This article examines the history and thinking of the Federalists and Anti-Federalists in order to explain the formation of the ideas which allow the U.S. Constitution to provide for an effective government without sacrificing vital individual liberties. (JDH)

In four historic cases, the justices of the U.S. Supreme Court were faced with a broad range of disputes--some major, some seemingly minor--but with one overriding issue: Who shall interpret the Constitution? The President? The Congress? The States? The U.S. Supreme Court emerged as the law's final arbiter. (RM)

Reviews case law, constitutional principles, and early American writings which deal with the idea of private property. Concludes that, in the future, the issues of laissez-fare capitalism, government regulation, and the welfare state will require further clarification of our conception of private property. (JDH)

Censorship is found in all periods of American history, wherever people try to solve problems by cutting back on someone else's expression. Some examples of government censorship are described. (RM)

Argues that bicentennial celebrations of the U.S. Constitution should be focused on struggles throughout the life of the document rather than the "miracle" of its birth. Illustrates this point by reference to changes in the voting rights and citizenship of black citizens. (BSR)

Considers how the Bill of Rights originated and has evolved. Reviews the political views of Alexander Hamilton and James Madison and the nature of their support for the Bill of Rights. Explains nineteenth-century classical liberalism and its revolutionary view that political power inhered in the individual rather than in property ownership. (CH)

Presents a lesson in multiple parts designed to explain the importance of standardized weights and measures and to demonstrate how governmental activities have changed standards and influenced commerce. (JDH)

All fighting does not have the legal and constitutional dimensions of a war. Presented is an activity to help secondary students learn about the constitutional and historical underpinnings involved in the age-old yet still current controversy concerning the war powers vested in the executive and legislative branches of government. (RM)

Provides a lesson intended to stimulate students' interest in the concept of justice and to focus attention on how the U.S. Constitution protects and promotes justice. (JDH)

Introduces a lesson designed to help students understand the role that each branch of the federal government can take in redressing the impact of past discrimination while protecting the rights of individuals whose opportunities may be limited by an affirmative action program. The lesson is based on a case study and includes student handouts. (JDH)

Explains a lesson in which secondary social studies or history students research origins of the freedoms to assemble and petition the government. Points out that the lesson provides students with an opportunity to examine how these freedoms evolved since the American Revolution. Reports that students discuss how to protect these freedoms during…