Miss Smith 7 th Grade Civics *pgs Civics in Practice

 The U.S. Constitution is the oldest constitution still governing a country today

 Magna Carta  Guaranteed that free people could not be arrested, put in prison, or forced to leave their nation unless they were given a trial by a jury of their peers  English Bill of Rights  Guaranteed rights such as: the right to petition/request the government to improve or change laws  The right to a fair punishment if a citizen were to be found guilty of a crime  Parliamentary Government  Parliament- the lawmaking body of Great Britain. It is bicameral (has 2 parts or “houses”)  Each house can check the work of the other  The head of Parliament is the Prime Minister

 The Mayflower Compact  First document to establish self government in the colonies  The Enlightenment  Philosophers such as John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau  Believed that government exists only by the “consent of the governed”  Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom  Written by Thomas Jefferson  Argued that government has no right to impose or interfere with religious practice

 James Madison is considered the Father of the Constitution  His journals are the only source that tells us what happened during the Constitutional Convention

 Federalism- system of government that divides powers between national and state governments  Compromise- agreement in which each side gives up part of its demands in order to reach a solution to a problem  The Great Compromise- delegates compromised when they created 2 houses of Congress  Senate: states have equal representation  House of Representatives: each state is represented according to population size

 Congress now has power to:  Coin/print money  Raise armed forces  Regulate trade (among states and with foreign countries)  Set taxes  The president can carry out laws  Supreme Court interprets laws

 September 17, 1781 the Constitution was signed by 39 out of 42 framers/delegates

 Ratification- official approval  The Constitution had to be ratified by 9 out of the 13 states

 Federalists- supporters of the Constitution who favored a strong national government  Antifederalists- people who opposed the new Constitution and the federal system of government

 The Bill of Rights was added to ease the minds of citizens so the Constitution would be approved  The Constitution was put into effect in March 1789  George Washington was sworn in as president on April 30, 1789