Complete the quiz on material covered the last four days in class.
Prepare a page in your notebook for Cornell notes on “The New Nation’s Struggles.”
Bell-Ringer
Mr. SweeneyCivics & Economics
Southwest High School
The New Nation’s Struggles
In 1783, the U.S. and Britain signed the Treaty of ParisRecognized the independence of the U.S.Granted all land east of the Mississippi River to
the U.S.
The Treaty of Paris
Articles of Confederation: plan for governing the new U.S. passed by the Second Continental Congress in 1777The Articles severely limited government
powers, because Americans saw strong governments as evil
Many important powers were left in the hands of the states, instead
The Articles of Confederation
At this point, you should create in your Cornell notes a graphic organizer with three columns and six rows. Columns should be titled:WeaknessImplicationsPossible Outcome
Organizer
All states had one vote in Congress, regardless of size
Congress could ask states for money but had no power to tax
Congress could not fund a military; it could only ask states to contribute troops
Congress had no trade power; each state made its own rules and printed its own money
All 13 states had to agree in order to change the Articles
Weaknesses in the Articles
Congress did manage to get a few things done:Land Ordinance of
1785: set up system for dividing land for settlers in the west
Northwest Ordinance (1787): set up rules for governing new territories and adding states to the nation
Successes Under the Articles
Money printed by the Congress was considered worthless
Soldiers from the Revolution did not receive promised pensions
Britain ignored the Treaty of Paris:British forts remained in America’s western
territoriesBritish trade policies played the states against
one another
Failures Under the Articles
Many states had heavy debts from the Revolutionary WarTo pay those debts, they
raised taxes Small farmers, unable to
pay, lost their landIn the fall of 1786, a
veteran named Daniel Shays led an army of farmers determined to prevent any more confiscations of land
Shays’ Rebellion
The uprising was halted, but many leaders were worried:They felt the farmers had
been treated unfairlyThey knew the national
government had been too weak to do anything about it
Shays’ Rebellion
Examine the newspaper articles on your desks. What is the style, tone, and structure of a well-written piece of informative writing?
What are the elements of a good news story?Your task is to create a news story of 200 words
describing an imaginary event that might have occurred in our country’s history if the Articles of Confederation had remained our only plan for government. Your story should be well-written and realistic, and must demonstrate a mastery of the facts of life in the new country under the Articles.
Dateline: 1790
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