Crossroads: Middle School Curriculum
Lesson Plan#:  0090

 

UNIT V: 
The Ambiguous Democracy in America: 1800-1848

Content and Understandings:  

1. The role of the United States in the world changed between the Treaty of Paris in 1783 and the Monroe Doctrine in 1823.

 2. Individuals and states challenged the power of the federal government in the young nation.

 3. Americans made important advances in technology and transportation during this period.

 4. There were geographic, economic, political, and social differences between the North, South, and West that gave rise to sectionalism.

 5. During Andrew Jackson's presidency, democracy was expanded in some ways and limited in others.

 6. The United States grew between 1800 and 1853, adding many new territories.

7. A distinctive American culture developed in the period between 1800 and 1848.

8. Some people tried to improve the lives of Americans through reform movements.

 9. The United States was an ambiguous democracy.

 

Teacher's Rationale:  
The period between 1800 and 1848 was important to the political development of the United States. The founding fathers had set the foundation for democracy in the Constitution, yet it was unclear how the young nation would solve its many problems at home and abroad. In the early 1800s the nation struggled to put democracy into practice as different sections of the country developed in different ways. More Americans participated in government during this period than earlier periods, but groups such as Indians, slaves, and women were denied political power. "Ambiguous democracy" refers not to the many interpretations of democracy during this time, but rather to this inconsistency. In this unit, students will come to appreciate the challenges the United States faced in the early 1800s in achieving democracy. Themes introduced in Unit V such as states' rights, sectionalism, and reform will reappear in later seventh and eighth grade units.

 

Table of Contents:  
Question/Problem 1 : How did the role of the United States in the world change between 1783 and 1823?

Question/Problem 2 : How did individuals and states challenge the power of the federal government in the young nation.

Question/Problem 3: In what ways were the North, South and West different in the early 1800s?

Question/Problem 4: Did Andrew Jackson's expansion of presidential power benefit or harm the American people?

Question/Problem 5: When, why and how were new territories added to the United States between 1800 and 1853?

Question/Problem 6: What were the goals and outcomes of the reform movements that took place between 1800 and 1848?

Question/Problem 7: Was the United States a true democracy between 1800 and 1848?