The Constitutional Convention: Four Founding Fathers You May Never Have Met

NCSS.D2.His.1.6-8. Analyze connections among events and developments in broader historical contexts.

NCSS.D2.His.2.6-8. Classify series of historical events and developments as examples of change and/or continuity.

NCSS.D2.His.3.6-8. Use questions generated about individuals and groups to analyze why they, and the developments they shaped, are seen as historically significant.

NCSS.D2.His.4.6-8. Analyze multiple factors that influenced the perspectives of people during different historical eras.

NCSS.D2.His.12.6-8. Use questions generated about multiple historical sources to identify further areas of inquiry and additional sources.

NCSS.D2.His.15.6-8. Evaluate the relative influence of various causes of events and developments in the past. 

NCSS.D2.His.16.6-8. Organize applicable evidence into a coherent argument about the past.

• Review the lesson plan. Locate and bookmark suggested materials and other useful websites. Download and print out selected documents and duplicate copies as necessary for student viewing.
• Download the document Three Handouts, available here as a PDF. The download contains three handouts used in this lesson: "Chart of Various Plans (Blank)" and "Chart of Various State Plans."  Print out and make an appropriate number of copies of the handouts you plan to use in class.
• Some of the texts used in this lesson may be challenging for students at less advanced reading levels; such students may benefit from Congress for Kids, an EDSITEment resource that features a very basic description of the steps in the process of the ratification of the U.S. Constitution, starting with a page on the Articles of Confederation (which served as our country's ruling document before adoption of the Constitution). From that page, you can click on "Learn More" to read further about the events of the Constitutional Convention, such as the Great Compromise, and about the government it created, including a page on our System of Checks and Balances.
• A history of the Constitutional Convention and the document it produced is available through America's Founding Documents at the National Archives website, in the essay "Constitution of the United States—A History." For convenience, you may also wish to download the following PDF, Four State Plans, which contains excerpts from the article summarizing the four plans discussed in this lesson as well as some other issues that threatened to divide the delegates.
• The text of the Constitution is available via America's Founding Documents at the National Archives website.
• A biographical index of all those attending the Constitutional Convention is also available from America's Founding Documents. Though your students will probably be familiar with the names of more famous figures who attended the Constitutional Convention (such as Washington, Franklin, and Madison), this lesson, by concentrating on lesser known individuals (Ellsworth, Hamilton, Paterson, and Randolph), emphasizes that the Constitution was the product of many minds. Unlike the Declaration of Independence, it is difficult to identify an "author" of the Constitution. You can find very brief biographies of the four subjects of this lesson, with direct links to more comprehensive biographies, by downloading Four Biographies, available here as a PDF.
• Be prepared to help students work through alternative spellings for the names of individuals in this lesson, such as "Patterson" and "Ellesworth," as well as the general lack of standardization of spelling in the debate proceedings.
• It should be noted that other delegates, including Roger Sherman for the Connecticut Plan and Madison for the Virginia Plan, had a hand (or more) in developing the plans. For balance, this lesson concentrates on one individual for each.

Activity 1. Introducing the Constitutional Convention

As necessary, begin by reviewing with students the Virginia, New Jersey, and Hamilton Plans, as well as the Great Compromise (Connecticut Plan). If desired, use the summaries found in the Preparation Instructions section, above. Adapt the "Chart of Various Plans (Blank)" on page 1 of the PDF as an organizer to help students see the differences and similarities between the various plans. The "Chart of Various Plans" — the same chart, complete with information-is available on page 2 of the PDF. Here are some additional sources of information to use in your review:

• A good discussion of the basic issues requiring compromise during the Constitutional Convention, written for grades 6–8, is offered at History of the Constitution, a feature from Ben's Guide to the U.S. Government for Kids (6–8), a link from the EDSITEment resource Internet Public Library.
• Another feature on Ben's Guide to the U.S. Government for Kids (6–8) is a Glossary with definitions of many of the terms students may come across in their readings.

Activity 2. Group Assignment: Getting to Know a Founding Father

Divide the class into four groups and assign one of the selected Founding Fathers-Ellsworth, Hamilton, Paterson, and Randolph-to each group. Download, copy and distribute to the respective groups some or all of the following brief biographies, available on EDSITEment resources. (NOTE TO THE TEACHER: You can encourage students to use other resources in the classroom and library as well. If a typical group consists of five students, one or two students could read one biography while other students look for additional resources using the computer or library. When the group reconvenes, students can combine what they have learned into one account.)

• Oliver Ellsworth
  • Oliver Ellsworth in America's Founding Documents (National Archives)
  • Oliver Ellsworth at the National Constitution Center
• Alexander Hamilton
  • Alexander Hamilton in America's Founding Documents (National Archives)
  • Alexander Hamilton at the National Constitution Center
  • The Hamilton Plan (Constitutional Convention, June 18, 1787) 
• William Paterson
  • William Paterson in America's Founding Documents (National Archives)
  • William Paterson at the National Constitution Center
• Edmund Randolph
  • Edmund Randolph in America's Founding Documents (National Archives)
  • Edmund Randolph at the National Constitution Center

As students read biographies of their assigned Founding Father, they should attempt to answer the following questions:

1. In what ways did he serve his colony/state before the Constitutional Convention?
2. What were his qualifications to represent his state?
3. Was his state large or small?
4. Was his state in the North or South?
5. In what ways was he involved with Patriot causes before the Constitutional Convention?
6. What was his profession?
7. What was his socioeconomic background? How might that background have affected his decisions?
8. In what ways did his proposal to the Constitutional Convention represent the interests of his state?
9. In what ways did he serve the United States after the Constitutional Convention?

Activity 3. Oral Presentations and Class Discussion

Based on their reading of the biographies and/or other sources available in the classroom, each group should distribute a brief (one page typed) composite biography to the entire class and present an oral argument that their assignee deserves to be better known. Students can consider achievements before, during, and after the Convention.

After all the groups have presented their arguments, allow time for students to review the biographies offered by the different groups. Discuss the plans with reference to the biographies. How did each plan differ? What regional factors led to the inclusion of specific elements in each plan that deal with issues such as how states would be represented in the national legislature or how the population would be counted for the purpose of taxation and representation? What parts of any plan connect to the biography of its author? What parts of which plans eventually became part of the Constitution?

Activity 4. Matching Quotes

Challenge students to match quotes from the debates with either Ellsworth, Hamilton, Paterson, or Randolph. Using the "Four Fathers' Quotes" handout on pages 3–6 of the Three Handouts PDF (see Preparation Instructions, above, for download instructions), adapt this activity to a game show format or a more simple pencil-and-paper activity. If time permits, students could even create their own game.

• Students might be interested in making comparisons between the various records of the debates of the Constitutional Convention (Madison's, Hamilton's, King's, and so on). For example, students can compare records for June 1 and/or June 4, using these resources available on the EDSITEment-reviewed website The Avalon Project at the Yale Law School:
  • Madison, June 1
  • Hamilton, June 1
  • Madison, June 4
  • Rufus King, June 4
    Cross-references from Madison's notes to King's and Hamilton's are also offered in the Avalon Project's Debates in the Federal Convention of 1787
• Students could create a flow chart indicating issues cited in the debates that were eventually addressed in the Constitution. Similarly, students with technical skills could create an annotated copy of the Constitution with links to relevant sections of the debate. The text of the Constitution may be accessed from America's Founding Documents at the National Archives.
• Students wishing to research other lesser-known framers can start with this biographical index from America's Founding Documents, or with the Founding Fathers page at the National Constitution Center website.
• Students with other inquiries about the framers can consult this question-and-answer page from America's Founding Documents.