U.S. Constitution Badge

(Discover Knowledge)
By Kerry Cordy

(You may use any higher level requirement as an optional requirement.)

 

Penguin: Do three requirements including the two starred.

_____ 1 * Learn the three branches of government and the roles of each. Know the names of the President and Vice President and be able to recognize them. (At the Penguin Level, kids should understand the basic concepts of rules and who is in charge, but are not required to remember the vocabulary. Otters and above should know the names of all three branches and what they do.)

Executive – President – Enforces laws
Legislative – Makes the laws
Judicial – Interprets the laws

_____ 2.* Learn the 3 freedoms guaranteed in the constitution. (Older kids should be able to tell you what these are, but Penguins should simply learn the ideas of what these mean.)

Freedom of Speech
Freedom of Religion
Freedom of Peaceful Assembly

 

Otter: Do four requirements including the two starred.

_____ 1.* Do Penguin requirements 1 & 2. Know the names of the two parts of Congress. (Senate and House of Representatives).

_____ 2. * Learn when the constitution was created and why.

 

Dolphin: Do five requirements including the two starred.

_____ 1.* Do Otter requirements 1 & 2. Know who the Speaker of the House is.

_____ 2.* Be able to explain what the constitution is and all its parts. What is an “amendment” and how many are there? What are they for? What is the Bill of Rights?

 

Butterfly: Do six requirements including the two starred.

_____ 1.* Do Dolphin requirements 1 & 2.

_____ 2.* Pick a current event or issue and explain why you think it is, or is not, constitutional. For example, we are guaranteed freedom of speech in the first amendment, but does that mean you should be allowed to yell, “Fire!” in the middle of a movie theater? We are guaranteed freedom of religion without the government telling us what we should believe. Does this mean we should not be allowed to pray at school?

 

Eagle: Do seven requirements including the two starred.

_____ 1.* Do Butterfly requirements 1 & 2.

_____ 2.* How many Supreme Court Justices are there? Who are they and how long do they normally serve?

 

Owl: Do nine requirements including the two starred:

_____ 1. * Do Eagle requirements 1 & 2

_____ 2. * Teach someone how to do a skill from this badge or teach some knowledge about this badge to someone. You can teach kids, your spouse, seniors, anyone, just as long as you are sharing your new found knowledge. If for some reason you cannot teach what you have learned to someone else, you may choose an additional 2 optional requirements instead.

 

Optional Requirements:

_____ 3. Learn at least 3 famous quotes about the U.S. Constitution.

_____ 4. Find out who wrote the constitution and when. How did they do it? What process did it have to go through before it was accepted?

_____ 5. Hold a special celebration for U.S. Constitution Day on Sept. 17.

_____ 6. Design a poster or craft project showing how you have benefited from the freedoms embodied in the U.S. Constitution.

_____ 7. Create a time line from the founding of the constitution to the present of every change or addition that has been made.

_____ 8. If you could add an amendment to the constitution, what would it be? How would you word it to make sure that others do not interpret your amendment differently than you intended it? Why do you think this amendment is important enough to make into law for all Americans?

_____ 9. Create a poster or booklet to teach others about the constitution.

_____ 10. Participate in a community service project that has something to do with the constitution.

_____ 11. Research a career that has something to do with the constitution. Examples might include politicians, judges, lawyers, lobbyists, law enforcement, or even journalists. How does knowledge of the constitution effect their job?

_____ 12. Take a field trip to learn more about the constitution. You might go to Washington D.C., your state capital, an exhibit about the constitution, etc.

_____ 13. Rewrite the Bill of Rights in your own words. What do each of these amendments mean to you? How do you interpret them?

_____ 14. Learn how a bill becomes a law.

_____ 15. Know what the Bill of Rights is and what rights it guarantees the American people.

_____16. Know the original 13 colonies and create a map that shows them.

Play the Constitutional Quest game to make learning the constitution fun for the whole family.

www.ConstitutionQuest.com

Start your own Patriot Camp with complete instructions from Constitutional Champions

http://www.constitutionalchampions.org/

The Constitution for Kids  Great site. It breaks things down for kids in grades, K-3, then 4-7, them 8-12.
http://www.usconstitution.net/constkidsK.html

Constitution Activities
http://www.constitutionfacts.com/us-constitution-kids/

Immigration Direct – U.S. Constitution for Kids

http://www.immigrationdirect.com/us-constitution.jsp