UWSSLEC LibGuides: Great Stuff for Social Studies: Founding Documents

Osceola Schools

The Journey of the One and Only Declaration of Independence by Judith St. George; Will Hillenbrand (Illustrator)
Call Number: 973.3 ST
Few Americans are aware that "the Declaration of Independence has had more homes than a traveling circus." St. George reveals its interesting, sometimes perilous journey across time since Thomas Jefferson penned the words in 1776. Each leg of the trip is described in bouncy, interactive prose leading to a logical conclusion and a question for readers. For example: "Wow, the official, one-and-only Declaration of Independence was set forever in Philadelphia's handsome brick Pennsylvania State House on Chestnut Street. Right? WRONG!"
Location: Intermediate School

The United States Constitution by Jonathan Hennessey; Aaron McConnell (Illustrator)
Take a look at the Constitution as you've never seen it before in The United States Constitution: A Graphic Adaptation. Writer Jonathan Hennessey and illustrator Aaron McConnell describe the creation of Article I with vibrant, detailed graphics and captions that are surprisingly informative.

National Archives
Teacher pages on the National Archives. Find the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence and lesson plans!
The Constitution Center
Site devoted to study of the U.S. Constitution and the men who signed it.
Charters of Freedom
Biographical overviews of all delegates to the Constitutional Convention
American History Documents
ndiana University offers scanned images of many pivotal primary source documents, including the Stamp Act, a letter from John Hancock concerning the dissemination of the Declaration of Independence, and the first page from Tom Paine's The American Crisis pamphlet.
We're celebrating the wrong day?
A PBS interview with Kenneth Davis, author of Don't Know Much About American History, talking about the origins of and misconceptions about the Declaration of Independence.

From America: The Story of Us, contemporary Americans discuss the significance of the Declaration of Independence.