Running Time:
224 minutes
Grade Level:
7 - Adult
Captions:
English Subtitles
Spanish Subtitles
AVP Release Date:
October 2005
Producer:
Ambrose Video Publishing/Centre
It is our nation's most revered document and a creation of mankind's enduring search for liberty and freedom. It resonates with the spirit of the times during which it was conceived and serves as a guide to an unknown and rapidly changing future. It is the United States of America's Constitution.
In this series we shall see how this document has protected the American people from the abuses of power and tyranny and how for over two centuries the principles set forth by the U.S. Constitution have empowered Americans to excel and aspire to greatness - great art, great literature, excellence and leadership in science and technology. The Constitution has enabled the United States to become the world's most prosperous and most powerful nation.
Hosted by Jeff Fahey, this series is chaptered into 47, five to seven minute stand-alone presentations that can be accessed with unprecedented ease. This educational history DVD series features easy to use menus and includes comprehensive ancillary materials: teacher guides, maps, documents, test blanks, and Spanish and English subtitle options on every disc.
- U.S. Constitution DVD No. 1
Running Time: 56 minutes
Program 1: The Seeds of the Constitution
1619 – Virginia Colonists Create the First Legislative Assembly
1733 – Parliament Restricts Free Trade Through the Molasses Act
1735 – The Peter Zenger Trial Lays the Seed for Freedom of the Press
1739 – Black Uprising in South Carolina Foreshadows Constitutional Crisis
1739 – The Great Awakening and the Separation of Church and State
Program 2: Founding the Constitution
1750 - Iron Act Restricts American Business
1754 – The Albany Plan of Union Sets Out the Foundation for the U.S. Constitution
1760 - James Otis Fights for the Security of People in Their Homes
1765 – The Stamp Act and Taxation Without Representation
1774 - The Quartering Act Leads to the Third Amendment
1774 - Massachusetts Creates the Minutemen Militia
- U.S. Constitution DVD No. 2
Running Time: 56 minutes
Program 3: Writing the Constitution and the Bill of Rights
1774 - First Continental Congress Meets in Philadelphia
1776 - Declaration of Independence
1786 – Shays’ Rebellion Shows the Need for a New Constitution
1787 - The United States Constitution is Written
1788 - Congress Sends 12 Amendments to the States
1789 - Alexander Hamilton Shapes America's Modern Industrial Economy
1791 - States Ratify Madison’s Bill of Rights
Program 4: Testing the Constitution
1793 – Congress Enacts a Fugitive Slave Act
1794 – Congress Passes the 11th Amendment Protecting States Rights
1794 – Freedom to Protest is Tested in the Whiskey Rebellion
1796 – John Adams Becomes the Second President of United States Inaugurating the Two-party System and is Responsible for the 12th Amendment
1798 – Alien and Sedition Acts Usher in a Bleak Period of American Political Freedom
1803 – John Marshall Establishes a Strong Supreme Court Through Marbury v. Madison
- U.S. Constitution DVD No. 3
Running Time: 56 minutes
Program 5: The Constitution Survives
1810 – Marshall Establishes the Sanctity of Contracts
1828 – Jacksonian Democracy and the Constitution
1848 – Mexican American War and Manifest Destiny Set up America's Greatest Constitutional Crisis
1861 – Southern States Secede and Force Constitutional Crisis
Program 6: The Constitution is Expanded
1865 – 70 - 13th, 14th, 15th Amendments: The Anti-Slavery Amendments
1872 – Susan B. Anthony Fights for Women’s Right to Vote
1887 - The Interstate Commerce Act Opens the Door for Increased Federal Power
1896 – Plessy v. Ferguson Establishes Separate but Equal for Black America
1913 – 16th Amendment Creates the Income Tax
1913 – 17th Amendment Allows for the Popular Election of Senators
1918 - Prohibition and the 18th Amendment
- U.S. Constitution DVD No. 4
Running Time: 56 minutes
Program 7: The Constitution in a Changing World
1919 - The Supreme Court Limits Free Speech and Freedom of the Press in Schenck v. U.S.
1920 – Women Gain the Right to Vote Through the 19th Amendment
1933 – 20th and 21st New Deal Amendments Herald a Change in American Life
1951 – Americans Limit a President to Two Terms with the 22nd Amendment
1954 – Brown v. Board of Education Ends “Separate but Equal” for Black America
1961 – Citizens of Washington D.C. Gain the Right to Vote with the 23rd Amendment
Program 8: Constitutional Reform and Controversy
1961 - Supreme Court Prevents Illegal Search and Seizure with Mapp v. Ohio
1964 – Warren Court Strengthens “Innocent Until Proven Guilty” Through Miranda
1964 - 24th Amendment Prohibits Poll Taxes in Federal Elections
1967 - 1992 - The 25th, 26th and 27th Amendments Reform America's Political Landscape
1973 - Roe v. Wade Extends Constitutional Right of Privacy
2000 – America Contests a Presidential Election
Clip Length: 2 minutes 45 seconds
Reviews:
"A good choice for middle and secondary collections."
- School Library JournalRead More Reviews
Reviews:
"A good choice for middle and secondary collections."
- School Library Journal"This chronologically arranged four-volume set (with two titles on each DVD) covers key events leading up to and following the creation of the U.S. Constitution. There is an on camera host but the bulk of the commentary is voice-over narration, augmented by historic prints, artwork, and other stills, including images filmed at Williamsburg and Jamestown. The Seeds of the Constitution covers significant events from the founding of the Virginia Colonies in 1619 to the black uprising in South Carolina and the "great awakening" regarding the separation of church and state in 1739. The Founding of the Constitution begins in 1750, concluding with the creation of the minutemen militia in Massachusetts in 1774... the strength of these programs is the inclusion of topics not always discussed such as Iron Act and Benjamin Franklin's 1754 Albany Plan of Union. The role of lesser known figures such as George Whitefield, a fire-and-brimstone preacher credited with making social status in the colonies more fluid, is also addressed. Other titles in the set include Writing the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, Testing the Constitution, The Constitution in a Changing World, and Constitutional Reform and Controversy. A comprehensive introduction for students."
- Booklist
Downloadable Documents:
- Historical Document - Amendments to the Constitution
- Historical Document - Bush v. Gore 2000
- Historical Document - Dred Scott v. Sanford 1857
- Historical Document - Interstate Commerce Act 1887
- Historical Document - Kelo et al. v. City of New London et al. 2005
- Historical Document - Mapp v. Ohio, 1961
- Historical Document - Marbury v. Madison 1803
- Historical Document - Miranda v. Arizona 1964
- Historical Document - Plessy v. Ferguson, 1896
- Historical Document - Roe v. Wade 1973
- Historical Document - Schenck v. U.S., 1919
- Historical Document - The Bill of Rights
- Historical Document - The Declaration of Independence
- Historical Document - The Fundamental Orders of Connecticut 1638
- Historical Document - The Judiciary Act of 1879
- Historical Document - The Militia Act of 1792
- Historical Document - The South Carolina Ordinance of Secession, 1861
- Historical Document - The U.S. Constitution
- Teacher's Guide - History of the U.S. Constitution
- Blackline Master Quizzes - History of the US Constitution
16th and 17th Century Turning Points in U.S. History |
A History of Women's Achievement in America |
18th Century Turning Points in U.S. History |
Supreme Court, The |