SOL Prep

Foundations of American Constitutional Government

Virginia SOL GOVT.1

Understand the foundations of American constitutional government through historic influences and foundational documents.

Study GOVT.1 with SOL PrepBack to Grade 12 - Virginia and United States Government

What students need to be able to do

  • Describe features of a democratic republic influenced by Athenian democracy and the Roman Republic.
  • Analyze foundational principles in historic writings and prior governing documents, including the Magna Carta, charters of the Virginia Company of London, Enlightenment philosophers, the Great Awakening, and the English Bill of Rights.
  • Evaluate foundational principles expressed in the Constitution of Virginia, the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, and the Constitution of the United States.
  • Analyze George Mason's Virginia Declaration of Rights, Thomas Jefferson's Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, and James Madison's role in securing adoption of the Bill of Rights.