Summary
Ever wonder how the United States was governed before the Constitution was written? Well, wonder no more. In this BrainPOP movie, you'll learn about the Articles of Confederation, the 1777 document that laid out the structure and function of the very first U.S. Government. Find out why the struggle against Great Britain led the Founding Fathers to avoid a strong national government, and create a "league of friendship" between independent states. Discover the troubles caused by the government's inability to enforce laws, regulate interstate trade, and even defend its borders. Finally, learn how an uprising called Shays' Rebellion encouraged the Founding Fathers to scrap the Articles and draft the Constitution to replace it.
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Teaching resources
Discussion questions
A few questions to talk through after watching Articles of Confederation:
- What is one new thing you learned about articles of confederation?
- Can you explain it to a partner in your own words?
- Where might you see this in the real world?
- What is one question you still have?
Quick work-a-long
Try it:
- Write one sentence explaining articles of confederation.
- Draw or give one example of your own.