Declaration of Independence Lesson

Word Cloud

What words come to mind when you think of the Declaration of Independence?

Open Ended

Why was it significant for the Declaration of Independence to incorporate Enlightenment ideals such as reason, rationality, and the social contract during its time?

Multiple Choice

Which Enlightenment idea is most clearly reflected in the Declaration of Independence's emphasis on life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness?

• Natural Rights Philosophy

• Divine Right of Kings

• Mercantilism

• Absolutism

Multiple Choice

Who was the primary author of the Declaration of Independence?

• George Washington

• Benjamin Franklin

• Thomas Jefferson

• John Adams

Multiple Select

What were two main purposes of the Declaration of Independence as described in the slides?

• To establish a monarchy

• To announce separation from Great Britain

• To list grievances against King George III

• To create a new constitution

Multiple Choice

Which of the following was NOT listed as a grievance against the British Crown in the Declaration of Independence?

• Imposed taxes without consent

• Deprived colonists of trial by jury

• Maintained standing armies during peacetime

• Granted freedom of speech

Multiple Select

What powers did the Declaration of Independence grant to the United States as a new nation?

• The power to wage war

• The power to form alliances

• The power to conduct trade

• The power to appoint a king

Multiple Choice

Which three things did the signers pledge in support of independence?

• Lives, fortunes, and sacred honor

• Land, money, and loyalty

• Freedom, equality, and justice

• Power, wealth, and respect

Open Ended

Explain how British rule contributed to colonial discontent in America.

Open Ended

Describe the role of the First and Second Continental Congress in the movement toward American independence.

Multiple Select

Which Enlightenment ideas influenced American revolutionary thought?

• Reason

• Individual rights

• Social contract

• Divine right of kings

Multiple Choice

Which Enlightenment thinker's ideas most directly influenced the concept of natural rights in the Declaration of Independence?

• John Locke

• Jean-Jacques Rousseau

• Montesquieu

• Voltaire

Open Ended

Explain how Rousseau’s concept of the "general will" influenced the principles found in the Declaration of Independence.

Multiple Choice

Which of the following Enlightenment thinkers advocated for the separation of government powers to prevent tyranny?

• Montesquieu

• Voltaire

• John Locke

• Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Multiple Select

According to Voltaire, which rights were essential for a free society? Select all that apply.

• Free speech

• Religious tolerance

• Individual liberty

• Absolute monarchy

Match

Match the grievance to its simplified version.

• "He has refused his assent to laws the most wholesome and necessary for the public good."

• "He has dissolved representative houses repeatedly, for opposing, with manly firmness, his invasions on the rights of the people."

• "He has made judges dependent on his will alone for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries"

• "He has affected to render the military independent of, and superior to, the civil power"

• "For Quartering Large bodies of troops among us"

The king is not following his own laws.

The king has gotten rid of our legislative assemblies for standing against his unlawful actions.

The king has forced judges to rule the way he wants in order for them to keep their jobs.

The King has declared the army to be higher-ranking than citizens.

The king has forced us to keep soldiers in our homes.

• The king is not following his own laws.

• The king has gotten rid of our legislative assemblies for standing against his unlawful actions.

• The king has forced judges to rule the way he wants in order for them to keep their jobs.

• The King has declared the army to be higher-ranking than citizens.

• The king has forced us to keep soldiers in our homes.