Take a quiz on the Articles of Confederation, Constitutional Convention, Northwest Ordinance and Shay's Rebellion.

Primary source documents (letters) concerning the need for a central government written by Madison, Hamilton, Jay, and others.

This site provides the full text of the Articles of Confederation.

The Articles of Confederation were our first attempt at establishing a central government. It established the first Office of Foreign Affairs, but many weaknesses concerning foreign policy soon became apparent. Study how this first...

Fourth graders will be introduced to the primary documents of the Articles of Confederation and the US Constitution. They will figure out the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation and compare them to the US Constitution. Students...

A good look at the government under the Articles of Confederation. See what powers the central government had, the powers of the state governments, and discover the problems that ensued.

During the Revolutionary War, it was necessary to put together some sort of central government, primarily to raise and pay an army. Read about the rules finally passed by Congress in 1777, called the Articles of Confederation. See what...

This informative and easy-to-read site contains information about how the United States formed its first government under the Articles of Confederation. From the Library of Congress

Gives a nice history of the Articles and also a summary of what they were and the problems that developed with their adoption. Includes links to the actual document.

This article summarizes the Articles of Confederation, its strengths and weaknesses, and how it led to the Constitution.

This tutorial examines the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation and why they were replaced with the Constitution. A PDF file of the tutorial is available.

The original text of a 1787 article in which James Madison discusses the failures of the Articles of Confederation. An interesting look at the problems with the states and with foreign countries.

University of Chicago Press provides a letter from John Jay to Thomas Jefferson in which Jay explains the need to reform the government existing under the Articles of Confederation.

See how colonial and state constitutions differed and how the idea of a social contract between a government and its citizens is reflected in the state constitutions. The second half of this site gives an abbreviated text of the Articles...

Two informative charts, one of which compares the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution, the other which lays out the positions of the Federalists and Anti-Federalists concerning the Constitution.

This site from the American Revolution Project discusses the state of the union at the end of the Revolutionary War and how the events of the time led to the failure of the Continental Congress and the Articles of Confederation.

This lesson plan looks at the development of the constitutional government in the United States. Students use technology to explore history concepts.

[Free Registration/Login Required] This flipchart focuses on social studies skills by introducing students to Georgia's 1st Constitution and new United States' Articles of Confederation. Timelines are introduced where students add facts...

This teacher resource includes imagesand historical documents, alllowing readers to trace the creation of our government from the Continental Congress through the Articles of Confederation. An overview helps to clarify the policies and...

Learners explore how the U.S. government was created in the years following the Articles of Confederation.

[Free Registration/Login Required] This website documents the United States through its struggles to become a new nation. Site includes primary source documents for the Articles of Confederation, US Constitutional Convention, and George...

A brief article on the efforts of Charles Pinckney along with others to amend The Articles of Confederation. Includes links to original text of unsuccessful amendments to The Articles of Confederation

The new United States government had many problems under the Articles of Confederation. Find out what these problems were, but also discover some of the successes accomplished under that constitution. [pdf]

Although there were some glaring weaknesses for the central government under the Articles of Confederation, there were some stunning accomplishments. Read about the successes and think about how important they were for the future of the...