The Bill of Rights

Identify key rights, how they limit government, and why they were added in 1791.

Warm-up, learn, try it together, practice, then a quick check. About 15 minutes.

What children learn in Level 36

Many Americans worried about the new Constitution. It built a stronger government, but where did it protect people's freedoms?
To win enough support, leaders promised to add a list of rights. James Madison wrote most of them, and the Bill of Rights was added in 1791.
It's the first ten amendments. An amendment is a change or addition to the Constitution. These ten put limits on what the government can do to you.
Some protect people accused of crimes. The government needs a judge's permission to search a home, and an accused person gets a fair, speedy trial with a lawyer, and no cruel punishment.
Others remember the Revolution, like the rule against keeping soldiers in people's homes. And the Tenth says that powers not given to the nation belong to the states or the people. Georgia didn't formally approve the Bill of Rights until 1939, for its 150th birthday!

Georgia Standards of Excellence in Social Studies:

SS4CG3.b — Identify and explain the rights in the Bill of Rights, describe how the Bill of Rights places limits on the powers of government, and explain the reasons for its inclusion in the Constitution in 1791.