Session 1
TRECA Launchpad
Test Tools and Founding Documents
Description
What is this course about?
Today's focus will be on getting to know the online test tools and exploring our first American History topic: the founding documents. These include... - The Declaration of Independence- The Northwest Ordinance- The Articles of Confederation- The Constitution
Session Reminders
Reminders
The main goal of this session is to help prepare you for your end-of-course American History test.
Ask Questions
Be Polite and Be Kind
Reach Out
Actively Participate
Thanks for being here today! Let's get started with today's topic.
Testing Tips
Global Testing tools
How to use each testing tool in your testing session.
Test Tools
Question Mark and Clock
The tools that are accessible to students are known as global tools.
Global Tools
Test Clock
Question Mark
Test Tools
Zoom, Line Reader, and Notes
The tools that are accessible to students are known as global tools.
Zoom In and Out
Notes
Line Reader
Test Tools
Masking and Context Menu
The tools that are accessible to students are known as global tools.
Context Menu - Tutorial
Masking
Context Menu
Test Tools
Context Menu
In the context menu, you'll have the options for a tutorial, mark for review, and strikethrough.
Strikethrough Example
Mark for Review
Strikethrough
The
Founding Documents
The documents that established our nation
The Founding Documents
The Declaration of Independence
"We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal..."
The Declaration of Independence
This is the document that officially created America as an independent nation and began the American Revolution.
This document does two important things for the colonists. First, it expresses new ideas about individual rights that had not been expressed in government documents at that time. Second, it officially breaks ties with England, beginning the American Revolution.
The Declaration of Independence is heavily influenced by the Enlightenment, which was a philosophical movement happening in Europe. The ideas of natural rights and the social contract play a crucial role.
The Enlightenment
Key Enlightenment Concepts
The Age of Enlightenment was a philosophical and political movement that stressed reason, logic, and individual rights. It was the foundation for many revolutions during the period.
Natural rights are rights that people are born with and cannot be taken away by a government.
The Enlightenment
Natural Rights
The social contract is a relationship between a government and its citizens where citizens give up their rights to their government and in return the government protects them.
Under the social contract, if a government no longer protects its citizens, citizens have the right to remove and replace that government. This was the driving force behind the American Revolution.
Social Contract
Social Contract - Revolution
The Founding Documents
The NorthwestOrdinance
A lesser known, but still important document
The Northwest Ordinance
- Established a process for admitting new states into the Union.
- Guaranteed, new states would be equal to the original colonies.
- Protected civil rights, specifically the right to a trial by jury, which shows up in the Bill of Rights.
- The first legal document to outlaw slavery.
The Northwest Ordinance was the document that governed the Northwest Territory. States disagreed over who owned what territories, so this document established procedures for occupying the territory.
This document is important because it established a series of precedents that would go on to influence other foundational documents.
The Founding Documents
The Articles of Confederation
America's first attempt at governing
Articles of Confederation
If England's not in charge, who is?
Following the Declaration of Independence, representatives from the colonies met to create the Articles of Confederation. This was the first governing document of the new United States. After being under the oppressive rule of King George, the colonists believed that individual states should be the "authority," rather than having a federal government. Ultimately, this turns out to be a mistake.
Failures of the Articles of Confederation
Congress was unable to regulate trade between the states. This ultimately causes problems as each state had its own trade rules and forms of currency.
Natural rights are rights that people are born with and cannot be taken away by a government.
Each state received only one vote in Congress, regardless of the population or size of the state.
Natural Rights
Trade
Voting
The social contract is a relationship between a government and its citizens where citizens give up their rights to their government and in return the government protects them.
Under the social contract, if a government no longer protects its citizens, citizens have the right to remove and replace that government. This was the driving force behind the American Revolution.
The problems with the Articles were difficult to address. To add new laws, 9/13 states needed to agree. To amend (or change) the Articles, all 13 states needed to agree.
Congress could not tax the states. This led to budgetary issues as the country was unable to pay its debt.
Social Contract - Revolution
Social Contract
Taxation
Amendments
Constitutional Questions
The debate centered around four questions
- Should the Articles be revised or thrown out?
- How should members of Congress be chosen?
- Should slavery still be practiced?
- How should we address the federal government?
These questions led to the creation of two groups, each with their own opinion on how to address these issues.
The Founding Documents
The Federalists and Anti-Federalists
and the Great Compromise
Federalist/Anti-Federalist Debate
The failure of the Articles of Confederation led to a debate over the role of government.
The Federalists believed in replacing the Articles with a new system of government, establishing a strong federal government, and did not want a Bill of Rights in the Constitution. Anti-Federalists believed that the Articles could be fixed rather than replaced, allowing states to keep their authority, and argued that if a strong federal branch existed, then a Bill of Rights needed to be added to the Constitution.
Federalist vs. Anti-Federalist
Anti-Federalist
Federalist
- The Articles of Confederation should be amended
- States should retain their power
- The rights of individuals need to be protected
- Establish a new form of government
- Create a strong central branch
- No support for the Bill of Rights
vs
The Great Compromise
As the country began questioning what the new federal government would look like, the debate over representation grew, ultimately leading to the decision known as the Great Compromise.
Under the Articles, states disagreed over influence in the federal government. Larger states, like Virginia, believed that they should hold more influence as more people lived in these states. Smaller states, like New Jersey, though, believed that representation should be equal, regardless of population size.
The Great Compromise
- A bicameral legislature would be created with a House of Representatives and Senate
- The House of Represenatives would be based on a state's population
- The Senate would have a set number of representatives, two from each state
- The question of the imapct of slavery on population was solved by the 3/5th Compromise, in which 3 of every 5 slaves counted torwards a state's population.
The Bill of Rights
How do we protect our individual rights?
The addition of the Bill of Rights to the Constitution was another compromise between Federalists and Anti-Federalists in order to ratify (approve) the Constitution. The Bill of Rights consists of the first ten amendments to the Constitution, which protect civil liberties like freedoms of speech and religion, the right to bear arms, and the right to a trial by jury.
The Founding Documents
The Constitution
The branches and functions of government
The Constitution
Under the new Constitution, the federal government was rebuilt.
The Constitution established three branches of the federal government: the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. Each of these branches had specific functions that could override the power of the others, creating checks and balances to prevent any branch of the federal government from becoming too powerful.
The Branches of Government
Judicial
Legislative
Executive
Do you have questions?
We are here to help you. If anything was unclear or you want to explore a topic further, feel free to contact us. Your curiosity is also part of the learning process.
Session Code: LP238
Reach Out
Even after the session is over, or if you're completing this outside the Launchpad session, reach out if you have any questions or need clarification on a topic.
Global Tools
The global tools are accessible on every screen of the test. They are located in the upper right corner.
Notes
The Notes tool lets you keep notes during testing. You can open the Notepad by clicking the Notes button, and enter text in the pop-up box. When you're done, choose save and close to be able to access your notes again. The Notes box cannot be copied into an answer space, and information on the notepad is not considered answers to any questions.
Zoom In and Out
You can enlarge or reduce the size of text and images on the screen by clicking on the Zoom in or Zoom Out button.
Context Menu - Tutorial
The first option on the context menu is the tutorial. This will open a video tutorial on the question type. For example, if it's a multi-select question, the video tutorial will explain how to answer the question by choosing all answers that apply to the question.
Strikethrough
The strikethrough option will allow you to eliminate answer options on a question. To access this, open the context menu and choose strikethrough. This will cause the boxes to lighten. From there, choose the answers you'd like to eliminate.
Actively Participate
Participation is key to getting the most out of these sessions. Do your best to participate during today's session.
Remember: You must complete each survey to earn attendance credit for the session.
The Judicial Branch
- The Supreme Court and the federal court system
- Responsible for interpreting the law
- Can declare laws and executive actions as unconstitutional
Ask Questions
Remember, we're here to review and learn. It's okay (and expected!) to not know something. Feel free to ask questions in the chat or during the session.
Be Polite and Kind
Remember, we're all here to learn, help each other, and have fun! Let's remember to be kind to our fellow classmates and teachers in today's session.
Context Menu
The Context Menu can be found on each question. This menu can be opened by clicking on the three horizontal bars in the upper right corner of your question. The menu options will cary based on question type, but mostly include Tutorial, Mark for Review, and Strikethrough.
Strikethrough Example
Line Reader
The line reader tool highlights text for students as they read. To use this tool, click the Line Reader button to see a shaded blue box on the first line. You can move the box by using the arrow keys or clicking on a line of text. To turn it off, you'll click the Line Reader button again.
Mark for Reveiw
If you're stuck on a question, you can flag it for review at the end of the test. You can do this by opening the context menu and choosing Mark for Review. If you've chosen this accidentally, you can click Mark for Review, again, to remove it.
Question Mark
The question mark button opens the Help Guide, which will explain how to use the navigation buttons and test tools.
The Legislative Branch
- Consists of the House of Representatives and the Senate
- Responsible for creating the laws
- Can impeach members of the executive branch and approve presidential cabinet members and judicial appointees
The Executive Branch
- Consists of the president, vice president, and the presidential cabinet
- Responsible for enforcing the laws
- Can veto bills and appoint judges to the federal courts
Test Clock
The test clock shows how long you have been working on the test. You can hide the time by clicking the clock button. Clicking the clock again will show the time.
Masking
The Masking tool allows you to hide parts of the screen by covering them with gray boxes. To create these boxes, first click the Masking button, then drag the cursor over the part of the screen you'd like to hide. Once created, it will remain in place until you remove it by clicking the X in the upper-right corner. To stop using the tool, click the Masking button again.
TRECA Launchpad: Test Tools and Founding Documents
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Created on February 18, 2026
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Transcript
Session 1
TRECA Launchpad
Test Tools and Founding Documents
Description
What is this course about?
Today's focus will be on getting to know the online test tools and exploring our first American History topic: the founding documents. These include... - The Declaration of Independence- The Northwest Ordinance- The Articles of Confederation- The Constitution
Session Reminders
Reminders
The main goal of this session is to help prepare you for your end-of-course American History test.
Ask Questions
Be Polite and Be Kind
Reach Out
Actively Participate
Thanks for being here today! Let's get started with today's topic.
Testing Tips
Global Testing tools
How to use each testing tool in your testing session.
Test Tools
Question Mark and Clock
The tools that are accessible to students are known as global tools.
Global Tools
Test Clock
Question Mark
Test Tools
Zoom, Line Reader, and Notes
The tools that are accessible to students are known as global tools.
Zoom In and Out
Notes
Line Reader
Test Tools
Masking and Context Menu
The tools that are accessible to students are known as global tools.
Context Menu - Tutorial
Masking
Context Menu
Test Tools
Context Menu
In the context menu, you'll have the options for a tutorial, mark for review, and strikethrough.
Strikethrough Example
Mark for Review
Strikethrough
The
Founding Documents
The documents that established our nation
The Founding Documents
The Declaration of Independence
"We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal..."
The Declaration of Independence
This is the document that officially created America as an independent nation and began the American Revolution.
This document does two important things for the colonists. First, it expresses new ideas about individual rights that had not been expressed in government documents at that time. Second, it officially breaks ties with England, beginning the American Revolution.
The Declaration of Independence is heavily influenced by the Enlightenment, which was a philosophical movement happening in Europe. The ideas of natural rights and the social contract play a crucial role.
The Enlightenment
Key Enlightenment Concepts
The Age of Enlightenment was a philosophical and political movement that stressed reason, logic, and individual rights. It was the foundation for many revolutions during the period.
Natural rights are rights that people are born with and cannot be taken away by a government.
The Enlightenment
Natural Rights
The social contract is a relationship between a government and its citizens where citizens give up their rights to their government and in return the government protects them.
Under the social contract, if a government no longer protects its citizens, citizens have the right to remove and replace that government. This was the driving force behind the American Revolution.
Social Contract
Social Contract - Revolution
The Founding Documents
The NorthwestOrdinance
A lesser known, but still important document
The Northwest Ordinance
The Northwest Ordinance was the document that governed the Northwest Territory. States disagreed over who owned what territories, so this document established procedures for occupying the territory.
This document is important because it established a series of precedents that would go on to influence other foundational documents.
The Founding Documents
The Articles of Confederation
America's first attempt at governing
Articles of Confederation
If England's not in charge, who is?
Following the Declaration of Independence, representatives from the colonies met to create the Articles of Confederation. This was the first governing document of the new United States. After being under the oppressive rule of King George, the colonists believed that individual states should be the "authority," rather than having a federal government. Ultimately, this turns out to be a mistake.
Failures of the Articles of Confederation
Congress was unable to regulate trade between the states. This ultimately causes problems as each state had its own trade rules and forms of currency.
Natural rights are rights that people are born with and cannot be taken away by a government.
Each state received only one vote in Congress, regardless of the population or size of the state.
Natural Rights
Trade
Voting
The social contract is a relationship between a government and its citizens where citizens give up their rights to their government and in return the government protects them.
Under the social contract, if a government no longer protects its citizens, citizens have the right to remove and replace that government. This was the driving force behind the American Revolution.
The problems with the Articles were difficult to address. To add new laws, 9/13 states needed to agree. To amend (or change) the Articles, all 13 states needed to agree.
Congress could not tax the states. This led to budgetary issues as the country was unable to pay its debt.
Social Contract - Revolution
Social Contract
Taxation
Amendments
Constitutional Questions
The debate centered around four questions
These questions led to the creation of two groups, each with their own opinion on how to address these issues.
The Founding Documents
The Federalists and Anti-Federalists
and the Great Compromise
Federalist/Anti-Federalist Debate
The failure of the Articles of Confederation led to a debate over the role of government.
The Federalists believed in replacing the Articles with a new system of government, establishing a strong federal government, and did not want a Bill of Rights in the Constitution. Anti-Federalists believed that the Articles could be fixed rather than replaced, allowing states to keep their authority, and argued that if a strong federal branch existed, then a Bill of Rights needed to be added to the Constitution.
Federalist vs. Anti-Federalist
Anti-Federalist
Federalist
vs
The Great Compromise
As the country began questioning what the new federal government would look like, the debate over representation grew, ultimately leading to the decision known as the Great Compromise.
Under the Articles, states disagreed over influence in the federal government. Larger states, like Virginia, believed that they should hold more influence as more people lived in these states. Smaller states, like New Jersey, though, believed that representation should be equal, regardless of population size.
The Great Compromise
The Bill of Rights
How do we protect our individual rights?
The addition of the Bill of Rights to the Constitution was another compromise between Federalists and Anti-Federalists in order to ratify (approve) the Constitution. The Bill of Rights consists of the first ten amendments to the Constitution, which protect civil liberties like freedoms of speech and religion, the right to bear arms, and the right to a trial by jury.
The Founding Documents
The Constitution
The branches and functions of government
The Constitution
Under the new Constitution, the federal government was rebuilt.
The Constitution established three branches of the federal government: the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. Each of these branches had specific functions that could override the power of the others, creating checks and balances to prevent any branch of the federal government from becoming too powerful.
The Branches of Government
Judicial
Legislative
Executive
Do you have questions?
We are here to help you. If anything was unclear or you want to explore a topic further, feel free to contact us. Your curiosity is also part of the learning process.
Session Code: LP238
Reach Out
Even after the session is over, or if you're completing this outside the Launchpad session, reach out if you have any questions or need clarification on a topic.
Global Tools
The global tools are accessible on every screen of the test. They are located in the upper right corner.
Notes
The Notes tool lets you keep notes during testing. You can open the Notepad by clicking the Notes button, and enter text in the pop-up box. When you're done, choose save and close to be able to access your notes again. The Notes box cannot be copied into an answer space, and information on the notepad is not considered answers to any questions.
Zoom In and Out
You can enlarge or reduce the size of text and images on the screen by clicking on the Zoom in or Zoom Out button.
Context Menu - Tutorial
The first option on the context menu is the tutorial. This will open a video tutorial on the question type. For example, if it's a multi-select question, the video tutorial will explain how to answer the question by choosing all answers that apply to the question.
Strikethrough
The strikethrough option will allow you to eliminate answer options on a question. To access this, open the context menu and choose strikethrough. This will cause the boxes to lighten. From there, choose the answers you'd like to eliminate.
Actively Participate
Participation is key to getting the most out of these sessions. Do your best to participate during today's session.
Remember: You must complete each survey to earn attendance credit for the session.
The Judicial Branch
Ask Questions
Remember, we're here to review and learn. It's okay (and expected!) to not know something. Feel free to ask questions in the chat or during the session.
Be Polite and Kind
Remember, we're all here to learn, help each other, and have fun! Let's remember to be kind to our fellow classmates and teachers in today's session.
Context Menu
The Context Menu can be found on each question. This menu can be opened by clicking on the three horizontal bars in the upper right corner of your question. The menu options will cary based on question type, but mostly include Tutorial, Mark for Review, and Strikethrough.
Strikethrough Example
Line Reader
The line reader tool highlights text for students as they read. To use this tool, click the Line Reader button to see a shaded blue box on the first line. You can move the box by using the arrow keys or clicking on a line of text. To turn it off, you'll click the Line Reader button again.
Mark for Reveiw
If you're stuck on a question, you can flag it for review at the end of the test. You can do this by opening the context menu and choosing Mark for Review. If you've chosen this accidentally, you can click Mark for Review, again, to remove it.
Question Mark
The question mark button opens the Help Guide, which will explain how to use the navigation buttons and test tools.
The Legislative Branch
The Executive Branch
Test Clock
The test clock shows how long you have been working on the test. You can hide the time by clicking the clock button. Clicking the clock again will show the time.
Masking
The Masking tool allows you to hide parts of the screen by covering them with gray boxes. To create these boxes, first click the Masking button, then drag the cursor over the part of the screen you'd like to hide. Once created, it will remain in place until you remove it by clicking the X in the upper-right corner. To stop using the tool, click the Masking button again.