You Got That Right!

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Question #1

George Washington was really pumped about becoming the first president.

False: Washington was not looking forward to being President at all. Wouldn’t you be nervous to become the first president ever of a new country?

Question #2

At 16, Benjamin Franklin faked being a 40-year-old widow.

True: Franklin pretended to be an older woman so that his articles could get published in a newspaper. Talk about being a rebellious teen.

Question #3

The U.S. Constitution protects the people in America from anyone who violates their civil liberties.

False: The Constitution protects the people from our government. It stops our government from becoming too powerful and doing things that violate the rights of the people.

Question #4

When the delegates signed the Constitution they were in the largest city of all the colonies.

True: At the time, Philadelphia was the largest city with about 40,000 people. Today, over 1.5 Million people live in Philadelphia.

Question #5

The people didn’t get to see the Constitution until it was posted on Facebook.

False: The Pennsylvania Packet and Daily Advertiser published a copy of the Constitution on September 19, 1787—two days after it was signed. Come to think of it, newspapers were the closest things to Facebook back then.

Question #6

In 1787, Congress was happy that the delegates had saved them the trouble of having to write the new Constitution.

False: The delegates didn’t have the authority to write a new Constitution! They had been asked to fix the Articles of Confederation. That’s one of the reasons they were so secretive about writing a Constitution.

Question #7

The Constitution and the Bill of Rights are just suggestions.

False: The Constitution and the Bill of Rights are much more than a suggestion; they are the highest laws that guarantee our personal freedoms.

Question #8

According to the Constitution, the people of the United States elect the President.

False: The President is elected by the Electoral College; each state and the District of Columbia has a certain number of electoral votes and a president needs at least 270 electoral college votes to win. But don’t get this wrong, every person’s vote still counts!

Question #9

The Constitution is not available for public viewing and is kept in secret.

False: Check the schedule first, but you can see all four pages of the Constitution displayed at the National Archives in Washington, DC. You won't be able to touch it or even breathe on it because it's very fragile -- it's 227 years old.

Question #10

In the United States, we have a federal Constitution and each state has its own constitution.

True: Today all 50 states have their own constitutions, but that wasn’t always the case!

Question #11

Constitution Day is a new holiday.

It depends on what "new" means to you: Constitution Day is only nine years old and that's new compared to how old the Constitution is. Constitution Day started in 2004 and although you don't get to miss school that day, learning about the Constitution is fun!

Question #12

Because of its age, the Constitution is no longer as important as it was when it went into effect in 1789.

False: The Constitution is as important now as it was back then! Every day, things happen in the courts, government or schools that could threaten your rights. If you don't know what your rights are, how can you stop someone from taking advantage of you?

Question #13

Each branch of the American government can work independently of the other two branches.

False: Each branch is supervised by the remaining two; this is called a "check and balance" system. For example, Congress can pass a law, but the Supreme Court can declare the law unconstitutional and Supreme Court judges are appointed by the President. Think of your school's safety patrols: the patrols tell you where it's safe to cross the street; a patrol supervisor can change where students can cross the street and patrol supervisors are chosen by the principal.

Question #14

The Constitution is made up of a preamble and seven original articles.

True: Although it was "only" four pages long, each page was 28" X 23". Using today's letter sized paper, each page of the Constitution would have taken up over 7 sheets of paper. That's a total of 29 sheets of paper for the whole Constitution.

Question #15

The reason the Framers set up three branches of the U.S. government is to make it easier for the government to control the people in America.

False: No way! The people in America control the government by voting for the people they want as representatives and by deciding what the government will control.

Question #16

Rhode Island refused to attend the Constitutional Convention.

True: Franklin pretended to be an older woman so that his articles could get published in a newspaper. Talk about being a rebellious teen.

Question #17

The Constitution affects everyone in the U.S. even students like you.

True: Everyone in the U.S. is affected by the Constitution every single day of their lives. Did you know that the ramps at sidewalk intersections are there because of the Constitution? How else would disabled children get to school or other places?

Question #18

James Madison was worried that the Constitutional Convention was going to be canceled.

True: On the first day of the Convention only delegates from PA and VA showed up. That’s way worse than only a few kids showing up for school on the first day. Good thing the others delegates showed up 11 days later.

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Question #19

The Constitution established that all US citizens can vote.

False: The Constitution did not spell out who can vote.  That’s one of the reasons it took years of struggle for Blacks, women, Native Americans, and many others to be able to exercise their right to vote. People are still fighting for the right to vote to this day! Of course, kids under 18 still can’t vote.

Question #20

The Constitution is the highest law of the land.

True: In America, federal and state judges must uphold the Constitution, and the rest of us better as well.