Are you a teacher? A parent? An avid learner? Book lover? Today is Constitution Day, yay! Just kidding. It’s a less known holiday. All you need to know is the Constitution was created for everyone to be equals… no it wasn’t. Not at first, at least. Let’s find out how it all began.
During the summer, I taught summer school to little 2nd graders. I had the opportunity to teach them history, so I tackled the great challenge of explaining the start of America. Best believe I told them the whole truth, nothing but the truth so help me, god. (Minus the gruesome parts, of course). A lot of the material came from my heavenly brain, so instead, I’ll give you a list of books that could help you along this day that made America– America.
Exiled in the Land of the Free: Democracy, Indian Nations & the U.S. Constitution
The first and most important is informing your student, child– even yourself if you don’t know the semantics behind the Native Americans’ slow removal. It’s a bitter pill to swallow, but sadly it’s true. It’s a bit difficult to introduce the Constitution without understanding why the British came to America in the first place. Do not sugarcoat the reality of how the settlers were actually invaders of this country. I’m not saying to tell every little bloody detail, but do not make it seem this was warranted on the Natives.
The Side-by-Side Declaration of Independence: With side-by-side “plain English” translations, plus definitions and more! (Great Documents Collection, 1)
The next line of discussion is the Declaration of Independence. Dun Dunn. Many people get this confused with the Constitution, believe it or not. In simple terms, the settlers (aka the British invaders) wanted to become Independent (aka they wanted to break up) from England because King George III demanded a plethora of things. So this beaut of text will explain all the juicy details for you.
The U.S. Constitution: Why it Matters to You (A True Book: Why It Matters)
Now that we have the foundation of how we got here, you could now fully understand what all of this means. Here’s the basic premise: many old guys signed a paper with all of these rights Americans were granted—the first amendment: Freedom of speech, religion, and press. Here, you’ll find out why, where, and how it was written and exactly why all of this matters. Hence, the title.
Americans’ are given many rights, and some are not aware of those privileges. So educate yourself, your kids, and anyone who wants to listen! Click here if you want to learn more about the American Constitution!