The Articles of Confederation: what the first government could and could not do
Grade 8 Social Studies Worksheet - Building Confidence
Circle the best answer.
Read this first
Articles of Confederation, Article 5
Who made it: the Second Continental Congress. When: Adopted November 15, 1777; in force March 1, 1781. Where: Pennsylvania, where Congress met when it adopted them. For whom: the thirteen states, which had to approve them. Why: to set up a government for the union of states. Excerpt (Articles of Confederation (1781), Article 5; as printed in 1820, p. 9): "In determining questions in the United States in congress assembled, each state shall have one vote."
Ari reads Article 5. Rhode Island had far fewer people than Virginia. What does the article say about their votes in Congress?
- Virginia had more votes because it had more people
- Votes were set by how much tax each state paid
- Each had two votes, like states in the later Senate
- Each had one vote, whatever its population
Articles of Confederation, Article 8
Who made it: the Second Continental Congress. When: Adopted November 15, 1777; in force March 1, 1781. Where: Pennsylvania, where Congress met when it adopted them. For whom: the thirteen states, which had to approve them. Why: to set up a government for the union of states. Excerpt (Articles of Confederation (1781), Article 8; as printed in 1820, p. 11): "The taxes for paying that proportion shall be laid and levied, by the authority and direction of the legislatures of the several states…"
Bo reads that state legislatures laid and levied the taxes. What problem does that create for Congress?
- The states paid nothing because they had no taxes of their own to collect
- Congress had to ask the states for money and could not collect it
- Congress could borrow from foreign countries and nowhere else
- Congress could tax directly but chose not to
Articles of Confederation, Article 13
Who made it: the Second Continental Congress. When: Adopted November 15, 1777; in force March 1, 1781. Where: Pennsylvania, where Congress met when it adopted them. For whom: the thirteen states, which had to approve them. Why: to set up a government for the union of states. Excerpt (Articles of Confederation (1781), Article 13; as printed in 1820, p. 16): "…unless such alteration be agreed to in a congress of the United States, and be afterwards confirmed by the legislature of every state."
Jun reads Article 13. Why could a single state's "no" matter for changing the Articles?
- A majority of the states could still approve it
- Congress could change the Articles over a state's objection by a second vote
- A change would apply just to the states that voted yes
- A change also needed confirmation from every state's legislature
Problems under the Articles
Who made it: the Office of the Historian, US Department of State. When: today. Where: Washington, DC. For whom: readers today. Why: to explain the history of US foreign relations. Summary in our words, not a quotation: Congress had a nearly empty treasury and could not make states follow the 1783 Treaty of Paris on old debts. British troops stayed in forts near the Great Lakes. Congress could not stop Georgia from running its own policy toward Spanish Florida. Paper money flooded the country, and prices soared. States quarreled over land, taxes and trade.
Kira notes that Congress had no power to tax directly. According to the card, what problem was closest to that?
- Congress gained power over trade
- Maryland ratified the Articles in 1781
- A nearly empty treasury
- The states stopped printing paper money
Shays' Rebellion
Who made it: George Washington's Mount Vernon, in its article on Shays' Rebellion. When: today. Where: Mount Vernon, Virginia. For whom: readers today. Why: to explain events that worried Washington. Summary in our words, not a quotation: Farmers in Massachusetts, many of them unpaid war veterans and deep in debt, protested at courthouses from August 1786. In September 1786 they closed the state court at Springfield. Congress could do little to respond.
Luz reads the Shays' Rebellion card. Which problem was behind the protests?
- A new tax that Congress had set
- Farmers in debt, many of them unpaid veterans
- A vote to leave the Confederation
- A British ban on trade with Massachusetts
Articles of Confederation, Article 5
Who made it: the Second Continental Congress. When: Adopted November 15, 1777; in force March 1, 1781. Where: Pennsylvania, where Congress met when it adopted them. For whom: the thirteen states, which had to approve them. Why: to set up a government for the union of states. Excerpt (Articles of Confederation (1781), Article 5; as printed in 1820, p. 9): "In determining questions in the United States in congress assembled, each state shall have one vote." Source card "The Articles: what the National Archives says". Who made it: the National Archives. When: today. Where: Washington, DC. For whom: readers today. Why: to explain a milestone document. Summary in our words, not a quotation: The Second Continental Congress adopted the Articles on November 15, 1777. All 13 states had to ratify, and disputes over representation, voting and western lands delayed this until Maryland ratified on March 1, 1781. Each state had one vote. Congress could make treaties and decide on peace and war, but it could not tax directly: states were to supply the money and decided how to collect it. Some major decisions needed the agreement of nine states. Congress faced a depleted treasury, and flooding paper money caused severe inflation. James Madison and George Washington feared the country was near collapse.
Milo wants Congress's own words about voting. Which card should Milo use?
- The National Archives card, because the archive holds the Articles
- The Article 5 card, because Congress wrote those words
- Neither, since the Articles were not printed until after 1787
- Either card, since both describe the Articles
The Northwest Ordinance
Who made it: the National Archives. When: today. Where: Washington, DC. For whom: readers today. Why: to explain a milestone document. Summary in our words, not a quotation: The Confederation Congress passed the Northwest Ordinance on July 13, 1787. It set up a temporary government for the Northwest Territory and a path to statehood: at 5,000 free adult men the territory could elect an assembly, and at 60,000 free inhabitants it could write a constitution and ask to become a state. It banned slavery and involuntary servitude in the territory, though fugitives from slavery in other states could be reclaimed. It called for the consent of Native peoples before their lands were taken.
Noah reads the Northwest Ordinance card. Which statement about the Confederation Congress is supported?
- It could still pass a lasting plan for new states
- It solved the Articles' problems with taxes and trade
- It could do nothing without thirteen states agreeing
- It ended slavery across the United States
The 1787 convention
Who made it: the National Archives. When: today. Where: Washington, DC. For whom: readers today. Why: to explain a milestone document. Summary in our words, not a quotation: In May 1787, delegates from the states met in Philadelphia to revise the Articles. By mid-June they had decided to design a new government instead.
Pia reads the convention card. What did the delegates in Philadelphia decide by mid-June 1787?
- To design a new government instead of just revising the Articles
- To ratify the Articles after Maryland's vote
- To add a bill of rights to the Articles and then send it to the states
- To declare independence from Britain
Articles of Confederation, Article 2
Who made it: the Second Continental Congress. When: Adopted November 15, 1777; in force March 1, 1781. Where: Pennsylvania, where Congress met when it adopted them. For whom: the thirteen states, which had to approve them. Why: to set up a government for the union of states. Excerpt (Articles of Confederation (1781), Article 2; as printed in 1820, p. 8): "Each state retains its sovereignty, freedom, and independence, and every power, jurisdiction, and right, which is not by this confederation expressly delegated to the United States in congress assembled."
Ren reads Article 2. Which power belonged to the states?
- The power to overrule Congress on any matter
- Any power the Articles did not expressly give to the states
- Any power the Articles did not expressly give to Congress
- The power to coin money for the whole nation
The Articles: what the National Archives says
Who made it: the National Archives. When: today. Where: Washington, DC. For whom: readers today. Why: to explain a milestone document. Summary in our words, not a quotation: The Second Continental Congress adopted the Articles on November 15, 1777. All 13 states had to ratify, and disputes over representation, voting and western lands delayed this until Maryland ratified on March 1, 1781. Each state had one vote. Congress could make treaties and decide on peace and war, but it could not tax directly: states were to supply the money and decided how to collect it. Some major decisions needed the agreement of nine states. Congress faced a depleted treasury, and flooding paper money caused severe inflation. James Madison and George Washington feared the country was near collapse.
Zee sorts one strength and one weakness of Congress from the card. Which pair is right?
- Strength: it could amend the Articles alone. Weakness: it had one vote
- Strength: it could make treaties. Weakness: it could not tax directly
- Strength: it could draft soldiers. Weakness: it had too many votes
- Strength: it could tax directly. Weakness: it could make treaties