Today in western civ we were told to look up the Articles of Confederation, the constitution, and the Bill of Rights. 

Articles of Confederation: An agreement between all 13 states in the US that served as its first constitution. It was the first written constitution of the US. It was written during the Revolutionary war. It was written to give the colonies some sense of a unified government. Became affective on March 1, 1781.The Articles of Confederation gave Congress the power to govern foreign affairs, conduct war and regulate currency; however, in reality these powers were sharply limited because Congress had no authority to enforce its requests to the states for money or troops.

Constitution: All laws come from the Constitution. Was completed on September 17, 1787. The Constitution is the second of the three Charters of Freedom along with the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of rights, with later amendments. The U.S. Constitution established America’s national government and fundamental laws, and guaranteed certain basic rights for its citizens. George Washington was the first to sign the document. Of the 55 delegates, a total of 39 signed

Bill of Rights: 10 amendments guaranteeing basic individual protections such as freedom of speech and religion–became part of the Constitution in 1791. To date, there have been a total of 27 constitutional amendments. On September 25, 1789, Congress adopted 12 of the amendments and sent them to the states for ratification. Ten of these amendments, known collectively as the Bill of Rights, were ratified and became part of the Constitution on December 10, 1791. The Bill of Rights guarantees individuals certain basic protections as citizens, including freedom of speech, religion and the press; the right to bear and keep arms; the right to peaceably assemble; protection from unreasonable search and seizure; and the right to a speedy and public trial by an impartial jury.