It is expected that prior to this lesson students have studied the historical events leading up to the writing of the Constitution. Children will have also studied the Bill of Rights.

Begin class by placing an overhead of The Constitution of the United States of America on the projector.
Ask the class if they know what this document is [first page of the Constitution]. Ask if they have ever heard of the word "preamble" and, if so ask them what it means. [A preamble is an introduction (usually to a law) that states what the law sets out to do.] Point out where the preamble is in the Constitution.
Now switch the overhead to the Student Handout 1-Preamble and cover the lower section of themes. Ask the students to read it silently. Then read it aloud as a class. Ask the students what are the main ideas or themes in the Preamble. As the students answer the question, underline the phrase that they say. Continue until you have all 6 themes.
Uncover the lower section of the transparency and, as a class, reread each theme and discuss what it means. If there is any unknown vocabulary then have students look it up in the dictionary. Write down ideas as students share them on the overhead.

Once the class has discussed each theme pass out the 12 word cards (assuming there will be more then 12 students in your class, some will have to pair up). Have the children read the card they received and think about if they have the actual phrase from the Preamble or a definition of the Preamble phrase.
After giving students some time to decide this then have them think about what they will match with. Explain to the students that they will be matching a phrase from the Preamble with its definition. Start the matching game by having them all stand up and find their partner. When students think they have found their match, have them sit down with their new partner. After all students have found their match have each partner pair read their cards aloud to the class.

At this point review with the class why the Constitution was written and what happened when, as time went on, things needed to change (We wrote the Amendments!).

Background information for students:
The law is the set of rules that we all live by. The Constitution is the highest law. It holds the basic beliefs and laws of our nation. It establishes a framework for our government and guarantees us certain rights. Rights are things that all people have just because they are alive.
The Bill of Rights is a part of the Constitution and lists many rights of the people. (Here you can share the picture Signing of the Constitution of the United States by Howard Chandler Christy.
The Constitution was written in 1787 by a group of men, called delegates or framers. They did not like the country's struggle for the states to share power and unite under one government as well as the fragile state of our country after the war. The men tried to fix those problems by creating the Constitution. Some of the framers are very famous people like…. (Show the pictures of George Washington, 1796 and Portrait of Benjamin Franklin here and have students volunteer their identity.)
These Framers met during a hot summer in Philadelphia where they had a lot of arguments about what should be included in the Constitution. In the end they came to an agreement. After the Constitution was written, they asked the states to approve it. It took some time, but all thirteen states finally approved and signed it. Some people were concerned that the Constitution would not protect the rights of the people because it had no bill of rights at that time. Promises were made to add a bill of rights, and after the Constitution passed, the Bill of Rights was added.
The Bill of Rights is the first ten amendments to the Constitution and a very important part of the Constitution. It protects your right to say what you want and allows you to do many things like think for yourself and believe in God if you want. The Bill of Rights also protects your home and helps keep Americans safe.

On a transparency show students what The Bill of Rights document looks like. Pass out to students Student Handout 2-The Bill of Rights and review what they mean for the citizens of the United States. Have the students understand that when they wrote the Bill of Rights they had to be certain that they still fit under the themes of the Constitution that are stated in the Preamble. Ask the class, do the first 10 Amendments relate to the themes in the Preamble?

Explain the project to the class: in the groups they formed with their preamble matching game, students will work to explain what their theme means, list the Amendments from the Bill of Rights that relate to it and reasons why, draw illustrations to go along with what they have learned, and explain how one of the Amendments relates to their lives. All of this information will eventually be presented on a group poster.

Explain that to your students their poster will be graded on the four following qualities:

1. Graphic Relevance - Is the drawing on the subject of your theme? Does it make the theme easy to understand?


2. Graphic Originality - Were your ideas for the poster images and their display creative?


3. Knowledge Gained - Can you answer any questions about the ideas in the poster and how it was made?


4. Required Elements - Does your poster include all the points you were asked to cover? Remember they were:
   
   
   • Preamble theme and definition
   
   
   • The amendments that relate to your theme and why
   
   
   • Drawing about your theme
   
   
   • One way an amendment you listed relates to your daily lives
   
   

Disseminate Student Worksheet 1-Understanding the Preamble and the Bill of Rights
To begin working on their ideas in groups, student can start filling out this group worksheet. At the end of the day, remind students to bring in any art supplies they think their group may need tomorrow when assembling their poster.

Day 2:

Please note that depending on your individual class the presentations may flow into a third day.

Review the Amendments as discussed in Day 1 and model an example of the assignment for the class. Refer to Teacher Guide to Student Worksheet 1-Understanding the Preamble and the Bill of Rights for suggestions of preamble theme/amendment links.
Students will now begin working on their group poster. As they are working, circulate and help the groups to complete their poster. Finally, each group will share their project with the class, explaining their theme from the Preamble and what it means, the Amendments that relate to it and why, the illustrations they have chosen to demonstrate what they have learned about their topic, and how one of the Amendments relates to their lives.
After all groups have presented, you can have all children line up with their posters in the order of the Preamble and the class can read it together. To complete the lesson, think about displaying the finished posters in your classroom.