The Bill of Rights: match each amendment to the right it protects

Grade 8 Social Studies Worksheet

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Sixth Amendment (trial phrase)

   Who made it: the First Congress of the United States, which proposed the amendments in 1789. When: Proposed September 25, 1789; ratified by the states in 1791. Where: New York City, where Congress met. For whom: the states and the people. Why: to add protections for individual rights to the Constitution. Excerpt (Constitution, Sixth Amendment (1791), trial phrase; National Archives transcript): "…the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial…" Source card "Eighth Amendment". Who made it: the First Congress of the United States, which proposed the amendments in 1789. When: Proposed September 25, 1789; ratified by the states in 1791. Where: New York City, where Congress met. For whom: the states and the people. Why: to add protections for individual rights to the Constitution. Excerpt (Constitution, Eighth Amendment (1791); as printed in 1840, p. 16): "Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted."

2. 1.

   Bo reads two claims about one defendant: held ten months with no trial, and bail set at an amount no one could pay. Which pairing fits?

   • No trial: Eighth's excessive bail. Bail: Sixth Amendment's speedy trial
   • No trial: Sixth Amendment's counsel clause. Bail: Eighth's cruel punishments
   • Both claims fit the Sixth Amendment's right to a public trial
   • No trial: Sixth Amendment's speedy trial. Bail: Eighth's excessive bail

3. Barron v. Baltimore

   Who made it: Cornell's Legal Information Institute, summarizing a Supreme Court opinion. When: the opinion was issued in 1833; this summary is today. Where: Washington, DC and Ithaca, New York. For whom: readers today. Why: to explain what the Court decided. Summary in our words, not a quotation: In 1833 Chief Justice John Marshall wrote that the Fifth Amendment's takings clause restricts only the federal government, not state governments. The Court dismissed the case because it had no jurisdiction.

4. 2.

   Esme reads about an 1830 case: a state takes a farmer's land without paying. The farmer cites the Fifth; the state cites reasoning like Barron. Who is right under 1833 law?

   • Neither, because the Court had not read the Fifth yet
   • The state: the Bill of Rights then bound only the federal government
   • The farmer, because a state cannot take property without paying
   • The farmer, because the Fifth applied to the states as well as Congress

5. First Amendment (part)

   Who made it: the First Congress of the United States, which proposed the amendments in 1789. When: Proposed September 25, 1789; ratified by the states in 1791. Where: New York City, where Congress met. For whom: the states and the people. Why: to add protections for individual rights to the Constitution. Excerpt (Constitution, First Amendment (1791), speech, press, assembly and petition; as printed in 1840, p. 15): "Congress shall make no law… abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances."

6. 3.

   Jun reads the First Amendment's opening word. Which word suggests the amendment first limited the federal government?

   • "Grievances" in "redress of grievances"
   • "Press" in "freedom of the press"
   • "Congress" in "Congress shall make no law"
   • "Peaceably" in "the right of the people peaceably to assemble"

7. How the Bill of Rights began

   Who made it: the National Archives. When: today. Where: Washington, DC. For whom: readers today. Why: to explain a founding document. Summary in our words, not a quotation: Congress passed a joint resolution on September 25, 1789 that proposed twelve amendments. The first ten, ratified by the states in 1791, became the Bill of Rights. The Constitution might never have been ratified without the framers' promise to add a Bill of Rights. State conventions had asked for added clauses to prevent misconstruction or abuse of the new government's powers, and such clauses would extend public confidence in the government.

8. 4.

   Luz reads the card on how the Bill of Rights began. Which claim does it support?

   • States asked for a Bill of Rights to end the Constitution
   • The Bill of Rights was written before the Constitution was drafted and sent to the states
   • The Constitution might not have been ratified without a promised Bill of Rights
   • States demanded the same twelve amendments in 1787

9. Tenth Amendment (part)

   Who made it: the First Congress of the United States, which proposed the amendments in 1789. When: Proposed September 25, 1789; ratified by the states in 1791. Where: New York City, where Congress met. For whom: the states and the people. Why: to add protections for individual rights to the Constitution. Excerpt (Constitution, Tenth Amendment (1791), closing phrase; National Archives transcript): "…are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."

10. 5.

    Milo reads that Congress passes a law on a topic the Constitution does not mention, and a state cites Amendment X. Which question matters most?

    • Did the President approve the state's objection?
    • Does the First Amendment protect critics of the law?
    • Did the Constitution delegate that power to the United States?
    • Is the law popular among most of the people in the state that objects?

11. Barron v. Baltimore

    Who made it: Cornell's Legal Information Institute, summarizing a Supreme Court opinion. When: the opinion was issued in 1833; this summary is today. Where: Washington, DC and Ithaca, New York. For whom: readers today. Why: to explain what the Court decided. Summary in our words, not a quotation: In 1833 Chief Justice John Marshall wrote that the Fifth Amendment's takings clause restricts only the federal government, not state governments. The Court dismissed the case because it had no jurisdiction. Source card "Applying the Bill of Rights to the states". Who made it: Cornell's Legal Information Institute (Wex). When: today. Where: Ithaca, New York. For whom: readers today. Why: to explain a legal idea. Summary in our words, not a quotation: Before the Fourteenth Amendment, the Bill of Rights limited only the federal government, as in Barron v. Baltimore (1833). The Fourteenth Amendment was ratified in 1868. The Supreme Court later applied parts of the Bill of Rights to the states through its Due Process Clause, selectively and one right at a time. One early example, in 1897, applied the Fifth Amendment's rule on paying for property taken. Source card "How the Bill of Rights began". Who made it: the National Archives. When: today. Where: Washington, DC. For whom: readers today. Why: to explain a founding document. Summary in our words, not a quotation: Congress passed a joint resolution on September 25, 1789 that proposed twelve amendments. The first ten, ratified by the states in 1791, became the Bill of Rights. The Constitution might never have been ratified without the framers' promise to add a Bill of Rights. State conventions had asked for added clauses to prevent misconstruction or abuse of the new government's powers, and such clauses would extend public confidence in the government.

12. 6.

    Noah orders three events from the cards. Which order is right?

    • Fourteenth Amendment 1868, Barron 1833, Bill of Rights ratified 1791
    • Bill of Rights ratified 1791, Barron 1833, Fourteenth Amendment 1868
    • Barron 1833, Bill of Rights ratified 1791, Fourteenth Amendment 1868
    • Bill of Rights ratified 1791, Fourteenth Amendment 1868, Barron 1833

13. Fourth Amendment

    Who made it: the First Congress of the United States, which proposed the amendments in 1789. When: Proposed September 25, 1789; ratified by the states in 1791. Where: New York City, where Congress met. For whom: the states and the people. Why: to add protections for individual rights to the Constitution. Excerpt (Constitution, Fourth Amendment (1791); as printed in 1840, p. 15): "The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated; and no warrants shall issue but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized."

14. 7.

    Officers see a person drop a bag and run. Pia asks what the Fourth Amendment's word "unreasonable" means for a search. Which statement follows from the text?

    • The text lists the situations in which a search is reasonable and unreasonable
    • Officers decide alone what is unreasonable for each case
    • Courts must decide what is unreasonable, since the text names that word
    • Any search without a warrant is forbidden by the text

15. Eighth Amendment

    Who made it: the First Congress of the United States, which proposed the amendments in 1789. When: Proposed September 25, 1789; ratified by the states in 1791. Where: New York City, where Congress met. For whom: the states and the people. Why: to add protections for individual rights to the Constitution. Excerpt (Constitution, Eighth Amendment (1791); as printed in 1840, p. 16): "Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted."

16. 8.

    Ren reads the Eighth Amendment's phrase "cruel and unusual punishments." Who decides what that means in a case?

    • Courts, reading the words case by case
    • The police officers who made the arrest
    • The accused person, who chooses the punishment
    • The Congress of 1789, which wrote a full list

17. Barron v. Baltimore

    Who made it: Cornell's Legal Information Institute, summarizing a Supreme Court opinion. When: the opinion was issued in 1833; this summary is today. Where: Washington, DC and Ithaca, New York. For whom: readers today. Why: to explain what the Court decided. Summary in our words, not a quotation: In 1833 Chief Justice John Marshall wrote that the Fifth Amendment's takings clause restricts only the federal government, not state governments. The Court dismissed the case because it had no jurisdiction.

18. 9.

    Tala wants Marshall's own reasoning in Barron. Which source is best?

    • The Fifth Amendment's text alone
    • Marshall's written opinion in the case
    • A news story that praises the Court's ruling
    • This card, since it summarizes the case in modern words

19. First Amendment (part)

    Who made it: the First Congress of the United States, which proposed the amendments in 1789. When: Proposed September 25, 1789; ratified by the states in 1791. Where: New York City, where Congress met. For whom: the states and the people. Why: to add protections for individual rights to the Constitution. Excerpt (Constitution, First Amendment (1791), speech, press, assembly and petition; as printed in 1840, p. 15): "Congress shall make no law… abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances."

20. 10.

    Zee reads about a town that asks petition gatherers to stand on one side of a sidewalk so people can pass. A petitioner calls the rule unconstitutional. Which reasoning is stronger?

    • Any rule about where people gather breaks the First Amendment
    • The First protects petitioning; a rule keeping the sidewalk passable does not end it
    • The First does not cover sidewalks or streets
    • Towns may ban petitions that cause crowding, since public safety outweighs the First Amendment