Name______Date______Period______

NOTES: An Outline of Our Constitution, “The Supreme Law of the Land”

The Constitution

  • Also known as the ______
  • Establishes our government, which is a ______, a government in which citizens elect their ______
  • The Constitution establishes a ______government, protects the ______of citizens, and provides general ______that the ______and ______governments must follow.
  • Organized into ______, ______, and ______

The Preamble: Lists the ______of Our Government

  1. To Form a ______
  2. Goal – to make a government that is better than the ______
  3. Goal – to make a more effective ______government

2. To Establish ______

  • Legal system to fairly resolve disputes

3. To Ensure ______

  • ______society, so people are protected from the unlawful acts of others
  1. To Provide for the ______
  2. ______citizens from attack by other countries

5. To Promote the General ______

  • Attempt to create conditions that will ______Americans

6. To Secure the Blessings of ______to Ourselves and our Posterity

  • Goal – the Government should protect liberty of all citizens, protect future Americans

Please Note: We will add a lot more detail to the following Articles later. However, the notes below will give you a basic understanding of the outline of the Constitution, as well as what we are about to learn.

Article 1: The Legislative Branch - ______

  • ______Total Representatives, number per state is based on ______
  • ______Total Senators, ______per state
  • Together, the House of Representatives and the Senate are called the ______

Article 2: The Executive Branch - ______

  • The Head of the Executive Branch is called the ______
  • The President has 15 people who help him do his job. These 15 people are called his ______
  • The President, who serves a ______year term, is elected by the ______

Article 3: The Judicial Branch - ______

  • The highest court in the land is called the ______
  • There are ______Justices on the Supreme Court, one of whom is the ______Justice
  • Supreme Court Justices get to serve for ______so they won’t be swayed by the whims of the ______

Article 4: The States

  • Each state must honor the ______of the ______

Article 5: Amending the Constitution

  • Constitution might need to be ______, so this section provides rules on how

Article 6: Supremacy of Constitution

  • No ______law can violate the ______
  • If a ______law conflicts with a federal (national) law, the federal law takes priority

Article 7: Ratification

  • Establishes the procedures provided for ______(approval) of the Constitution

Amendments to the Constitution

  • The first 10, ratified in 1791, are known as the ______
  • Provide list of ______of citizens
  • Limits the authority of the ______
  • Since the approval of the Bill of Rights, only ______other amendments have been added