Customer Reviews

. . . If You Were There When They Signed the Constitution

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
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"They Signed the Constitution" by Elizabeth Levy has become an excellent resource for me to use in the classroom. I teach 7th grade social studies, and we spend 1 quarter of the year on government. My colleague and I have used most of this book for the past 3 years to supplement the rest of the material we use. We have also created a worksheet to be used with it. Students take turns reading aloud in class from this book. They find it easy to read and easy to understand, definitely not the dry textbook we're used to reading! I recommend this book for elementary and junior high teachers teaching government, as well as students looking for an easy way to understand part of our early American history.

This was a great book. It provided both facts and interesting tibits about the founders. I used it as a resource in my 5th grade inclusion social studies class and they found it both useful and informative.

Written in easy to understand, age appropriate language, Elizabeth Levy offers a great overview to the writing of the Constitution, putting into context such ideas as the original "Federal Convention," and the two sides of the Constitutional debate. Some may argue that the book is light on details, but Levy has done an excellent job of focusing on who her audience really is, offering social trivia that grabs the attention of her young readers as she draws them toward the more meaty, albeit arguably less compelling, matters of Constitutional construction. For example, she provides interesting character sketches on many of the delegates, including both famous names, like Alexander Hamilton (who was known to have a "graceful turn of the leg"), and lesser known names like William Patterson and Luther Martin. Topics are easily discerned - defined by bold headlines and arranged chronologically, and the text throughout is supported by colorful pen-and-ink drawings.

We are using this book as part of our homeschooling curriculum. My 8 year old son loves the book. We have been reading and discussing about 10 pages each day and he always wants to keep going. The book is written in a way that is simple enough for my 3rd grader, yet it doesn't feel "dumbed down". Every 1 to 2 pages has a subheading in the form of a question such as "How well did Congress work under the Articles of Confederation?" and "How are laws passed?". These questions help generate interest for what is coming up next.
My son really liked the section that told about who several of the key delegates were such as Ben Franklin, George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, etc. The book tries to show you their personality, not just facts about their lives.
I would definitely recommend this book!

This resource is supposed to be for children, but I find it accessible information for adults--easy to see, to read, to access the historical info. Love it.