Brainstorming ways to make the Constitution engaging and history exciting for your young learners? Whether you’re gearing up for Constitution Day in September or just prepping your social studies lesson plans, you’ve landed in the right place.
The teachers on the Teach Starter team have put together some of the fun — but true — facts about the US Constitution that we have used over the years to get our classes excited about this formative document and how it has shaped modern-day America.
Read on for fun facts about this important historical document, plus some ways to answer students’ most common questions about when the Constitution was signed and who signed it.
Facts About the Constitution for Kids
1. Although the Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787 — the day celebrated as Constitution Day — it wasn’t immediately put into action as the law of the land. For that to happen, it had to be officially approved by nine of the 13 State legislatures through a process called ratification. It was ratified on June 21, 1788.
2. The Constitution of the European country San Marino has been in continuous use since 1600, but the US Constitution is still often considered the world’s longest-surviving written charter of government — even though it was signed nearly 200 years later. This is because the San Marino Constitution has not been codified, which means that not all of its elements are law.
3. The youngest person to sign the Constitution was a lawyer from New Jersey named Jonathan Dayton who was 26 years old at the time. Years later, Dayton would serve in Congress, even becoming speaker of the house.
4. The oldest signer of the Constitution was Benjamin Franklin, who was 81 years old at the time.
5. The Constitution was signed in the same place as the Declaration of Independence, making Independence Hall in Philadelphia one of the most important spots in American history.
6. The founding fathers originally printed 500 copies of the Constitution, but only 13 are known to still be in existence today.
7. A rare copy of the U.S. Constitution sold for a whopping $43.2 million in 2021.
8. Since the Constitution was first written, there have been 27 amendments, including the 10 amendments known as the Bill of Rights.
9. The Bill of Rights is famous for its 10 amendments to the Constitution, but 12 amendments were actually proposed at the time and only 10 were approved by state legislatures.
10. The most recent amendment made to the Constitution was the 27th, and that occurred in 1992. That was more than 200 years after the amendment was first proposed by James Madison!
11. The state of Pennsylvania is spelled “Pensylvania” in the U.S. Constitution, but this is not a spelling error. The spelling with just one N was allowed at the time. The same spelling appears on the famous Liberty Bell.
12. When President George Washington announced the first Thanksgiving, it was aimed at celebrating the new country and the new Constitution.
13. A $5,000 bill is very rarely seen, but if you find one, you’ll find the words “James Madison, The Father of the Constitution” printed on the bill.
14. The person who wrote the draft of the U.S. Constitution that was signed in September 1787 was a man named Jacob Shallus who was then the assistant clerk for the Pennsylvania General Assembly. He received a payment of $30 for his work.
15. The first person to sign the Constitution was George Washington.
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