Constitution Day quiz competition

Title

Constitution Day Quiz Competition

Description

Have students compete (either individually or in groups) to demonstrate knowledge about the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights

Objectives

• Students will demonstrate knowledge of the history and content of the Constitution and Bill of Rights.
• Students will assess their own level of familiarity with the Constitution and its effects.
• Students will the priorities apparent in the Constitution to their own lives and beliefs.

Common Core State Standards

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.11-12.8
Delineate and evaluate the reasoning in seminal U.S. texts, including the application of constitutional principles and use of legal reasoning (e.g., in U.S. Supreme Court majority opinions and dissents) and the premises, purposes, and arguments in works of public advocacy (e.g., The Federalist, presidential addresses).

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.11-12.9

Analyze seventeenth-, eighteenth-, and nineteenth-century foundational U.S. documents of historical and literary significance (including The Declaration of Independence, the Preamble to the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address) for their themes, purposes, and rhetorical features.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RH.11-12.7
Integrate and evaluate multiple sources of information presented in diverse formats and media (e.g., visually, quantitatively, as well as in words) in order to address a question or solve a problem.

Length

30-50 minutes

Materials / resources

Constitution Day Quiz (See these links for QUIZ and ANSWER sheet)
Constitution Day Quiz on Kahoot

Lesson step-by-step

Step 1 — Introduction and Set-Up (2-5 minutes)

Introduce the day and activity (For example: “Constitution Day is a federal observance celebrating the anniversary of the day the U.S. Constitution was signed. The law formalizing the observance in 2004 mandated that educational institutions provide information about the Constitution and its signing every Sept. 17.”).

Set up the activity with the materials necessary depending on what you plan to use. You may be handing out print-outs of the quiz for individuals or groups to answer, getting students into groups to answer questions read or displayed by the teacher, or getting students set up for the Kahoot version of the quiz.

Step 2 — Quiz/Competition (15-25 minutes)

Administer the questions/quiz. There are several options available for this:
Have students using devices to join the Kahoot quiz that you are also displaying using a screen and projector at the front of the classroom. Students will be seeing the correct answers and their progress as they go, but feel free to take some time to discuss answers missed by large numbers of students.

(or) Have students grouped into teams and responding to each question as they are read aloud by the teacher or projected on a screen. Groups may either write answers on whiteboards to all display at the same time or raise hands to compete for a chance to answer. Someone will also need to keep track of correct answers (or points) earned by each team.

(or) Have students answer the questions using a print-out of the quiz (either individually or in teams) within a certain time limit. Groups/student may then exchange papers to peer grade as the teacher shares the correct answers.

Step 3 — Recognition (2-5 minutes)

Try to cap off the competition with a simple prize of some kind for the winning students (maybe top 3 or so) or groups. Prizes could range from some small candy to extra points to some sort of small certificate to even just some words or recognition or applause.

Step 4 (optional) — Connection (5-10 minutes)

Finally, ask students to respond in writing to the following or similar prompt: What effect do you think the structure of our Constitution has had on our national character? What priorities do we seem to have, as Americans, and how have they impacted your own life?

Differentiation

The flexible nature of the lesson allows for quite a lot of differentiation. Students needing more assistance could be paired with students who can provide that assistance. If devices are lacking for the Kahoot, student could also be paired up to share technology use.