Constitutional Convention Escape Room

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Here are a few tips and tricks to remember as you tour Independence Hall!

CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION ESCAPE ROOM

When you see a star, click on it to continue!

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Earn stars when you have mastered a subject! The first person to receive 4 stars gets a prize!

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Here are a few tips and tricks to remember as you tour Independence Hall!

CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION ESCAPE ROOM

We are so excited for you to learn more about the Constitutional Convention! Use the key to unlock the door and go inside!

Welcome to Independence Hall!

Hello! My name is Ben Franklin, and I will be your tour guide today! We are so excited to have you join us! Go ahead and enter the door behind me, and I will be there shortly! Remember: DO NOT TOUCH ANYTHING!

As you can see here, we are in the Assembly Hall! This is where the US Constitution was signed in 1787! Why don't you stand by this railing and I will take some pictures?

Oh no! You touched the railing when we tried to take your picture! Now we are being transported back in time to the Constitutional Convention! Quick! Answer the question to get us out of the time warp!

00:30

Looks like we didn't make it out of the time warp in time... that means we have to be part of the Constitutional Convention ourselves! It's a good thing I snuck my phone through this time! Since I have been time traveling through Independence Hall, I sometimes have my phone on me... I can somehow still use it without cell towers. Beats me, but it sure does come in handy! Use my phone to find a video explaining why these people are meeting to form a new government when we already have the Articles of Confederation!

As of 1787, which of the following is the current governing document of the United States?

Articles of Confederation

Bill of Rights

Mayflower Compact

Sorry, try again

What was NOT an issue with the Articles of Confederation?

Had a Strong Legislature

Couldn't Raise an Army

Couldn't Raise Taxes

Sorry, try again

What was the name of the rebellion that led to the Constitutional Convention?

Shay's Rebellion

Whiskey Rebellion

Bacon's Rebellion

Sorry, try again

You passed the first level and are now a delegate of the constitutional convention! Since you have the background knowledge of the convention, let's dive into some of the issues on the table!

CONGRATULATIONS!

Assembly Room Start Here

Center Hall Completed

Federalist

Anti-Federalist

Alright, just hang with me, and we will get you back home in no time! Just know that there are two parties arguing over the Constitution: the Federalists and the Anti-Federalists. Washington and I are on the side of the Federalists, but there are some heated debates about to happen. Are you going to be a Federalist or Anti-Federalist?

I am SO GLAD you decided to stick with me! We are going to have a great time learning about the debates of the Constitutional Convention!

Hello there! You made the right choice pairing up with the Anti-Federalists! My name is Thomas Jefferson, and while I was not at the Constitutional Convention, some of the compromises were very beneficial to me, and I wished I could have been here. Well, I am much more lively than that old Ben Franklin, and I am so excited to learn about this convention with you from across the pond while I am an ambassador in France!!!

Reveal the tiles to learn about the Legislative Branch Compromise!

The New Jersey Plan consisted of a unicameral legislature

True

False

Sorry, Try Again

The big states supported the New Jersey Plan

True

False

Sorry, Try Again

The Virginia Plan proposed that representation would be based on population.

True

False

Sorry, Try Again

The Great Compromise consisted of a bicameral legislature based on both population and equal represenation

True

False

Sorry, Try Again

You passed the Second level! now that you know about the legislative branch of government, let's move on to the next issue in the supreme court room!

CONGRATULATIONS!

Anti-Federalist

Federalist

Supreme Court Room Start Here

Completed

Assembly Room

Center Hall Completed

Wow it's really dark in here. Move the lightning strike around to find the key to turn on the lights!

Wow it's really dark in here. Move the lightning strike around to find the key to turn on the lights!

Great Job! Now it is time to debate the part of how the President gets elected! George Washington was elected unanimously, and he is the only President in history to ever hold that honor! Learn more about the election process for us to get back home!

Great Job! Now it is time to debate the part of how the President gets elected! George Washington was elected unanimously, and he is the only President in history to ever hold that honor! Learn more about the election process for us to get back home!

Start Here

Path to Presidency

Which of the following images represents the popular vote?

Sorry, Try Again

Which of the following images represents the electoral vote?

Sorry, Try Again

You passed the Third level! The electoral college has a select number of delegates based on Each state's population! Want to learn more about past elections concerning the popular vote and the electoral college? Check out 270towin!

CONGRATULATIONS!

FederalistsAnti-Federalists

Tower StairwellStart Here

Supreme Court Room Completed

Completed

Assembly Room

Center Hall Completed

Oh boy! Oh Boy!! Oh Boy!!! We are so close! Just learn about the next set of debates to get us out of this tower! It kind of creeps me out! Once we reach the Liberty Bell, we can go home!!

Oh boy! Oh Boy!! Oh Boy!!! We are so close! Just learn about the next set of debates to get us out of this tower! It kind of creeps me out! Once we reach the Liberty Bell, we can go home!!

Which President's election win is contributed to the 3/5 Compromise?

Thomas Jefferson

George Washington

Alexander Hamilton

Sorry, Try Again

The 3/5 Compromise counted every 3 out of 5 ___ towards the population.

Women

Slaves

Native Americans

Sorry, Try Again

All of the representatives at the Constitutional Convention supported the idea of slavery

False

True

Sorry, Try Again

How long did the Constitution extend the Atlantic Slave Trade?

5 Years

10 Years

20 Years

15 Years

Sorry, Try Again

You passed the Fourth level and have earned your fourth star! You have made it to the top of the staircase and can now use the liberty bell to get home!

CONGRATULATIONS!

FederalistsAnti-Federalists

Tower StairwellStart Here

Supreme Court Room Completed

Completed

Assembly Room

Center Hall Completed

Okay! Now it is time to actually touch something! Just put your hands on the Liberty Bell, and we should be able to go back home!

Okay! Now it is time to actually touch something! Just put your hands on the Liberty Bell, and we should be able to go back home!

Play

Ummmm.... time travel back to the 21st Century was not supposed to look like this... Oh Wait! We didn't stay for the final debate! Quick! Watch the video about the last debate and answer the questions correctly to go home!

Play

Ummmm.... time travel back to the 21st Century was not supposed to look like this... Oh Wait! We didn't stay for the final debate! Quick! Watch the video about the last debate and answer the questions correctly to go home!

Congratulations!! You made it all the way through the Constitutional Convention and are now back home!! Tell your parents all about what you learned but uhhh maybe not the time travelling part... I almost lost my job last time when a bunch of 3rd graders were here... heh heh heh... Let's celebrate with some fireworks before you head home! Be sure to turn in your notes before you leave!

Congratulations!! You made it all the way through the Constitutional Convention and are now back home!! Tell your parents all about what you learned but uhhh maybe not the time travelling part... I almost lost my job last time when a bunch of 3rd graders were here... heh heh heh... Let's celebrate with some fireworks before you head home! Be sure to turn in your notes before you leave!

The advantage of this proposal was that it would keep the president independent of the legislature. He would have his own independent base of support that would dissolve after the election.Disadvantages: Logistics of how to get the electors to meet and the related expenses. Some framers also feared whether they’d be able to attract electors. The framers settled on the Electoral College in the closing weeks of the Convention. For those who shared support for popular sovereignty, but also shared some of the concerns of the other framers about its dangers (and limits), the Electoral College offered a balance between popular input, congressional (and elite) input, and federalism.

Compromise: The Electoral College

For much of the Convention, the election of the president seemed like an unsolvable problem. Each idea had its own problems...

Electing the President Context:

It’s fair to say that the framers struggled with how to structure the presidency. This was driven, in part, by the lack of historical examples to follow.When the framers looked to Europe, they saw powerful kings. When they looked at their state constitutions, they saw executives as too weak to govern effectively. When they looked to their own Congress under the existing Articles of Confederation, they saw a body inadequate to the executive tasks necessary to shepherd a young (but growing) nation down its path toward greatness. At the same time, the framers feared executive power. They remembered the abuses of King George III and his officials in colonial America—abuses that helped lead to the American Revolution.

Advantage: Placing the decision in the hands of some of the nation’s most knowledgeable leaders. Concern: As Governor Morris warned, the result would eventually be the “work of intrigue, of cabal, and of faction,” producing a president who would become a mere tool of his supporters in Congress.

Election By Congress

Advantage: Rooting the election of the presidency in popular sovereignty. Some framers opposed this idea based on sheer elitism. Concern: The size of the country would make it difficult to carry out a national election—and for the average voter to know anything about an out-of-state candidate’s record. In other words, everyone would know (and love) Washington. But in the future, there probably wouldn’t be many—or any—other Washingtons. For delegates like Mason, it wasn’t a question of competence, but one of information. The United States was a larger republic than any ever built. Many citizens were on the frontier, spread out in the country. Information at the time spread slowly and usually to cities first. Many rural areas didn’t have newspapers. Therefore, the concern would be that these voters would rely on bad information, and this might lead them susceptible to manipulation.

Election By Popular Vote