Civics Category I Vocabulary (EOCA Preparation)

A principle of the federal government, according to the U.S. constitution, that allows each branch of governemnt to limit the power of the other branches.

• Separation of Powers

• Federalism

• Checks and balances

• Republicanism

An agreement made by the people to establish a government and abide by its laws

• Consent of the governed

• Social Contract

• Communism

• Mayflower Compact

A period in European history when many educated people stressed the importance of learning and reasoning; education was considered the key to understanding and solving society's problems.

• Civil War

• Enlightenment

• World War I

• World War II

A person's ability to be free and independent.

• Individual liberty

• Amendment 1

• Freedom

• John Locke

The structure of the federal government according to the U.S. Constitution that sets up three branches with their own distinct powers and responsibilities.

• Checks and balances

• Separation of Powers

• Federalism

• Confederalism

The belief that individuals are born with basic rights that cannot be taken away by governments: life, liberty, and property.

• Natural Laws

• Natural Rights

• John Locke

• Amendment 1

An implied agreement among the people of an organized society that defines the rights, duties, and limitations of the governed and the government.

• Social Agreement

• Contract

• Social Contract

• John Locke

A pamphlet published by Thomas Paine in 1776 to convince the American colonists to support the becoming independent from England.

• Constitution

• Common Law

• Declaration of Independence

• Common Sense

A government document that expanded the powers of the English Parliament and expanded the right of the people, as well as further limited the rights of the king: written by the members of the English Parliament in 1689.

• Magna Carta

• Mayflower Compact

• English Bill of Rights

• Declaration of Rights

A government document that limited the power of the king of England and protected the rights of the nobility: written by the English nobles in 1215.

• The English Bill of Rights

• The Magna Carta

• The Mayflower Compact

• The Declaration of Independence