When students are in middle school, they solidify their foundation for essential concepts they need in high school. One of the most crucial topics they need to understand is the Articles of Confederation. This document had a massive impact on the United States and continues to do so today. However, it is not a perfect document. So, students need to learn all of the positives and negatives. Since this is a lot to plan, I have the perfect activities for teaching the Articles of Confederation for middle school!
Articles of Confederation Stations
It is so important for students to be active in their learning. So, this is the perfect activity when teaching the Articles of Confederation for middle school. Students will complete 9 student-driven stations focusing on all aspects of the Articles of Confederation. There are graphic organizers and guided practice sheets to help students focus on their learning and identify evidence.
Students will even learn weaknesses and have a classroom brainstorming activity. It will be amazing to see students so focused while learning about the Articles of Confederation.
Historical Snapshot Â
History involves diving deep into rich literature. However, this can be highly challenging for students. So, this reading keeps that in mind! Students will learn about Shays’ Rebellion, the Articles of Confederation, and the Constitution. This includes the weakness of the Articles and the circumstances of Shays’ Rebellion. There are even annotation guides, worksheets, and a graphic organizer. These are crucial guides to helping students analyze a text, support claims with evidence, and draw conclusions.Â
Articles of Confederation Doodle Style NotebookÂ
Middle school students cannot sit still all day. They need learning with movement, a variety of activities, and discussion. Luckily, this lesson is full of fun and rigor! Students learn all about the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation through a fun doodle-style project.
They will begin by reading and highlighting key information. Then, they will answer questions based on the reading. After this, students will use the reading to complete a fun concept-based folding project to bring their learning alive.
 DBQ ConstitutionÂ
When planning activities on the Articles of Confederation for middle school, it is crucial to get students involved. They need to explore all the whys, hows, and whos. Thankfully, this document does exactly that!
Students will analyze a primary source document, respond to questions, find evidence, and provide commentary. As they do this, they will decide if the Constitution is superior to the Articles of Confederation.
Honestly, this resource is a labor of love! There are so many amazing resources to analyze while getting students to really think and respond.
Constitution Escape Room
If you want to get students excited about the Constitution, this is the answer! Students will work in pairs to try and escape! There are 23 questions that they must answer correctly to move forward. This is a fantastic activity and assessment!
Students must gain a strong understanding of the Articles of Confederation. It is a crucial document that they will use for years to come. Thankfully, these activities are amazing when teaching the Articles of Confederation for middle school.Â
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