AP US Government (pdf)

A.P. U.S. Government and Politics
Summer Reading Assignment
Mr. Matlosz
A.P. U.S. Government students are required to complete the following
assignment over the course of the summer.
This assignment must be turned in by September 10th in order to receive
credit.
Instructions
Locate an official copy of the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of
Confederation and the U.S. Constitution [including all 27 amendments].
Electronic copies are available online at the National Archives “Declaration of
Independence”, etc. (Google: National Archives). You are to locate the answers
to each of the questions that pertain to each of the documents.
This assignment will be worth 100 points as a quiz grade.
The Declaration of Independence
Summer Reading Questions
1. Quote the phrase in the first paragraph that indicates that the colonies are
going to declare their independence.
2. What reason do the authors give in the first paragraph for saying that they
must explain why they are declaring independence?
3. Look up the word “unalienable” in the dictionary and write down its definition.
What three unalienable rights does the document list?
4. According to this document, what is the purpose for which governments were
instituted?
5. From what source do governments get their power?
6. Under what circumstances does the document say a people have a right to
overthrow their government?
7. What two-word phrase does the author of the Declaration use to describe the
British government over the colonies?
8. Quote from four grievances detailing abuses by England against the
legislative bodies of the colonies.
9. Quote from three grievances describing how England has interfered with the
legal system in the colonies.
10. What three groups of people had the British enlisted to fight against the
colonies, as stated in three of the grievances?
11. According to the document, what had the colonists done to try to persuade
the British to change their policies?
12. Quote the phrase from the last paragraph in which the colonists officially
declare their independence.
13. What powers do the colonies now claim to have as a result of declaring their
independence?
14. Who is the “he” mentioned in the grievances? Give both his name and his
title.

15. Who wrote the Declaration of Independence?
16. Which two signers of the Declaration of Independence later became
presidents of the U.S.?
17. What body governed the colonists from 1776 to 1781?
18. Which two signers of the Declaration of Independence died on the same day
and year? Provide their names, date and year.
Articles of Confederation
Summer Reading Questions
ARTICLE I-III
1. What was the name of the confederacy formed under this document?
2. In your own words, explain the guarantee of Article II?
3. According to Article III, what were the three purposes for which the states
organized into a confederation?
ARTICLE IV
4. The “free inhabitants of each of thee states” were entitled to what
consideration by all of the states?
5. Look up the words “ingress” and “regress” in a dictionary and write down their
meanings.
6. What is the right of “free ingress and regress” described here?
7. Look up the word “extradition” and write down its meaning. Which of the
paragraphs in this article provided for extradition among the states? Give a
quotation from the paragraph to support your answer.
8. The third paragraph of this article says that all states must respect what
actions of the other states?
ARTICLE V
9. Who or what body determined the method by which delegates were selected
for Congress?
10. Why would the states want to have the power to recall their delegates and
send new ones to Congress?
11. How many delegates could each state send to Congress?
12. How many years could any one person serve as a delegate to Congress?
13. How many votes did each state have in Congress?
14. What two guarantees for members of Congress are included in the last
paragraph of this article?
ARTICLE VI
15. Could North Carolina send an ambassador to Holland to ask for its help in the
revolutionary war? Give a quotation from this article to support your answer.
16. If the U.S. made a treaty with Spain saying that Spain could export goods to
the U.S. without paying a tax, could Massachusetts and Pennsylvania put a tax
on those goods as they entered their states? Give a quotation from this article to
support your answer.

17. Could George Washington have been made a duke by Congress as a reward
for his services during the revolutionary war? Give a quotation from this article to
support your answer.
18. Could Maryland and Virginia have formed an alliance without the consent of
Congress? Give a quotation from this article to support your answer.
19. States were not allowed to keep standing armies during peacetime, but what
group could they use to defend themselves? Give a quotation from this article to
support your answer.
20. Could Georgia go to war to defend itself against a Spanish invasion without
consulting Congress? Give a quotation from this article to support your answer.
ARTICLE VIII
21. What types of debts would the confederation pay for?
22. On what basis was the amount of tax each state had to pay to the
confederation to be figured?
23. Who had the power to lay taxes, the confederation of the states? Give a
quotation from this article to support your answer.
ARTICLE IX
24. In your own words, list the powers granted to the confederation in the first
paragraph of this article.
25. Congress was “the last resort on appeal” for what disputes mentioned in the
second paragraph of this article?
26. From whom did the commissioners or judges of the confederation have to
take an oath before they could decide a case?
27. What powers are granted to Congress in the fourth paragraph of this article?
28. What powers are granted to Congress in the fifth paragraph of this article?
29. According to the sixth paragraph of this article, how many states had to
approve the actions of Congress before they could take effect?
30. Suppose that the people of Florida wanted their colony to join the United
States under the Articles of Confederation. According to Article XI, what would
have to happen before Florida could be admitted as a state?
31. What did the confederation pledge to do in Article XII?
ARTICLE XIII
32. In your own words, state the main idea of the first sentence of this article.
33. What does this article say about amending the Articles of Confederation?
34. According to the last paragraph, what did the signers of the Articles of
Confederation guarantee by their signatures?
35. The Articles of Confederation provided for only one branch of government,
while the Constitution provides for three. Which two branches of our government
were left out of the Articles of Confederation?
36. Look up more information on the Articles of Confederation and list two of its
major weaknesses.
37. Why did Maryland not ratify the Articles of Confederation until much later than
the other states?

38. Between the dates when the U.S. declared its independence and the date
when the Articles of Confederation went into effect, what body governed the
United States?
The United States Constitution
Summer Reading Questions
Article I
1. The House of Representatives and the Senate are in which branch of
government?
2. What are the three qualifications a person must meet to become a
representative?
3. According to Section 3, who elects senators? Who elects senators now?
4. What are the three qualifications a person must meet to become a senator?
5. Look up the word “veto” in a dictionary and write down its definition. What
section of Article I discusses veto?
6. List five of the powers and/or duties of Congress.
ARTICLE II
1. The president is in which branch of government?
2. What are the three qualifications a person must meet in order to be president?
3. List two executive checks over the legislative branch.
4. List two executive checks over the judicial branch.
5. List three of the powers and three of the duties of the president.
6. How are presidential electors selected?
7. Who elects the president if no candidate receives a majority in the Electoral
College vote?
8. Who takes over the office of president if the president dies or is otherwise
removed from office?
9. What body determines the order of succession to the presidency in the event
that both the president and the vice-president are removed from office?
ARTICLE III
1. The Supreme Court is in which branch of government?
2. In what types of cases does the Supreme Court have original jurisdiction?
3. Who is allowed to establish courts inferior to the Supreme Court?
4. What check does the second paragraph of Section 2 give Congress over the
Supreme Court?
5. In your own words, state the main guarantee of the last paragraph of Section
2.
ARTICLE IV-VII
1. In your own words, explain the main idea of Article IV, Section 1.
2. Look up the word “extradition” in a dictionary and write down its definition. In
what article and section is extradition discussed?
3. What does the first paragraph of Article IV, Section 3 forbid?
4. In your own words, describe the three main statements of Article IV, Section 4.

5. In what two ways can amendments to the Constitution be proposed?
6. In what two ways can amendments to the Constitution be ratified?
7. What is each state guaranteed in Article V?
8. In Article VI what is required of all elected officials in the United States?
9. What does Article VI say can never be used as a requirement for public office
in the United States?
10. According to Article VII, how many states were required to ratify the
Constitution for it to go into effect?
THE BILLOF RIGHTS
1. Look up “eminent domain” and write down its definition. Which amendment
discusses eminent domain?
2. A list of the ideas in the Bill of Rights appears below. Decide in which
amendment each is found. For example: a. Freedom of speech can be found in
Amendment…
a. freedom of speech
b. the states keep all powers not given to the federal government
c. right to a speedy and public trial
d. cruel and unusual punishments are illegal
e. freedom of religion
f. indictment by grand jury before trial
g. right to assemble peacefully
h. freedom from search and seizure except by warrant
i. right to trial by jury in criminal cases
j. right to bear arms
k. freedom of the press
l. trying someone for the same crime twice is illegal
m. accused persons have the right to be informed of the charges against them
n. no quartering of troops in civilian homes
o. right to petition the government
p. a person cannot be forced to testify against himself or herself
q. a person has the right to be confronted with the witnesses against him or her
in a trial
r. a person can compel witnesses to appear in his or her favor
s. a person cannot be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of
law
t. rights enjoyed by U.S. citizens cannot be taken away on the grounds that they
do not
appear in the Constitution
u. the government cannot take private property for public use unless it pays the
owner
for the property
v. right to trial by jury in civil cases
w. no excessive bails or fines can be imposed

AMENDMENTS 11-27
1. Look up “poll tax” and write down its definition. In what amendment does this
concept appear?
2. Look up “lame duck” and write down its definition. In what amendment does
this concept appear?
3. A list of the ideas from the amendments appears below. Using complete
sentences decide in which amendment each is found. For example: a. slavery
abolished can be found in Amendment? (Amendments may be used more than
once).
a. slavery abolished
b. federal income tax started
c. alcoholic beverages prohibited
d. separate voting for president and vice-president in the electoral college
e. presidents can only be elected for two terms
f. judicial power of the U.S. does not cover suits brought by the citizens of one
state against another state
g. former slaves granted right to vote
h. Washington D.C. granted presidential electors
i. eighteen-year-olds granted the right to vote
j. former slaves made citizens of the U.S.
k. former slaves counted as one whole person for purposes of representation in
the House of Representatives
l. officers of the U.S. who rebelled against the government no longer allowed to
hold office
m. direct election of senators
n. women granted the right to vote
o. congressional sessions begin January 3 of each year
p. prohibition repealed
q. neither the U.S. government nor the government of any state will pay debts
incurred during a rebellion against the United States
r. poll taxes cannot be used to prevent people from voting in federal elections
s. the vice-president becomes acting president when the president is ill
t. inauguration of the president is January 20