Bell-Ringer

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