Forming a Government

a meeting in May 1787 in Philadelphia to improve the Articles of Confederation

• Virginia Plan

• Constitutional Convention

• New Jersey Plan

• Great Compromise

a plan that would give supreme power to the central government and the legislature (Congress)

• Unicameral

• Bicameral

• New Jersey Plan

• Virginia Plan

made up of two "houses" or groups of representatives

• Bicameral

• Unicameral

• Federalism

• Checks and Balances

(small state plan) called for unicameral legislature; each state would have an equal number of votes

• Bicameral

• Unicameral

• Virginia Plan

• New Jersey Plan

one house legislature

• Checks and Balances

• Bicameral

• Unicameral

• Great Compromise

Compromise between large states and small states; the legislative branch would have two houses. Each state would have 2 representatives in the Senate. The House of Representatives would be determined by the state's population.

• Great Compromise

• Three-Fifths Compromise

• Checks and Balances

• Amendment

3/5 of a slave state's population would count toward that state's population count when determining representation.

• Three-Fifths Compromise

• Checks and Balances

• Federalism

• Antifederalists

the idea that political authority belongs to the people

• Federalism

• Bill of Rights

• Popular Sovereignty

• Federalists

the sharing of power between a central government and the states that make up a country

• Federalism

• Anti-Federalists

• Checks and Balances

• Amendments

Congress; responsible for proposing and passing laws

• Checks and Balances

• Judicial Branch

• Executive Branch

• Legislative Branch