Name_________________________________ Class_____________________ Date _____________

The United States

Lesson 2

MAIN IDEAS
1. The United States, the world’s first modern democracy, expanded from the
Atlantic coast to the Pacific coast over time.
2. In the United States, different levels of government have different roles, but
all levels require the participation of the citizens.
3. The people and culture of the United States are very diverse.

Key Terms and Places

colony  territory inhabited and controlled by people from a foreign land
Boston  major seaport in the British colonies during the mid-1700s
New York  major seaport in the British colonies during the mid-1700s
plantation  large farm that grows mainly one crop
pioneers  first settlers in the West
U.S. Constitution  documentspelling out the powers and function of the
branches of the federal government
legislative branch  responsible for making laws
executive branch  carries out and enforces laws
judicial branch  interprets the laws in court cases
bilingual  people who speak two languages

Lesson Summary
FIRST MODERN DEMOCRACY
Europeans began settling in North America in Name two major seaports
the 1500s and setting up colonies. New cities such in the British colonies.
as Boston and New York became major seaports __________________________
in the British colonies. Thousands of enslaved
Africans were brought to the colonies and forced
to work on plantations. What happened in July
In the 1770s many British colonists were 1776?
unhappy with British rule. As a result, colonial __________________________
representatives adopted the Declaration of __________________________
Independence in July 1776. To win independence, __________________________
colonists fought the British in the Revolutionary
__________________________
War. The British were defeated in 1781 at the
__________________________
Battle of Yorktown in Virginia.

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Name _________________________________ Class _____________________ Date _____________

Lesson 2, continued

After the war, the United States began to

expand west. The first settlers in the West were
called pioneers. Many sought land, others were
looking for gold. By 1850 the country stretched By 1850 the United States
all the way to the Pacific Ocean. The United stretched from the Atlantic
coast to which ocean?
States faced two world wars during the 1900s.
After World War II, the United States and the __________________________

Soviet Union became rivals in the Cold War,

which lasted until the 1990s.

GOVERNMENT AND CITIZENSHIP

The United States is a representative democracy.
It is a limited government based on the U.S.
Constitution. The Bill of Rights, a part of the Underline four individual
rights protected by the
Constitution, protects individual rights such as Constitution.
the freedoms of speech, press, and religion and
the right to a fair trial.
The federal government has three branches.
Congress, the legislative branch, makes laws. The
executive branch, which includes the president
and vice-president, enforces the laws. The judicial
branch interprets the laws in court cases. Each What are the three
branches of the federal
state has its own constitution and government. government?
Counties and cities have their own local __________________________
governments. All levels of government require
__________________________
the participation of the citizens. Participation
__________________________
includes voting, paying taxes, and jury service.

PEOPLE AND CULTURE

Many Americans are descendants of European
immigrants. The United States is also home to
people of many different cultures and ethnic
groups. The United States is a diverse nation,
where many languages are spoken, different
religions are practiced, and a variety of foods are
eaten.
For thousands of years, Native Americans
were the only people living in the Americas.
Descendants of enslaved Africans live
throughout the country, with the highest

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90 Guided Reading Workbook

Name _________________________________ Class _____________________ Date _____________

Lesson 2, continued

population of African Americans living in the

South. Asian Americans are descendants of
Underline the sentence that
people who came from Asian countries. Many explains where many
Hispanic Americans originally migrated to the Hispanic Americans
originally migrated.
United States from Mexico, Cuba, and other
Latin American countries.
When people migrate to the United States, they
bring parts of their culture with them, including
their religions, food, and music. Some Americans What parts of their culture
do people bring with them
are bilingual. Other than English, Spanish is the when they migrate to the
most widely spoken language in the United United States?
States. People of different ethnic groups make the __________________________
United States a very diverse country.

CHALLENGE ACTIVITY
Critical Thinking: Draw Inferences
Imagine that you are about to turn 18. Make a
list of ways you, as a U.S. citizen, can participate
in the state, local, and federal government.

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Name _________________________________ Class _____________________ Date _____________

Lesson 2, continued

DIRECTIONS  Look at the set of three terms following each number.

On the line provided, write the letter of the term that does not relate
to the others.
����� 1. a. cotton b. plantation c. bilingual
����� 2. a. seaport b. pioneers c. New York
����� 3. a. legislative branch b. West c. pioneers
����� 4. a. Boston b. judicial branch c. New York
����� 5. a. U.S. Constitution b. Boston c. executive branch

bilingual Boston colony executive branch

judicial branch legislative branch New York pioneers
plantation U.S. Constitution

DIRECTIONS  Answer each question by writing a sentence that

contains at least one term from the word bank.
����� 6. What is one reason that the population of the United States is so
culturally diverse today?

____________________________________________________________
����� 7. What was America like before the Revolutionary War?

____________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________
����� 8. What makes the government of the United States a limited
democracy?

____________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________

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92 Guided Reading Workbook