06 STUDENT MULTIPLE CHOICE TEST Name Instructions (lass For each.iiiestion sele the one h sr nswer. Mark your an wer Date a answer sheet in tm ted by your tealher TEST ON THE HISTORY AND PRINCIPLES OF THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION 1. How did living in the colonies influence the Americans ideas about government? a. The colonists took part in their own government. b. In the colonies, royalty made the laws. c. The Founders believed that Great Britain would protect the rights of the colonists. d. The colonists brought a single set of ideas about religion, government, and rights to the new land. 2. Which best describes what life might be like if there were no laws or government? a. Nobody s rights would be protected. b. Everyone s rights would be protected. People would behave reasonably. d. Strong people would have to help weak people. 3. A social contract is an agreement a. among people to get along with one another. b. among people that is not written. c. among the people to set up a government. d. between two governments. 4. The common good means that which is best for a. government. b. the largest number of people. c. the rich. d. the poor. 5. The term civic virtue means that the citizens a. put the common good ahead of their own interests. b. put their own interests ahead of the common good. c. rule themselves. d. limit the powers of government.
6. The best source of information about how a nation s government is organized is a D6 d. which natural rights the government should protect. c. how many representatives a state could send to Congress. b. how to collect taxes from the states. a. when slavery would be abolished. 12. The Great Compromise solved a conflict about give the state governments more power. d. write a new constitution. 11. At the start of the Philadelphia Convention, the delegates agreed to b. improve the Articles of Confederation. a. follow the instructions of Congress d. No one had control over the army. c. There were no limits on the power of the national government. b. The national government was too weak. a. The state governments were too weak. 10. The Articles of Confederation had this serious problem: b. people elect members of government to represent them. d. leaders are not responsible to anyone. a. leaders have all the power. c. people make the laws. 9. In a republican government the d. The people never have the right to change their government. c. Government should protect the right to trial by jury b. Government gets its power from the Supreme Court. a. All people are created equal. 8. The Declaration of Independence expresses this idea: d. there are limits on the power of government. a. it has a written constitution. c. government protects the right to trial by jury 7. A government is a constitutional government when b. the people ratify the constitution. d. speech by a government leader. b. government report. a. dictionary. c. constitution.
D6 13. One reason that the Framers were willing to compromise on the issues of slavery was because a. both the North and the South held large numbers of people as slaves. b. some Framers were from Southern states. c. the Framers wanted the Southern states to join the new government. d. the Framers agreed to pass a bill of rights. 14. The Preamble to the Constitution begins with the words, We the People. These words mean a. Americans were one people. b. the people approved of the new constitution. the people wanted a better way of life. d. it is the people who create government. 15. The Constitution separates the powers of government so that no branch can a. raise taxes. b. become too powerful. c. disagree with the other branches. d. protect the rights of the people. 16. The Constitution limits the power of the national government by a. denying the states certain powers. b. a system of separation of powers and checks and balances. c. giving the president the power to veto bills. d. dividing Congress into two houses. 17. The legislative branch of government a. makes the laws. b. carries out and enforces the laws. c. settles disagreements about laws. d. declares laws unconstitutional. 18. The executive branch of government a. amends the Constitution. b. carries out and enforces the laws. c. settles disagreements about laws. d. makes the laws.
D6 d. trial by jury a. due process. c. freedom of religion. b. equal protection of the laws. of the First Amendment. They protect the right to 24. The establishment and free exercise clauses are two parts praises the government. d. it makes sure that anything written for a newspaper ideas, or feelings. c. it allows you to meet with others to discuss your belief, b. it allows the government to make strict requirements for voting. a. it supports the need to make violent changes in government. 23. Freedom of expression gives people many benefits. One of the benefits is h. age requirements for school attendance. d. a treaty in which nations agree to clean up the environment. marriage and divorce laws. a. traffic laws and regulations. 22. The federal government is responsible for d. power is divided among the states. c. power is divided between national and state governments. b. the people do not have any power. a. one government has all the power. 21. The best description for a federal system of government is d. decide when a justice may no longer serve on the Court. b. declare a law unconstitutional. a. set up a system of lower courts. c. approve treaties made by the president. 20. The power of judicial review means that the Supreme Court can d. amends the Constitution. c. makes the laws. b. settles disagreements about laws. a. appoints the members of Congress. 19. The judicial branch of government
06 STUDENT MULTIPLE-CHOICE TEST (CONTINUED> 25. The Fourteenth Amendment and the Civil Rights Act require state governments to treat people fairly without taking into account race, religion, national origin, or gender. This is called a. equal protection. h. disability protection. c. a violation of the Constitution. d. discrimination. 26. The right to due process of law means that government cannot a. arrest you. h. make laws that you disagree with. c. send you to prison. d. treat you unfairly. 27. Women gained the right to vote a. because the Framers decided they deserved it. b. after many decades of civil protest. c. if their grandmothers had the right. d. when they became landowners. 28. Some ways that countries of the world interact are a. restricting voting, travel, and the press. b. passing laws that prevent the sharing of culture and scientific discoveries. buying and selling goods only in their own national markets. d. giving humanitarian aid, making treaties, and engaging in trade. 29. Citizens of the United States are those who a. are born in countries that have treaties with the Unted States. b. work in the United States and pay taxes. c. have lived in the United States for at least rwenty years. ci. are born in the United States or are naturalized. 3O. A good way for fifth- and sixth-graders to participate in our government is to a. vote in elections. b. write to a representative. c. run for public office. d. serve on a jury.