FCC Research Guides: Constitution Day Resources: Constitution Day Resources

What is the United States Constitution?

Constitution Day is celebrated every September 17th

The U.S. Constitution is a living document (meaning a document whose information can be changed, added to, and subtracted from as the United States’ government sees fit) that catalogs the innate rights of every person in the United States as well as how the nation should be governed as a whole. The original document is displayed at the National Archives Museum in Washington, D.C..

Transcription of the United States Constitution
This link leads to a transcription of the first four pages of the Constitution, which includes the famous preamble.
Transcription of the Bill of Rights
This link leads to a transcription of the first ten amendments of the United States Constitution, which are collectively known as the Bill of Rights.
Transcription of the 11th through 27th Amendments
This link leads to transcriptions of the amendments of the United States Constitution that aren't part of the Bill of Rights.

How did the United States Constitution come to be written and ratified?

You can read about the road to ratification and why there was (and is) a need for a nationally-binding constitution at the White House's official website.

A Brief History of how the Constitution came to be Written
This link leads to an explanation of the history of the United States Constitution up to its ratification and implementation by the newborn American government.

I'm an educator. How can I bring the United States Constitution into my classroom?

You can encourage or assign students to play Race to Ratify, a free online game created by iCivics where players take on the role of a political pamphlet-writer in the late 1700s who must earn argument tokens for (or against) the ratification of the proposed United States Constitution by interviewing various historical figures.

You can also encourage or assign students to watch a recorded lecture (link below) that was given at Mt. Vernon in 2023 by Linda Monk, a renowned constitutional scholar, concerning the road to ratification and the compromises that were struck between the Federalists and Anti-Federalists.

Race to Ratify
This is a free online game. It requires an Internet connection to play. All necessary information and dialogue is conveyed through text.
Linda Monk's Lecture
This link leads to a recorded lecture hosted on YouTube.
JSTOR Understanding Series: The United States Constitution
The JSTOR Understanding series is a research tool from JSTOR Labs that connects primary texts with journal articles and book chapters on JSTOR that cite those texts.

I'm a student. How can I cast an even wider net to learn more about the United States Constitution?

You can check out JSTOR's Understanding series, which links excerpts from the United States Constitution with scholarly articles that have quoted those exact sentences and phrases. The link for the segment of the Understanding series focused on the United States Constitution can be found below.

You can also investigate the weekly podcast known as We the People, which is hosted by Jeffrey Rosen, the CEO of the National Constitution Center. Rosen listens to all sides of the constitutional arguments affecting modern, everyday life for Americans.

We the People
This link leads to the National Constitution Center's website, where you can access the podcast through either Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
JSTOR Understanding Series: The United States Constitution
The JSTOR Understanding series is a research tool from JSTOR Labs that connects primary texts with journal articles and book chapters on JSTOR that cite those texts.
How to use the JSTOR Understanding Series Tool
A brief guide to getting most out of the understanding series tool and how it might be incorporated into your course.