution.

Amendments

• An amendment is a change or addition to the Constitution.
• The Constitution can be changed to keep it up-to-date with new needs.
• Article V explains how to add amendments.
  • There are two ways to propose (suggest) an amendment:
    • Congress can vote to propose an amendment if two-thirds of both the House and Senate agree.
    • Two-thirds of the states can ask for a special meeting called a Constitutional Convention to suggest amendments.
  • There are two ways to approve (ratify) an amendment:
    • Three-fourths of state legislatures (state lawmakers) must agree.
    • Three-fourths of special state conventions must agree.
• Changing the Constitution is hard because it needs a lot of agreement.
  • This makes sure only important changes are made.
  • It protects the Constitution from being changed too easily.
• There are 27 amendments to the Constitution so far.
• The first 10 amendments are called the Bill of Rights.
• Other amendments made big changes, like:
  • 13th Amendment: Ended slavery in the United States.
  • 14th Amendment: Gave citizenship to everyone born in the U.S. and promised equal protection under the law.
  • 15th Amendment: Gave African American men the right to vote.
  • 19th Amendment: Gave women the right to vote.
  • 26th Amendment: Lowered the voting age to 18.
• Amendments help the Constitution stay fair and work for everyone.
  • They fix problems or add new rights as the country grows.
    • For example, amendments made sure more people could vote over time.

The Bill of Rights

• The Bill of Rights is the first 10 amendments to the Constitution.
• It was added in 1791 to protect people’s freedoms.
• Some people were worried the Constitution didn’t protect individual rights enough.
• The Bill of Rights makes sure the government cannot take away certain freedoms.
• Here are the 10 amendments in the Bill of Rights:
  • First Amendment: Protects freedom of speech, religion, press, assembly, and petition.
    • People can say what they think without fear.
    • People can practice any religion or no religion.
    • People can write and publish their ideas.
    • People can gather in groups and ask the government to fix problems.
  • Second Amendment: Protects the right to keep and bear arms.
    • People can own weapons for self-defense.
  • Third Amendment: Says the government cannot force people to house soldiers in their homes during peacetime.
    • This protects people’s privacy in their homes.
  • Fourth Amendment: Protects against unreasonable searches and seizures.
    • The government needs a warrant (permission from a judge) to search your home or take your things.
  • Fifth Amendment: Protects rights during trials and legal processes.
    • People cannot be forced to testify against themselves.
    • People cannot be tried for the same crime twice (double jeopardy).
    • The government must follow fair rules to take someone’s property.
  • Sixth Amendment: Gives rights for a fair trial.
    • People have the right to a quick trial with a jury.
    • People can have a lawyer to help them.
    • People can know what crime they are accused of and face their accusers.
  • Seventh Amendment: Gives the right to a jury trial in certain civil cases (not criminal cases).
    • This applies to lawsuits about money or property.
  • Eighth Amendment: Protects against cruel and unusual punishments.
    • The government cannot punish people in a cruel way or charge unfair fines.
  • Ninth Amendment: Says people have other rights not listed in the Constitution.
    • Just because a right isn’t written doesn’t mean people don’t have it.
  • Tenth Amendment: Says any powers not given to the national government belong to the states or the people.
    • This supports the idea of federalism, where states have their own powers.
• The Bill of Rights makes sure the government respects people’s freedoms and treats them fairly.