Lesson 1: The President Under the Articles of Confederation

Students with an understanding of the fears of the Founders regarding a powerful executive will benefit the most from this lesson. (See curriculum unit, Background on the Patriot Attitude Toward the Monarchy). When discussing the structure of the Executive sketched in the Articles of Confederation, you may want to refer back to the complaints of the colonists as summarized by Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence. This review will help students understand why and how the Founders were cautious. Consult the following EDSITEment lessons for grades 6-8 for more information on:

• The Declaration of Independence.
  • Jefferson vs. Franklin: Revolutionary Philosophers
• The defects in the Articles of Confederation and the debates in the Constitutional Convention.
  • The Federalist Debates: Balancing Power Between State and Federal Governments
• The debates in the Constitutional Convention.
  • The Constitutional Convention: Four Founding Fathers You May Never Have Met
  • The Constitutional Convention: What the Founding Fathers Said

NCSS.D2.Civ.3.6-8. Examine the origins, purposes, and impact of constitutions, laws, treaties, and international agreements.

NCSS.D2.Civ.4.6-8. Explain the powers and limits of the three branches of government, public officials, and bureaucracies at different levels in the United States and in other countries.

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.

Activity 1. The Role of the President Under the Articles of Confederation

Read or review with students the section about the President on The Articles of Confederation, available on the EDSITEment-reviewed website Avalon Project at the Yale Law School:

"The United States in Congress assembled shall have authority … to appoint such other committees and civil officers as may be necessary for managing the general affairs of the United States under their direction—to appoint one of their members to preside, provided that no person be allowed to serve in the office of president more than one year in any term of three years;"

Discussion Questions:

What “rules” applied to the President under the Articles of Confederation?

(The responsibility to preside over Congress's meetings, a one-year term, only one term in any three-year period, and nothing else specific in the way of powers or responsibilities.)

Why such a weak role? (See Related lesson, “Background on the Patriot Attitude Toward the Monarchy.”)

For more specific information on the role of President under the Articles of Confederation, consult Lesson Two, The To-Do List of the Continental Congress from the companion EDSITEment unit Lost Hero: Who Was Really Our First President? 

Students who have completed only this lesson in the unit should be able to describe the terms of the president's role under the Articles of Confederation, including his authority or power and responsibilities, as well as the weakness of his position.