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U.S. Constitution Activities

Welcome to the Fun Zone at Constitutionfacts.com where you'll find U.S. Constitution Activities for all ages - from word finds to crossword puzzles to treasure hunts and more!

U.S. Constitution for Kids (Grades K-4)

Celebrate Constitution Day or reinforce everyday learning with a variety of free resources for kids in grades K-4. Click on the links below to get started:
Read Famous Quotes about the U.S. Constitution and Democracy.

Find the hidden words in our Word Finds.

Check out these important Dates To Remember.

Is it Real or Fake? Test your knowledge with our interactive quizzes!

U.S. Constitution for Kids (Grades 5-12)

Which Founding Father Are You? Which Founding Father Would You Vote For? Can You Tell What's Real or Fake? What's Your Constitution IQ? Get answers to all of these questions and more, and learn about the U.S. Constitution with free U.S. Constitution activities for students in grades 5-12. Also enjoy crossword puzzles, treasure hunts and words finds - and much more! Click on the links below to get started:
Read Famous Quotes about the U.S. Constitution and Democracy.

Try our fun Crossword Puzzles!

Test Your Knowledge about the U.S. Constitution with four interactive quizzes! Which Founding Father Are You? Which Founding Father Would You Vote For? Real or Fake? Interactive Quiz What's Your Constitution IQ?

Explore ConstitutionFacts.com to find answers to the Treasure Hunts

Find the hidden words in our Word Finds

Check out these important U.S. Constitution Dates To Remember

Reference our U.S. Constitution Glossary of Terms

U.S. Constitution Activities for Adults

What's Your Constitution IQ? Test your knowledge then challenge friends and family to see if they can beat your score. See how you compare to others in your state, and nationally. See which founding father you'd vote for, which founding father you're most like, test your knowledge with varying levels of U.S. Constitution crossword puzzles, word finds, treasure hunts and more! Can you tell what's real or fake?, try your hand at this entertaining quiz to find out more about the founding fathers. Click on the links below to get started:
Read Famous Quotes about the U.S. Constitution and Democracy.

Try our fun Crossword Puzzles!

Test Your Knowledge about the U.S. Constitution with four interactive quizzes! Which Founding Father Are You? Which Founding Father Would You Vote For? Real or Fake? Interactive Quiz What's Your Constitution IQ?

Explore ConstitutionFacts.com to find answers to the Treasure Hunts

Find the hidden words in our Word Finds

Check out these important U.S. Constitution Dates To Remember

Reference our U.S. Constitution Glossary of Terms

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United States (U.S.) Constitution for Kids - Activities, Quizzes, Puzzles, & More | Constitution Facts

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Fun U.S. Constitution Activities for Kids from ConstitutionFacts.com. Visit Us Online to Learn More.

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Civics and Government Teaching Resources for Sixth Grade

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Explore civics and government with your sixth-grade children using Twinkl’s award-winning printable and digital teaching resources!

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Teacher-approved stories, resources, and worksheets for teaching about the United States Constitution in your classroom, courtesy of Junior Scholastic, the middle school Social Studies classroom magazine

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The Constitution | Free Middle School Teaching Resources

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The Constitution is the supreme law of the land. It set up our government. What rights does the Constitution guarantee?

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Below you will find printables and worksheets associated with the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights. Printables include:

Alphabetical Order Activities and Worksheets

U.S. Constitution Day Word Magnets
Drag the word magnets to form an alphabetically ordered word list. Students may choose to complete the alphabetical order worksheet when done. Words magnets include: liberty, laws, ordain, justice, American, September, Executive, Washington, Amendment, education, citizenship and Constitution.

U.S. Bill of Rights Word Magnets
Drag the word magnets to form an alphabetically ordered word list. Students may choose to complete the alphabetical order worksheet when done. Words magnets include: jury, due process, ratified, ten, arms, freedoms, Jefferson, press, religion, amendments, Congress and Constitution.

Word Jumbles - Word Jumble Worksheets

Word Searches - Word Search Puzzles

Cloze Worksheets

Coloring Pages

Other activities you may be interested in:

December Teaching Activities & Worksheets

Sample Thematic Activities & Teaching Ideas

- Summer

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U.S. Constitution Worksheets | Constitution Week Printables | Bill of Rights Worksheets

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U.S. Constitution worksheets. Kids love these Constitution and Bill of Rights worksheets for this U.S. Constitution Week thematic unit of study. Printable worksheets include word jumbles, coloring pages, alphabetical order vocabulary worksheets, cloze worksheets and word search puzzles.

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Constitution Day – Teaching Activities | September 17, 2022 | iCivics - iCivics

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Explore iCivics’ free Constitution Day activities and resources to teach your students about the U.S. Constitution and its importance.

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I find the materials so engaging, relevant, and easy to understand - I now use iCivics as a central resource, and use the textbook as a supplemental tool. The games are invaluable for applying the concepts we learn in class. My seniors LOVE iCivics.

Lynna Landry , AP US History & Government / Economics Teacher and Department Chair, California

Related Resources

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Constitution Day is September 17, the day in 1787 when our U.S. government was born. Meet your Constitution Day education requirement with this free and engaging lesson plan. This interactive lesson gives students a quick snapshot of the Constitution, including the purpose of each article, the powers of the three branches, how a bill becomes a law, and the concepts of separation of powers and checks and balances.

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Results for constitution day for 6th grade

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Browse constitution day for 6th grade resources on Teachers Pay Teachers, a marketplace trusted by millions of teachers for original educational resources.

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Note: You will only see this box once.

We would like to invite you to sign up for the completely free Apples4theteacher.com Newsletter! Join our other 480,975 readers.

Subscribers are automatically registered to receive free teaching resources including lesson plan ideas, printables and more. Stay informed of all our new resources as they're developed...we have some exciting features coming in 2018!

P.S.. To officially become a newsletter subscriber, be sure to confirm your subscription by responding to the email we send you.

Below you will find printables and worksheets associated with the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights. Printables include:

Alphabetical Order Activities and Worksheets

U.S. Constitution Day Word Magnets
Drag the word magnets to form an alphabetically ordered word list. Students may choose to complete the alphabetical order worksheet when done. Words magnets include: liberty, laws, ordain, justice, American, September, Executive, Washington, Amendment, education, citizenship and Constitution.

U.S. Bill of Rights Word Magnets
Drag the word magnets to form an alphabetically ordered word list. Students may choose to complete the alphabetical order worksheet when done. Words magnets include: jury, due process, ratified, ten, arms, freedoms, Jefferson, press, religion, amendments, Congress and Constitution.

Word Jumbles - Word Jumble Worksheets

Word Searches - Word Search Puzzles

Cloze Worksheets

Coloring Pages

Other activities you may be interested in:

December Teaching Activities & Worksheets

Sample Thematic Activities & Teaching Ideas

- Summer

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U.S. Constitution Worksheets | Constitution Week Printables | Bill of Rights Worksheets

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
U.S. Constitution worksheets. Kids love these Constitution and Bill of Rights worksheets for this U.S. Constitution Week thematic unit of study. Printable worksheets include word jumbles, coloring pages, alphabetical order vocabulary worksheets, cloze worksheets and word search puzzles.

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I find the materials so engaging, relevant, and easy to understand - I now use iCivics as a central resource, and use the textbook as a supplemental tool. The games are invaluable for applying the concepts we learn in class. My seniors LOVE iCivics.

Lynna Landry , AP US History & Government / Economics Teacher and Department Chair, California

Related Resources

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Constitution Day is September 17, the day in 1787 when our U.S. government was born. Meet your Constitution Day education requirement with this free and engaging lesson plan. This interactive lesson gives students a quick snapshot of the Constitution, including the purpose of each article, the powers of the three branches, how a bill becomes a law, and the concepts of separation of powers and checks and balances.

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Teaching the US Constitution

With so much focus on math and ELA, it can be hard to find time to prepare history lessons. However, I think that most teachers would agree that teaching history is extremely important! Especially, when you're teaching about US history topics like the Constitution.

I want to save you time and help you fall in love with teaching history. In this blog post, you will learn the most important things you need to know when teaching the US Constitution.

Below is a list of the topics covered in this guide. You can click on any of the links below to be taken to a specific section.

US Constitution Overview

This overview will explain the following:

What is the US Constitution?

The Articles of Confederation

Framers of the Constitution

Key Concepts of the Constitution

Three Branches of Government

Parts of the Constitution

The Constitution and Slavery

Ratification

Amendments & The Bill of Rights

What is the US Constitution?

A constitution is a set of rules outlining what a government can and cannot do. The Constitution of the United States was created in 1787 and ratified in 1788. However, this was not the country's first constitution.

The Articles of Confederation

As soon as the Thirteen Colonies decided to declare independence from Great Britain, they began working on a constitution called the Articles of Confederation (also called the Articles).

The word confederation means alliance or union. The Articles of Confederation united the states together in a "firm league of friendship." They had the responsibility to help each other if they were attacked. Each state governed itself and had a great deal of freedom, power, and independence. In some ways, the states acted more like independent countries than states.

The national government consisted only of Congress, a one-house body of delegates with the power to make laws. Each state had one vote. Congress needed at least nine of the thirteen states to vote yes in order to pass a law. In order to amend the Articles of Confederation, every state had to agree.

There was no executive leader, like a president, to enforce laws. There was also no system of courts to interpret and apply laws.

The Founding Fathers purposefully made the national government very weak. They wanted their new government to be totally different from King George III's oppressive monarchy. The Articles of Confederation lasted for about ten years. They were revised by the Continental Congress in 1787 and replaced by the Constitution that we still use today.

First page of The Articles of Confederation, Public Domain, Link

Strengths and Weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation

In some ways, the Articles of Confederation were very effective. They included the basics needed to go to war with Great Britain. Congress could declare war, conduct foreign affairs, and make treaties.

However, the Articles of Confederation had many weaknesses. First, the national government held little power. The national government was made up of only one house called Congress. Although Congress had the power to make laws, it could not enforce them. If states chose not to obey the laws, there was nothing the government could do. There was no executive leader, like a president, to hold states accountable. Furthermore, there was no judicial branch to resolve fights between states. As a result, states would pick and choose which laws they wanted to obey.

Another major problem was Congress' inability to collect taxes. Under the Articles of Confederation, only states were allowed to tax the people. All Congress could do was ask the states for money and hope they obeyed. Because of this, Congress struggled to pay and feed the Continental Army.

These problems, among others, led delegates to meet in 1787 to revise the Articles of Confederation.

Framers of the Constitution

In May 1787, fifty-five delegates gathered in the Pennsylvania State House to participate in the Constitutional Convention. In just four months, they managed to create an entirely new system of government by writing the Constitution of the United States. Who were these men?

Fast Facts about the Delegates:

They represented all the original thirteen states except for Rhode Island.

Many had fought in the American Revolution.

Three-fourths had served in Congress under the Articles of Confederation.

The average age was 42 years old (the youngest was Jonathan Dayton at 26, and the oldest was Benjamin Franklin at 81).

Fifty-five attended the Constitutional Convention, but only thirty-nine signed the Constitution.

George Washington was one of the most famous delegates. He was selected to be the president of the convention. Later, he became the first president of the United States.

Other notable delegates included James Madison, George Mason, and Alexander Hamilton.

Scene at the Signing of the Constitution of the United States by Howard Chancy Christy, Link

Key Concepts of the US Constitution

The Framers of the Constitution wanted to set up a government that would last. Their experience with Great Britain made them wary of a strong, powerful government. They wanted to protect people against tyranny. At the same time, many Founders were wary of giving people too much power. So, they also wanted to protect against too much democracy.

The founders understood some key concepts about government. The following are six key principles in the United States Constitution:

1. Popular sovereignty - The government's power comes from the consent of the people. If the government goes against the will of the people, then they have the right to change the government.

2. Limited government - A government's power is restricted by laws in order to protect individual rights and liberties. These laws are often written in a constitution.

3. Republicanism - A form of government where citizens are represented by elected officials.

4. Federalism - Power is shared by the national and state governments.

5. Separation of powers - The government is divided into branches. Each branch has separate and independent powers.

6. Checks and balances - Each branch of government can "check," or limit, the power of the other branches.

Constitution of the United States, Public Domain, Link

Three Branches of Government

The United States Constitution divides the government into three branches: the Executive Branch, the Legislative Branch, and the Judicial Branch.

Each branch has separate and independent powers that "check" and limit the powers of the other two branches. This prevents any one branch from becoming too powerful.

The Executive Branch enforces laws. It is comprised of the president, vice president, and the cabinet.

The Legislative Branch makes laws. It is called Congress, which is made up of the Senate and the House of Representatives.

The Judicial branch interprets laws. It is made up of the Supreme Court as well as other Federal Courts.

Parts of the US Constitution

The US Constitution can be divided into 9 parts: The preamble, the 7 articles, and the amendments.

Preamble

The preamble serves as an introduction to the Constitution. It describes who established the Constitution as well as its purpose. The preamble explains six reasons why the constitution was established.

Articles

The Constitution is made up of seven articles. Each article discusses a different topic:

Article 1 - Legislative Branch

Article 2 - Executive Branch

Article 3 - Judicial Branch

Article 4 - States

Article 5 - Amendment Process

Article 6 - Debts, Supremacy, Oaths, Religious Test

Article 7 - Ratification Process

Amendments

The Constitution currently has 27 amendments. These are changes that have been made to the Constitution over time. More information about the amendments can be found below.
You can grab a free lesson about the parts of the Constitution here!
The Constitution and Slavery

The words "slave" or "slavery" are never mentioned in the Constitution. However, the decisions made by the framers allowed slavery to exist in the United States. This affected the lives of millions of enslaved people as well as their descendants.

The delegates of the Constitutional Convention debated three essential questions regarding slavery:

1. Should enslaved people be counted as part of the population?

Northern and Southern states disagreed on if enslaved people should be counted as part of a state's population. After much debate, the delegates came up with the Three-Fifths Compromise. Article 1, Section 2 of the Constitution says that when calculating a state's population, three out of every five slaves would be counted as people.

This decision increased the South's representation and power in Congress and the Electoral College. The three-fifths compromise was repealed by the Fourteenth Amendment in 1868.

Slave auction block, Public Domain, Link

2. What should be done about the slave trade?

The delegates also disagreed about the slave trade. Some wanted the slave trade to continue while others wanted it to be outlawed. Eventually, the Framers of the Constitution decided to put off making a decision about the slave trade. Article 1, Section 9 says that no law could be passed to ban the slave trade until 1808.

Extending the slave trade into the 1800s brought many more captive Africans to the United States. Congress overwhelmingly voted to end the slave trade in 1808. This stopped the practice of bringing more enslaved people to the United States but did not free enslaved people already living in the country. Slavery was not outlawed until the Thirteenth Amendment was passed in 1865.

3. Do states have a responsibility to return "escaped slaves?"

Enslaved people resisted their treatment in many ways, including escaping to the North. Those who ran away were called "fugitive slaves." Some Southern delegates thought that states should help catch and return "fugitive slaves." Others felt that this would infringe on states' rights. The Southern states won out. Article 4, Section 2 contains a Fugitive Slave Clause that says "escaped slaves" must be returned to their enslavers.

As a result of this clause, many people made a living as fugitive slave catchers. They not only captured "runaway slaves," but also illegally kidnapped and enslaved thousands of free Blacks. The Fugitive Slave Clause was repealed by the Thirteenth Amendment which prohibited slavery.

A Ride for Liberty - The Fugitive Slaves (c. 1862) by Eastman Johnson - Brooklyn Museum, No restrictions, Link

Ratification

On September 17, 1787, the delegates finished drafting the Constitution. Nine of the thirteen states had to ratify, or approve, the Constitution for it to be accepted. Those who supported ratification were called Federalists while those who opposed ratification were called Antifederalists.

Federalists favored a strong central government. Antifederalists wanted power to stay with state governments. They also criticized the Constitution for not containing a bill of rights.

Eventually, nine of the 13 states ratified the Constitution. Itbecame the official framework for the United States on June 21, 1788.

Dates the 13 states ratified the Constitution, Link

Amendments & The Bill of Rights

An amendment is an official change to the US Constitution. There have only been twenty-seven changes to the Constitution because amendments are difficult to pass.

First, an amendment is proposed by Congress. It must pass with at least a two-thirds majority in both houses. Amendments can also be proposed by a convention called by two-thirds of the states; however, this has never happened. After being passed by Congress, an amendment must be ratified, or approved, by at least three-fourths of the states.

The first 10 Amendments are called the Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights is a specific list of citizens' rights and limits on the government's power.

First Amendment - Freedoms of speech, religion, the press, assembly, and to petition the government

Second Amendment - Right to own and carry guns

Third Amendment - No quartering (housing) of soldiers during wartime

Fourth Amendment - Freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures

Fifth Amendment - Right to due process; the government can't take a person's land without paying for it

Sixth Amendment - Right to a speedy and public trial

Seventh Amendment - Right to trial by jury in federal civil cases

Eighth Amendment - Freedom from excessive bail and cruel and unusual punishments

Ninth Amendment - Citizens have other rights besides the ones listed in the Bill of Rights

Tenth Amendment - Powers not given to the federal government are reserved for the states.

These amendments would be the first of many. Since it's creation, the Constitution has been amended 27 times. Some notable amendments include:

Thirteenth amendment - Outlaws slavery

Fifteenth amendment - States that the government cannot stop people from voting based on their race

Nineteenth amendment - Extends the right to vote to women

If you need help teaching about the Bill of Rights, check out my free lesson.
The United States Bill of Rights, Link

US Constitution Timeline

When teaching the US Constitution, or any historical period, it can be helpful for students to have a general timeline of important events and when they occurred.

March 1, 1781 - Articles of Confederation are ratified

February 21, 1787 - Convention to discuss Articles of Confederation revision called

May 14, 1787 - Constitutional Convention Begins in Philadelphia, but only a few delegates arrive, so quorum is postponed

May 25, 1787 - Enough delegates arrive, and the convention is called to order

May 29, 1787 - Edmund Randolph proposes the Virginia Plan

June 15, 1787 - New Jersey Plan is presented by William Patterson

July 12, 1787 - Three-Fifths Compromise is adopted, deciding how slaves would be counted

July 16, 1787 - Connecticut Compromise is adopted, deciding representation in the House and Senate

September 17,1787 - Delegates finish drafting the constitution, convention adjourns

December 7, 1787 - Delaware is the first state to ratify the constitution

June 21, 1788 - New Hampshire is the ninth state to ratify; The Constitution is officially established

February 4, 1789 - George Washington is elected the first president of the United States

December 15, 1791 - The Bill of Rights is added to the Constitution

Signing of the US Constitution, Public Domain, Link

Teacher Resources for Learning about the US Constitution

Now that you know the basics, here are a few excellent resources to help you learn more. These resources will help you better understand the US Constitution:

US Constitution Pacing Guide

US Constitution Simulation

Have you ever considered bringing the US Constitution to life with a simulation? Here's what I did with my students:

After learning about the Framers of the Constitution, students have a chance to participate in their own Constitutional Convention. Each student is given a delegate identity. They are also assigned a state and two opinions they have about government.

Next, students are grouped by state. They get to pick a new name (they love this!) and complete a delegate character sketch about their new identity.

As the unit continues, students learn about important debates from the Constitutional Convention. Each day they debate topics the Founders discussed, including choosing representatives, representation in Congress, and presidential terms.

Just like in the real convention, my students present plans and vote on proposals. This is such a great way to get your students excited and engaged in learning about the Constitution. I know you and your students will love it!

If you are interested in doing something similar, here is the pacing guide I used:

3-Week Pacing Guide
Note: Each lesson is 45-60 minutes long.
This pacing guide is the same one I use in my US Constitution Unit.

If the idea of planning and prepping everything for your Constitution unit overwhelms you, then this resource is for you! It has everything you need!

Included is a helpful teacher resources, engaging simulations, ready-to-print student worksheets, and an easy-to-use study guide and assessment.

For those of you who are teaching remotely, I've added Google Slides to all the lessons. I created this unit to help you and your students love learning about the US Constitution!

Free US Constitution Lesson Plans

Do your students struggle to understand how the US Constitution is organized? It's a difficult concept, so I've created this "Parts of the US Constitution" lesson plan with a foldable graphic organizer. This lesson will help upper elementary and middle school students understand:

1. the parts of the Constitution

2. the purpose/function of each part

In this lesson, students research the parts of the US Constitution and fill out a helpful graphic organizer to show what they've learned. I've created the graphic organizer for you and listed some helpful research resources.

In this lesson, students match picture cards to descriptions of each amendment in the Bill of Rights. Then they evaluate scenarios in which the Bill of Rights are violated by reading task cards around the room. Finally, they write a classroom Bill of Rights.

This lesson includes picture cards, task cards, a writing prompt, and student worksheets and answer keys.
Enter your email below to grab your free Bill of Rights Lesson.
US Constitution Primary Sources

If you aren't using primary sources to teach about the US Constitution, you're missing out! No matter what historical period you're teaching about, primary sources help history come to life for your students.

The main difficulty with primary sources is finding the time to search for them when you already have a million things to do.

To help save you time, I've created a list of teacher-approved US Constitution Primary Sources.

One of my favorite US Constitution primary sources is this note from the constitutional convention.

Memorandum Regarding Population Estimates for Purposes of Apportioning Delegates (1785)

Description of Primary Source:

This note lists population and delegate estimates for each of the thirteen states. The memorandum was part of a collection of notes from the Confederation Congress. The author was trying to figure out how many delegates each state would receive if representation was based on population.

Later this issue became an important debate at the Continental Congress in 1787, and was resolved by the Great Compromise. The Great Compromise created a bicameral legislature with equal representation in the Senate and proportional representation in the House of Representatives.

Class Discussion Questions:

What is the date of the document?

Which state had the largest population in 1785?

Which state had the smallest population in 1785?

What was the estimated population of the United States in 1785?

Which states would benefit the most from proportional representation and which states would benefit the least?

Who do you think wrote this document?

Why do you think this document was written?

Resources for this Primary Source:
Need more US Constitution Primary Sources? Click here to read the blog post
US Constitution Videos

Another great way to engage students is through high-quality history videos. Videos can teach a lot of information in a short period of time. They are also engaging and fun!

However, most teachers know that not all history videos are created equal. It's hard to find accurate, appropriate videos. To help provide you with awesome, informative videos, I've created this list of 5 US Constitution Videos for Kids.

One excellent US Constitution video is The Constitution Song (Despacito Parody) by MrBettsClass.

The Constitution Song ("Despacito" Parody)

Mr. Bett's overview of the US Constitution including its purpose, Preamble, articles, and amendments

My Rating: age 8+

Notes: Like all of Mr. Bett's song parodies, it's cringy in the best way. I recommend watching it twice: first, let the kids get all of their giggles out. Then, watch it again so kids can focus on the content. Provide students with some guiding questions (ex: What are the main parts of the Constitution? What is the purpose of the Preamble? etc.).

US Constitution Interactive Lesson Plans

I hope that these resources help you while you are teaching the US Constitution. If you need more help, consider checking out my 3-week US Constitution Unit.

Feeling stressed about teaching the US Constitution? This unit will help you feel prepared and excited to teach by providing you with 15 complete lessons, worksheets, and answers keys.

Sounds amazing, right?

As teachers, we want to create meaningful lessons for our students. But with so many subjects to cover, it can be difficult to find the time. This is especially true for subjects like history that require a lot of prior knowledge.

I created this unit to provide you with high-quality lessons that will save you time and help you fall in love with teaching history! Keep reading to see what makes this US Constitution Unit so awesome!

What's included?

15 complete US Constitution lesson plans for 5th grade and middle school aged students

15 days of activities

Pacing guide

Answer keys

150+ pages with a variety of activities (simulation, writing activities, task cards, and more)

Table of Contents for US Constitution Unit

Part 1: Context for the Constitutional Convention

Part 2: Events of the Constitutional Convention

Part 3: The Constitution and the US Government

The US Constitution Unit Help For The Teacher

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The Ultimate Guide to Teaching the US Constitution

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Teaching about the US Constitution? This page has free lessons, helpful resources, and everything you'll need to teach the US Constitution!

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Results for constitution day fifth grade

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Browse constitution day fifth grade resources on Teachers Pay Teachers, a marketplace trusted by millions of teachers for original educational resources.

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In honor of this special day, we welcome you to check out our fifth-grade collection of Constitution Day resources including printable worksheets, reading comprehension materials, and more! Use these resources to support your Constitution Day lesson plans as you teach your students about U.S. history and the United States Constitution.

A Collection of Constitution Day Lesson Plans & Worksheets for 5th-Grade Students

Constitution Day, also known as Citizenship Day, takes place annually on September 17th. It commemorates the day that the United States Constitution was signed - September 17, 1787.

This day offers an important opportunity to teach students about U.S. history, the goals set forth by the U.S. Constitution, and the rights of American citizens. As you develop your Constitution Day lesson plans for fifth grade, this collection of worksheets and activities can help!

With these teacher-made resources, your students can explore:

The entire Constitution with a read-aloud activity.

Important events that took place throughout the American Revolution.

Movements that led to amendments.

How amendments are added to the Constitution.

Plus, as students study these topics in their ELA and social studies classes, they'll be developing other learning skills, too. For example, reading comprehension skills and comparison capabilities. You can even host a mock debate with your students to replicate what happened throughout the Constitutional Convention, which can help develop communication and critical thinking skills.

To get started, simply select the worksheets and/or activities you'd like to use. Then download, print, and share with your students. Many of these teaching materials are also available as PDF files, with multiple versions to suit your lesson requirements.

Moreover, since many of our resources are made by teachers, you can rest assured knowing you're receiving materials created with the classroom experience in mind.

Constitution Day Activities and Worksheets: A Few Favorites

Don't quite know where to start when it comes to teaching kids about Constitution Day and why it's important? We can help here too!

To help you get started, we've highlighted a few Constitution Day lesson plans and worksheets for fifth graders that are popular with other Twinkl members:

Get the whole class involved and encourage your students to take turns with this Read-Aloud United States Constitution Activity. As you read, take time to discuss what words mean and how they impact the document. This activity is a great way to help students build confidence while speaking in front of others. It also helps to develop reading comprehension skills.

Following the reading, you can dive into a lesson on how the Constitution is amended. This gives students an insight into an important political process and provides an overview of the "check and balances" that make the United States government so unique.

Finally, assess your students' understanding of the Constitution with the help of this easy-to-use Constitution Quiz. There is a handy answer key that comes with the quiz, which makes grading easier. You can also use the answer key to promote self and/or peer review.

Interesting Facts to Honor Constitution Day

This day was originally named I am an American Day and was celebrated in May. But in 1952 it was renamed Constitution Day and moved to September 17th.

The U.S. Constitution took approximately four months to draft.

The first state to ratify the Constitution was Delaware.

Thomas Jefferson and John Adams did not sign the Constitution since they were out of the country at the time.

In 1791, the Bill of Rights was ratified.

The above video is from a third-party source. We accept no responsibility for any videos from third-party sources. Please let us know if the video is no longer working.

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Constitution Day Lesson Plans | 5th Grade | Twinkl - Twinkl

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Celebrate Constitution Day with the support of this collection of lesson plans, printable worksheets, timelines, and reading materials for 5th-grade students.

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The Articles of Confederation - Constitutional Convention - Extra History - Part 4

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U.S. Government Constitution Day Classroom Activities - Teaching Ideas - Constitution Week Unit of Study

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A collection of classroom activities for a Unit of Study on Constitution Day (formerly known as Citizenship Day) - U.S. Government coloring pages, teaching ideas, crafts for kids, book reviews, word jumbles, worksheets, word searches, and Constitution Week recommending reading - kids books.

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Constitution Day – Teaching Activities | September 17, 2022 | iCivics - iCivics

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Explore iCivics’ free Constitution Day activities and resources to teach your students about the U.S. Constitution and its importance.

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Results for constitution day activities for 4th grade

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Constitution Day Lesson Plans - 4th Grade - Twinkl

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Our Constitution Day lesson plans for 4th grade students will give your children a deep understanding of the constitution, and it’s importance to US citizens.

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This file is intended for students in Kindergarten through 3rd grade. Other versions of this page are available:

If you have any questions about any words or ideas on this page, please ask your parents or teachers for help. Understanding the Constitution is important for all Americans, even kids!

If there is anything that could be improved on this page, please let the Webmaster know!

Want to see pictures of the Constitution, or to find coloring pages for you to color yourself? Click here!
The Basics
The law is the set of rules that we live by. The Constitution is the highest law. It belongs to the United States. It belongs to all Americans.

The Constitution says how the government works. It creates the Presidency. It creates the Congress. It creates the Supreme Court.

The Constitution lists some key rights. Rights are things that all people have just because they are alive. By listing the rights, they are made special. They are made safe. The Bill of Rights is a part of the Constitution. The Bill of Rights lists many rights of the people.
History
The Constitution was written in 1787. Yes, it is over 200 years old. We actually have old copies of what was created. We have pictures of the Constitution on this site.

In 1787, a group of men met to write the Constitution. They did not like the way the country was going. They fixed it by creating the Constitution. We call these men The Framers.

Some of the framers are very famous. George Washington was a Framer. So was Ben Franklin.

The Framers met in Independence Hall during a hot summer in Philadelphia. They had a lot of arguments. In the end, they agreed to the words in the Constitution. They knew they had to agree. If they did not agree, the fighting would keep going.

After the Framers wrote the Constitution, they asked the states to approve it. It took some time, but all the states did approve it.

Some people did not like the Constitution. Some were afraid because it did not do enough to protect the rights of the people. It had no bill, or list, of rights.

Promises were made to add a bill of rights. After the Constitution passed, the Bill of Rights was added. The Bill of Rights is the first ten changes to the Constitution.
The Bill of Rights
The Bill of Rights is very important. It protects important ideas. It protects your right to say what you want. It lets you think for yourself. It keeps the laws from being too hard. It gives rules for the police.

It lets you believe in God if you want. No one can tell you not to believe. It lets you gather with your friends to talk. It makes sure you can read newspapers.

The Bill of Rights also protects your home. It helps keep Americans safe. Today, we are very happy the Bill of Rights was added to the Constitution.
Making changes
The Constitution is not perfect. When it was written, they knew that it would have to be improved. The Framers added a way to make changes. This is called "amendment".

The Bill of Rights was actually added as a set of amendments. The Constitution has been changed 18 times since it was written. The amendments added things that the Framers didn't think of.

One amendment says that all black men can vote. Another says that all women can vote. One more says that the President can only be elected twice.

The first amendments, the Bill of Rights, were added in 1791. The last amendment was added in 1992. Lots of people have ideas for new amendments. Adding an amendment is hard - it takes lots of agreement. Maybe you have a good idea for a change to the Constitution.
How it all works
The Constitution sets up the government. It is split into three parts.

One part is the Congress. The Congress makes laws. The people elect the members of Congress.

The next part is the President. The President enforces the laws.

The last part is the Courts. The courts decide what the law means when there are questions.

All of the parts have to work together. Just like the Framers agreed on the Constitution, the parts have to agree on the laws. No part has too much power. The power is shared. This helps protect the people.

URL: //www.usconstitution.net/constkidsK.html

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The Constitution for Kids (Kindergarten - 3rd Grade) - The U.S. Constitution Online - USConstitution.net

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An introduction to constitutional topics for lower elementary school kids.

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Teaching Constitution day to kids is not only an important activity but also a federal requirement. All schools that receive federal funds are required to teach students something about the Constitution on the 17th of September. As a teacher, you'll likely even receive an email notification from the school to remind you to wrap up a lesson plan.

However, teaching the Constitution to kids is not an easy task. Up until 12 years old, kids use concrete reasoning when thinking about the world, while the Constitution can be a very abstract concept hard to explain in simple terms. So, how to bridge this cognitive gap and make young kids fully understand the Constitution?

To help you out, we created this practical guide with seven unique Constitution Day activities and resources for kids that you can easily implement in your next lesson.

How to Teach Constitution Day to Kids?

Before we dive into the Constitution Day activities and resources, let's examine some specific techniques that will help kindergarten and elementary school kids understand abstract ideas.

After all, the question of whether children (less than 11/12 years old) are developmentally able to grasp abstract concepts like freedom, morality, and democracy is a real concern, and so is the question of whether you, as a teacher, can make that process easier for them.

Teachers and homeschool tutors can help students learn abstract concepts like the Constitution with the help of mental hooks and age-appropriate terminology. Let's explain this.

The mental hook is a learning technique that allows the kids to associate new abstract ideas with prior concrete knowledge. For example, explaining "God" as a father that protects us. The term father is a hook that allows the teacher to introduce the new, more abstract word "God".

This way, you can use prior knowledge to explain the Constitution. For example: "On September 17, 1787, some very important people wrote a set of rules for everyone in the country to follow." If you have already asked your students to follow certain classroom rules and explained why they are important, then this is more than enough to be a concrete example and serve as a mental hook for understanding what exactly a Constitution is in its most basic form.

You can even use the "Classroom Constitution" activity, which we describe below, to further strengthen this association, or choose another one from our extensive Constitution Day activities list.

7 Great Activities for Teaching Constitution Day to Kids

Teaching about the Constitution has never been easier thanks to our Constitution Day teaching resources. Here's everything you can use to plan a fun and memorable lesson.

Watch Educational Videos

Explaining the Constitution is one thing, but giving children the opportunity to learn through a visual medium will help them process the information more effectively.

For kindergarten and elementary school kids, you can use the historical animated series Liberty's Kids. In the 140th episode, titled "We The People", the series shows how America's leaders wrote the constitution.

For upper-middle school and high school students, Hillsdale College has created a wonderful Constitution 101 series that teaches about the meaning of the Constitution and the principles of the American government.

Separate & Analyze the Constitution

The best way to go a little deeper into the concept of the constitution and have a better understanding of it is to break it down into separate sections and then analyze only one section. This can also prevent kids from getting overwhelmed.

For example, the first sentence of the Constitution is called the preamble, which explains the purpose of the document and tells us about the intentions of the Framers who created it. You can discuss how students interpret the preamble and compare it with the law.

Use Interactive Worksheets

After explaining to kids what the Constitution is, you can give them interactive worksheets to work on, together or in small groups. This will help you tie in theoretical knowledge with practical examples.

With our Acts, Constitution, & Bills Curriculum Facts & Worksheets bundle, students will be able to work on crosswords and true-or-false quizzes, as well as make a timeline of the events described. Alternatively, you can download and work through the US Constitution worksheet bundle.

You can also use the Constitution Day Facts & Worksheet bubble where students can learn the facts and then compare constitutions, answer a fact or fiction quiz, take a citizenship test, describe their American hero, and so much more.

Organize a Fishbowl Discussion

Fishbowl discussions are a great way to encourage critical thinking and help children understand the concept better by listening to their classmates explaining their way of thinking about the matter.

This is a very useful method that's incredibly easy to organize. You can simply let children read part of the Constitution and discuss how they believe it impacts our society today. You can also let them discuss questions like:

What would happen if we all used different kinds of money in each state? How would our life be different?

What would happen if there was no president?

Discuss Books/Articles

Giving students reading materials about the Constitution and analyzing them through discussion is a great activity for upper-middle and high school students.

On the Library of Congress website, you can find several virtual copies of original sources regarding the Constitution, including historical maps, news articles, and even the diaries of George Washington. You can give these documents as a reading assignment to your students and later analyze them.

Also, here's a list of children's books about the Constitution, you can use:

Write a Classroom Constitution

Chances are you've already set up ground rules on how students should behave in the classroom. This is a chance to use that example from their daily life and bring it closer to what a Constitution actually is. After writing a classroom constitution, all of the children will be able to grasp the abstract idea behind the Constitution of the United States.

How to bring this idea to life?

Simply remind the kids about the rules on which you have agreed upon. Tell them that now they'll create their own classroom constitution by proposing rules that they think are important and good for them. After writing down the proposed rules, the students will vote on them and if the majority agrees, that rule will be part of the classroom constitution. In the end, give each student to sign that constitution and put it up on the wall.

Finally, if your school has the resources, or you as a homeschool tutor can afford it, take your students on a field trip. You can visit a history museum, or even a courtroom (more suitable for older students).

This can be a great experience and will definitely help children remember the "boring" facts when they associate them with an intense emotional response, such as excitement from getting their hands on actual historical objects and seeing how the Constitution impacts our daily life.

But, what if you can't take a field trip?

Well, you can always invite a judge, lawyer, or a historian to speak in front of the class and ask them to bring some historic objects that might be interesting to kids.

What Do You Think?

As you can see, teaching the Constitution to kids can be a challenging task that, hopefully, our article can help you tackle with ease. Instead of simply giving you a bunch of activities, we made sure to include a helpful guide on how to use specific techniques, like mental hooks, to explain Constitution Day in a way that allows kids to mentally grasp the meaning behind it.

We also made sure that all the activities we chose were age-appropriate and fun, so your students will actually be interested in learning more and won't forget everything when the bell rings. And, for all of your future lessons, regardless of the subject topic, simply browse our worksheet library, as we're sure we have the right bundle for all of your needs.

Finally, for all the common questions or concerns that teachers, tutors, and parents might have, we regularly share informative articles on our blog, so check us out.

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Teaching Constitution Day to Kids: Activities and Resources

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Organizing the perfect lesson for September 17th has never been easier with our Constitution Day activities and teaching resources for kids.

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Browse our range of 3rd Grade US Constitution Day Worksheets and find a wide selection of lessons, printable worksheets, and activities to teach your 3rd-grade children about the United States Constitution and U.S. history.
How can I use these 3rd Grade US Constitution Day Worksheets?

Our 3rd Grade US Constitution Day Worksheets are an engaging way to help your 3rd graders understand Citizen day with our constitution day lesson plans 3rd grade. You can print all our resources in color or black and white for an extra creative activity! Use our 3rd Grade US Constitution Day Worksheets now and create a fun lesson all around this event for your students now!

We have plenty of resources to make your teaching experience more manageable, so why not see what we can offer? We create everything on our website, so you can be assured of receiving high-quality content. Not only that, but we strive to make lesson plans that save you time and are enjoyable for your students. We guarantee that whatever you're looking for, you'll find it here!

Our Favorite 3rd Grade US Constitution Day Worksheets:

Third Grade U.S. Constitution Paraphrasing Activity: Help students develop their skills in paraphrasing with this activity. Students can read a short passage about the U.S. Constitution and highlight one part of the text they would like to write in their own words. Once they have identified what section they would like to work with, they are prompted to use different vocabulary to paraphrase it.

Third Grade U.S. Constitutional Convention Point of View Letter Writing Activity: Engage students in writing with our U.S. Constitutional Convention Point of View Letter Writing Activity. Get your students to write from the point of view of one of the Constitutional delegates. This is a great independent activity that integrates writing and history.

Constitution Day Interactive Word Search: Our Constitution Day Word Search is a great interactive resource to use when teaching children about the U.S. Constitution. The word search includes key vocabulary related to American history. Designed to be used on a digital board or personal device, simply click the "Let's go!" button to complete the word search!

Who made the US Constitution?

The US Constitution was created and founded by James Madison. He is known as the Father of the Constitution because of his main role in drafting the constitution document. It was then signed by 39 out of 55 delegates, giving it approval.

The above video is from a third-party source. We accept no responsibility for any videos from third-party sources. Please let us know if the video is no longer working.

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3rd Grade US Constitution Day Worksheets | Twinkl USA

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Learning about Constitution Day with your 3rd-graders? Check out this collection of 3rd Grade US Constitution Day Worksheets and learn all about James Madison!

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Results for us constitution day activities 2nd grade

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Browse us constitution day activities 2nd grade resources on Teachers Pay Teachers, a marketplace trusted by millions of teachers for original educational resources.

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Lesson Plan
Created by Laura Chatfield

( Constitution, from the 2009 May Day Parade in Chicago by Joseph Finn ( cc by-nc-nd 2.0)

Core Theme to Which Lesson Relates:

Grade Level:

Estimated duration of lesson:

Content standards that the lesson fulfills and the relevant grade level indicators:

Ohio Social Studies Academic Content Standards

Government Grade 2: 2. Explain how a system of government provides order to a group such as a school or community and why government is necessary.

Also: Ohio law mandates that all publicly funded educational institutions provide educational programming on the history of the American Constitution on Constitution Day.

Primary Sources:

1. Replicas of U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights

Summary of the lesson:

The law establishing Constitution Day was created in 2004. The act mandates that all publicly funded educational institutions provide educational programming on the history of the American Constitution on that day. Typically this requirement has often been fulfilled simply by having students read a Weekly Reader or Scholastic News issue about the Constitution. This lesson attempts to more fully engage students through use of primary and secondary source material. As a culminating activity, students create their own classroom "bill of rights." At the on-set of this lesson, second grade students have little to no background knowledge of our US Constitution.

Instructional steps to implement the lesson:

1) Using the Document Analysis Worksheet for Primary Grades as a guide, view documents (Constitution, Bill of Rights) and discuss orally being sure students understand basic meaning of the documents.

2) Show the photograph of the signing of the Constitution. Using the mouse, scroll over the people in the picture and their names will appear. Match a few famous signatures on the Constitution to people in the painting.

3) Show a picture of the original Constitution, on display, in the Library of Congress, Washington D.C.

4) Make the connection between the laws for how our country is set-up and classroom rules that were established at the beginning of the year.

5) Make the connection between rights as a US Citizen and rights in the school classroom.

6) Give students time to work with their table to think of classroom rights, and share with whole class to create a list of classroom rights.

7) Display Classroom Bill of Rights next to the classroom rules and US Constitution and Bill of Rights documents.

Materials needed by students:

None, possibly paper and pencil for writing ideas for classroom rights. For extension (see below) - crayons, markers

Materials needed by teacher:

Constitution and Bill of Rights documents, websites as noted above.

for guide, chart paper

Assessment:

Informal assessment - students will understand the meaning of the US Constitution and Bill of Rights. They will be able to identify classroom rights. (At the 2nd grade level, these concepts are not formally tested early in the year.)

Extension:

Once the Classroom Rights are listed and posted, students could choose a right to illustrate and label. Drawings could be posted on the bulletin board.

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Below you will find printables and worksheets associated with the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights. Printables include:

Alphabetical Order Activities and Worksheets

U.S. Constitution Day Word Magnets
Drag the word magnets to form an alphabetically ordered word list. Students may choose to complete the alphabetical order worksheet when done. Words magnets include: liberty, laws, ordain, justice, American, September, Executive, Washington, Amendment, education, citizenship and Constitution.

U.S. Bill of Rights Word Magnets
Drag the word magnets to form an alphabetically ordered word list. Students may choose to complete the alphabetical order worksheet when done. Words magnets include: jury, due process, ratified, ten, arms, freedoms, Jefferson, press, religion, amendments, Congress and Constitution.

Word Jumbles - Word Jumble Worksheets

Word Searches - Word Search Puzzles

Cloze Worksheets

Coloring Pages

Other activities you may be interested in:

December Teaching Activities & Worksheets

Sample Thematic Activities & Teaching Ideas

- Summer

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U.S. Constitution Worksheets | Constitution Week Printables | Bill of Rights Worksheets

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U.S. Constitution worksheets. Kids love these Constitution and Bill of Rights worksheets for this U.S. Constitution Week thematic unit of study. Printable worksheets include word jumbles, coloring pages, alphabetical order vocabulary worksheets, cloze worksheets and word search puzzles.

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Teaching Constitution day to kids is not only an important activity but also a federal requirement. All schools that receive federal funds are required to teach students something about the Constitution on the 17th of September. As a teacher, you'll likely even receive an email notification from the school to remind you to wrap up a lesson plan.

However, teaching the Constitution to kids is not an easy task. Up until 12 years old, kids use concrete reasoning when thinking about the world, while the Constitution can be a very abstract concept hard to explain in simple terms. So, how to bridge this cognitive gap and make young kids fully understand the Constitution?

To help you out, we created this practical guide with seven unique Constitution Day activities and resources for kids that you can easily implement in your next lesson.

How to Teach Constitution Day to Kids?

Before we dive into the Constitution Day activities and resources, let's examine some specific techniques that will help kindergarten and elementary school kids understand abstract ideas.

After all, the question of whether children (less than 11/12 years old) are developmentally able to grasp abstract concepts like freedom, morality, and democracy is a real concern, and so is the question of whether you, as a teacher, can make that process easier for them.

Teachers and homeschool tutors can help students learn abstract concepts like the Constitution with the help of mental hooks and age-appropriate terminology. Let's explain this.

The mental hook is a learning technique that allows the kids to associate new abstract ideas with prior concrete knowledge. For example, explaining "God" as a father that protects us. The term father is a hook that allows the teacher to introduce the new, more abstract word "God".

This way, you can use prior knowledge to explain the Constitution. For example: "On September 17, 1787, some very important people wrote a set of rules for everyone in the country to follow." If you have already asked your students to follow certain classroom rules and explained why they are important, then this is more than enough to be a concrete example and serve as a mental hook for understanding what exactly a Constitution is in its most basic form.

You can even use the "Classroom Constitution" activity, which we describe below, to further strengthen this association, or choose another one from our extensive Constitution Day activities list.

7 Great Activities for Teaching Constitution Day to Kids

Teaching about the Constitution has never been easier thanks to our Constitution Day teaching resources. Here's everything you can use to plan a fun and memorable lesson.

Watch Educational Videos

Explaining the Constitution is one thing, but giving children the opportunity to learn through a visual medium will help them process the information more effectively.

For kindergarten and elementary school kids, you can use the historical animated series Liberty's Kids. In the 140th episode, titled "We The People", the series shows how America's leaders wrote the constitution.

For upper-middle school and high school students, Hillsdale College has created a wonderful Constitution 101 series that teaches about the meaning of the Constitution and the principles of the American government.

Separate & Analyze the Constitution

The best way to go a little deeper into the concept of the constitution and have a better understanding of it is to break it down into separate sections and then analyze only one section. This can also prevent kids from getting overwhelmed.

For example, the first sentence of the Constitution is called the preamble, which explains the purpose of the document and tells us about the intentions of the Framers who created it. You can discuss how students interpret the preamble and compare it with the law.

Use Interactive Worksheets

After explaining to kids what the Constitution is, you can give them interactive worksheets to work on, together or in small groups. This will help you tie in theoretical knowledge with practical examples.

With our Acts, Constitution, & Bills Curriculum Facts & Worksheets bundle, students will be able to work on crosswords and true-or-false quizzes, as well as make a timeline of the events described. Alternatively, you can download and work through the US Constitution worksheet bundle.

You can also use the Constitution Day Facts & Worksheet bubble where students can learn the facts and then compare constitutions, answer a fact or fiction quiz, take a citizenship test, describe their American hero, and so much more.

Organize a Fishbowl Discussion

Fishbowl discussions are a great way to encourage critical thinking and help children understand the concept better by listening to their classmates explaining their way of thinking about the matter.

This is a very useful method that's incredibly easy to organize. You can simply let children read part of the Constitution and discuss how they believe it impacts our society today. You can also let them discuss questions like:

What would happen if we all used different kinds of money in each state? How would our life be different?

What would happen if there was no president?

Discuss Books/Articles

Giving students reading materials about the Constitution and analyzing them through discussion is a great activity for upper-middle and high school students.

On the Library of Congress website, you can find several virtual copies of original sources regarding the Constitution, including historical maps, news articles, and even the diaries of George Washington. You can give these documents as a reading assignment to your students and later analyze them.

Also, here's a list of children's books about the Constitution, you can use:

Write a Classroom Constitution

Chances are you've already set up ground rules on how students should behave in the classroom. This is a chance to use that example from their daily life and bring it closer to what a Constitution actually is. After writing a classroom constitution, all of the children will be able to grasp the abstract idea behind the Constitution of the United States.

How to bring this idea to life?

Simply remind the kids about the rules on which you have agreed upon. Tell them that now they'll create their own classroom constitution by proposing rules that they think are important and good for them. After writing down the proposed rules, the students will vote on them and if the majority agrees, that rule will be part of the classroom constitution. In the end, give each student to sign that constitution and put it up on the wall.

Finally, if your school has the resources, or you as a homeschool tutor can afford it, take your students on a field trip. You can visit a history museum, or even a courtroom (more suitable for older students).

This can be a great experience and will definitely help children remember the "boring" facts when they associate them with an intense emotional response, such as excitement from getting their hands on actual historical objects and seeing how the Constitution impacts our daily life.

But, what if you can't take a field trip?

Well, you can always invite a judge, lawyer, or a historian to speak in front of the class and ask them to bring some historic objects that might be interesting to kids.

What Do You Think?

As you can see, teaching the Constitution to kids can be a challenging task that, hopefully, our article can help you tackle with ease. Instead of simply giving you a bunch of activities, we made sure to include a helpful guide on how to use specific techniques, like mental hooks, to explain Constitution Day in a way that allows kids to mentally grasp the meaning behind it.

We also made sure that all the activities we chose were age-appropriate and fun, so your students will actually be interested in learning more and won't forget everything when the bell rings. And, for all of your future lessons, regardless of the subject topic, simply browse our worksheet library, as we're sure we have the right bundle for all of your needs.

Finally, for all the common questions or concerns that teachers, tutors, and parents might have, we regularly share informative articles on our blog, so check us out.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Teaching Constitution Day to Kids: Activities and Resources

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Organizing the perfect lesson for September 17th has never been easier with our Constitution Day activities and teaching resources for kids.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Browse constitution day 1st grade resources on Teachers Pay Teachers, a marketplace trusted by millions of teachers for original educational resources.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Constitution Day – Teaching Activities | September 17, 2022 | iCivics - iCivics

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Explore iCivics’ free Constitution Day activities and resources to teach your students about the U.S. Constitution and its importance.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Teaching Constitution day to kids is not only an important activity but also a federal requirement. All schools that receive federal funds are required to teach students something about the Constitution on the 17th of September. As a teacher, you'll likely even receive an email notification from the school to remind you to wrap up a lesson plan.

However, teaching the Constitution to kids is not an easy task. Up until 12 years old, kids use concrete reasoning when thinking about the world, while the Constitution can be a very abstract concept hard to explain in simple terms. So, how to bridge this cognitive gap and make young kids fully understand the Constitution?

To help you out, we created this practical guide with seven unique Constitution Day activities and resources for kids that you can easily implement in your next lesson.

How to Teach Constitution Day to Kids?

Before we dive into the Constitution Day activities and resources, let's examine some specific techniques that will help kindergarten and elementary school kids understand abstract ideas.

After all, the question of whether children (less than 11/12 years old) are developmentally able to grasp abstract concepts like freedom, morality, and democracy is a real concern, and so is the question of whether you, as a teacher, can make that process easier for them.

Teachers and homeschool tutors can help students learn abstract concepts like the Constitution with the help of mental hooks and age-appropriate terminology. Let's explain this.

The mental hook is a learning technique that allows the kids to associate new abstract ideas with prior concrete knowledge. For example, explaining "God" as a father that protects us. The term father is a hook that allows the teacher to introduce the new, more abstract word "God".

This way, you can use prior knowledge to explain the Constitution. For example: "On September 17, 1787, some very important people wrote a set of rules for everyone in the country to follow." If you have already asked your students to follow certain classroom rules and explained why they are important, then this is more than enough to be a concrete example and serve as a mental hook for understanding what exactly a Constitution is in its most basic form.

You can even use the "Classroom Constitution" activity, which we describe below, to further strengthen this association, or choose another one from our extensive Constitution Day activities list.

7 Great Activities for Teaching Constitution Day to Kids

Teaching about the Constitution has never been easier thanks to our Constitution Day teaching resources. Here's everything you can use to plan a fun and memorable lesson.

Watch Educational Videos

Explaining the Constitution is one thing, but giving children the opportunity to learn through a visual medium will help them process the information more effectively.

For kindergarten and elementary school kids, you can use the historical animated series Liberty's Kids. In the 140th episode, titled "We The People", the series shows how America's leaders wrote the constitution.

For upper-middle school and high school students, Hillsdale College has created a wonderful Constitution 101 series that teaches about the meaning of the Constitution and the principles of the American government.

Separate & Analyze the Constitution

The best way to go a little deeper into the concept of the constitution and have a better understanding of it is to break it down into separate sections and then analyze only one section. This can also prevent kids from getting overwhelmed.

For example, the first sentence of the Constitution is called the preamble, which explains the purpose of the document and tells us about the intentions of the Framers who created it. You can discuss how students interpret the preamble and compare it with the law.

Use Interactive Worksheets

After explaining to kids what the Constitution is, you can give them interactive worksheets to work on, together or in small groups. This will help you tie in theoretical knowledge with practical examples.

With our Acts, Constitution, & Bills Curriculum Facts & Worksheets bundle, students will be able to work on crosswords and true-or-false quizzes, as well as make a timeline of the events described. Alternatively, you can download and work through the US Constitution worksheet bundle.

You can also use the Constitution Day Facts & Worksheet bubble where students can learn the facts and then compare constitutions, answer a fact or fiction quiz, take a citizenship test, describe their American hero, and so much more.

Organize a Fishbowl Discussion

Fishbowl discussions are a great way to encourage critical thinking and help children understand the concept better by listening to their classmates explaining their way of thinking about the matter.

This is a very useful method that's incredibly easy to organize. You can simply let children read part of the Constitution and discuss how they believe it impacts our society today. You can also let them discuss questions like:

What would happen if we all used different kinds of money in each state? How would our life be different?

What would happen if there was no president?

Discuss Books/Articles

Giving students reading materials about the Constitution and analyzing them through discussion is a great activity for upper-middle and high school students.

On the Library of Congress website, you can find several virtual copies of original sources regarding the Constitution, including historical maps, news articles, and even the diaries of George Washington. You can give these documents as a reading assignment to your students and later analyze them.

Also, here's a list of children's books about the Constitution, you can use:

Write a Classroom Constitution

Chances are you've already set up ground rules on how students should behave in the classroom. This is a chance to use that example from their daily life and bring it closer to what a Constitution actually is. After writing a classroom constitution, all of the children will be able to grasp the abstract idea behind the Constitution of the United States.

How to bring this idea to life?

Simply remind the kids about the rules on which you have agreed upon. Tell them that now they'll create their own classroom constitution by proposing rules that they think are important and good for them. After writing down the proposed rules, the students will vote on them and if the majority agrees, that rule will be part of the classroom constitution. In the end, give each student to sign that constitution and put it up on the wall.

Finally, if your school has the resources, or you as a homeschool tutor can afford it, take your students on a field trip. You can visit a history museum, or even a courtroom (more suitable for older students).

This can be a great experience and will definitely help children remember the "boring" facts when they associate them with an intense emotional response, such as excitement from getting their hands on actual historical objects and seeing how the Constitution impacts our daily life.

But, what if you can't take a field trip?

Well, you can always invite a judge, lawyer, or a historian to speak in front of the class and ask them to bring some historic objects that might be interesting to kids.

What Do You Think?

As you can see, teaching the Constitution to kids can be a challenging task that, hopefully, our article can help you tackle with ease. Instead of simply giving you a bunch of activities, we made sure to include a helpful guide on how to use specific techniques, like mental hooks, to explain Constitution Day in a way that allows kids to mentally grasp the meaning behind it.

We also made sure that all the activities we chose were age-appropriate and fun, so your students will actually be interested in learning more and won't forget everything when the bell rings. And, for all of your future lessons, regardless of the subject topic, simply browse our worksheet library, as we're sure we have the right bundle for all of your needs.

Finally, for all the common questions or concerns that teachers, tutors, and parents might have, we regularly share informative articles on our blog, so check us out.

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Teaching Constitution Day to Kids: Activities and Resources

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Organizing the perfect lesson for September 17th has never been easier with our Constitution Day activities and teaching resources for kids.

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[Detail] Constitution, Printed, with Marginal Notes by George Washington

On September 17, 1787, the final draft of the Constitution was signed by 39 delegates. The document was then sent to the states for ratification, and went into effect on June 21, 1788 when New Hampshire became the ninth state to ratify the Constitution.

In celebration of Constitution Day, the Library of Congress has compiled a variety of materials from across its collections. Explore these rich resources and features to learn more about one of America's most important documents.

Congress.gov

Free Constitution Ebook for Teachers and Students

Primary Source Documents Related to the United States Constitution

Resources for Teachers

Activities from the Teaching with the Library of Congress Blog

Lesson Plans

Library of Congress Online Collections

Search these collections using the words "Constitution," "Constitutional Convention," "Continental Congress" "Bill of Rights," or "Constitutional Amendments" to find related documents.

Stories for Kids from America's Library

The Articles of Confederation Were Adopted, November 15, 1777

James Madison's Contribution to the Constitution

New Jersey Approved the Constitution, December 18, 1787

The New United States of America Adopted the Bill of Rights, December 15, 1791

14th Amendment to the Constitution was Ratified, July 28, 1868

Nineteenth Amendment Granting Women's Suffrage Was Sent to the States, June 4, 1919

The 24th Amendment Ended the Poll Tax, January 23, 1964

Webcasts

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Constitution Day Teacher Resources | Classroom Materials at the Library of Congress | Library of Congress

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On September 17, 1787, the final draft of the Constitution was signed by 39 delegates. The document was then sent to the states for ratification, and went into effect on June 21, 1788 when New Hampshire became the ninth state to ratify the Constitution.

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Constitution Day Resources for Kids! - Kids Discover

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Monday, September 17th is Constitution Day, the anniversary of the United States' most important document. What if there was no such thing as a president of the country? What if the government had no money to pay soldiers?

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Kindergarten All About Constitution Day PowerPoint & Google Slides

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Celebrate this patriotic holiday with students and teach them about the history of the U.S. Constitution with our informative Kindergarten All About Constitution Day PowerPoint & Google Slides. Use this PowerPoint and Google Slide as a fun and informative large group social studies lesson to teach students about why we celebrate Constitution Day.

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Maria is a former kindergarten and first grade teacher, with 13 years of teaching experience. Her love and passion for all things early childhood is now fulfilled as a mom to two amazing kids. She loves sharing practical and creative tips and ideas that are perfect for young learners - in the classroom or at home!

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Ideas and Resources to Teach Constitution Day in Kindergarten

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Today we celebrated Constitution Day in my kindergarten classroom. Since the Constitution can be such a very BIG idea for young little minds, we always put a patriotic spin on this very special day. To begin, the students arrive at school dressed in red, white and blue. Then the fun

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Results for constitution day activities for kindergarten

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Browse constitution day activities for kindergarten resources on Teachers Pay Teachers, a marketplace trusted by millions of teachers for original educational resources.

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Teaching Constitution day to kids is not only an important activity but also a federal requirement. All schools that receive federal funds are required to teach students something about the Constitution on the 17th of September. As a teacher, you'll likely even receive an email notification from the school to remind you to wrap up a lesson plan.

However, teaching the Constitution to kids is not an easy task. Up until 12 years old, kids use concrete reasoning when thinking about the world, while the Constitution can be a very abstract concept hard to explain in simple terms. So, how to bridge this cognitive gap and make young kids fully understand the Constitution?

To help you out, we created this practical guide with seven unique Constitution Day activities and resources for kids that you can easily implement in your next lesson.

How to Teach Constitution Day to Kids?

Before we dive into the Constitution Day activities and resources, let's examine some specific techniques that will help kindergarten and elementary school kids understand abstract ideas.

After all, the question of whether children (less than 11/12 years old) are developmentally able to grasp abstract concepts like freedom, morality, and democracy is a real concern, and so is the question of whether you, as a teacher, can make that process easier for them.

Teachers and homeschool tutors can help students learn abstract concepts like the Constitution with the help of mental hooks and age-appropriate terminology. Let's explain this.

The mental hook is a learning technique that allows the kids to associate new abstract ideas with prior concrete knowledge. For example, explaining "God" as a father that protects us. The term father is a hook that allows the teacher to introduce the new, more abstract word "God".

This way, you can use prior knowledge to explain the Constitution. For example: "On September 17, 1787, some very important people wrote a set of rules for everyone in the country to follow." If you have already asked your students to follow certain classroom rules and explained why they are important, then this is more than enough to be a concrete example and serve as a mental hook for understanding what exactly a Constitution is in its most basic form.

You can even use the "Classroom Constitution" activity, which we describe below, to further strengthen this association, or choose another one from our extensive Constitution Day activities list.

7 Great Activities for Teaching Constitution Day to Kids

Teaching about the Constitution has never been easier thanks to our Constitution Day teaching resources. Here's everything you can use to plan a fun and memorable lesson.

Watch Educational Videos

Explaining the Constitution is one thing, but giving children the opportunity to learn through a visual medium will help them process the information more effectively.

For kindergarten and elementary school kids, you can use the historical animated series Liberty's Kids. In the 140th episode, titled "We The People", the series shows how America's leaders wrote the constitution.

For upper-middle school and high school students, Hillsdale College has created a wonderful Constitution 101 series that teaches about the meaning of the Constitution and the principles of the American government.

Separate & Analyze the Constitution

The best way to go a little deeper into the concept of the constitution and have a better understanding of it is to break it down into separate sections and then analyze only one section. This can also prevent kids from getting overwhelmed.

For example, the first sentence of the Constitution is called the preamble, which explains the purpose of the document and tells us about the intentions of the Framers who created it. You can discuss how students interpret the preamble and compare it with the law.

Use Interactive Worksheets

After explaining to kids what the Constitution is, you can give them interactive worksheets to work on, together or in small groups. This will help you tie in theoretical knowledge with practical examples.

With our Acts, Constitution, & Bills Curriculum Facts & Worksheets bundle, students will be able to work on crosswords and true-or-false quizzes, as well as make a timeline of the events described. Alternatively, you can download and work through the US Constitution worksheet bundle.

You can also use the Constitution Day Facts & Worksheet bubble where students can learn the facts and then compare constitutions, answer a fact or fiction quiz, take a citizenship test, describe their American hero, and so much more.

Organize a Fishbowl Discussion

Fishbowl discussions are a great way to encourage critical thinking and help children understand the concept better by listening to their classmates explaining their way of thinking about the matter.

This is a very useful method that's incredibly easy to organize. You can simply let children read part of the Constitution and discuss how they believe it impacts our society today. You can also let them discuss questions like:

What would happen if we all used different kinds of money in each state? How would our life be different?

What would happen if there was no president?

Discuss Books/Articles

Giving students reading materials about the Constitution and analyzing them through discussion is a great activity for upper-middle and high school students.

On the Library of Congress website, you can find several virtual copies of original sources regarding the Constitution, including historical maps, news articles, and even the diaries of George Washington. You can give these documents as a reading assignment to your students and later analyze them.

Also, here's a list of children's books about the Constitution, you can use:

Write a Classroom Constitution

Chances are you've already set up ground rules on how students should behave in the classroom. This is a chance to use that example from their daily life and bring it closer to what a Constitution actually is. After writing a classroom constitution, all of the children will be able to grasp the abstract idea behind the Constitution of the United States.

How to bring this idea to life?

Simply remind the kids about the rules on which you have agreed upon. Tell them that now they'll create their own classroom constitution by proposing rules that they think are important and good for them. After writing down the proposed rules, the students will vote on them and if the majority agrees, that rule will be part of the classroom constitution. In the end, give each student to sign that constitution and put it up on the wall.

Finally, if your school has the resources, or you as a homeschool tutor can afford it, take your students on a field trip. You can visit a history museum, or even a courtroom (more suitable for older students).

This can be a great experience and will definitely help children remember the "boring" facts when they associate them with an intense emotional response, such as excitement from getting their hands on actual historical objects and seeing how the Constitution impacts our daily life.

But, what if you can't take a field trip?

Well, you can always invite a judge, lawyer, or a historian to speak in front of the class and ask them to bring some historic objects that might be interesting to kids.

What Do You Think?

As you can see, teaching the Constitution to kids can be a challenging task that, hopefully, our article can help you tackle with ease. Instead of simply giving you a bunch of activities, we made sure to include a helpful guide on how to use specific techniques, like mental hooks, to explain Constitution Day in a way that allows kids to mentally grasp the meaning behind it.

We also made sure that all the activities we chose were age-appropriate and fun, so your students will actually be interested in learning more and won't forget everything when the bell rings. And, for all of your future lessons, regardless of the subject topic, simply browse our worksheet library, as we're sure we have the right bundle for all of your needs.

Finally, for all the common questions or concerns that teachers, tutors, and parents might have, we regularly share informative articles on our blog, so check us out.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Teaching Constitution Day to Kids: Activities and Resources

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Organizing the perfect lesson for September 17th has never been easier with our Constitution Day activities and teaching resources for kids.