The Almost Painless Guide to the U.S. Constitution uses contemporary video footage, archival video footage and photographs, original graphics, and dialog narration to provide students in grades five and up with information on the U.S. Constitution. The program examines the inception of the Constitution as it succeeded the Articles of Confederation. It discusses the importance of the Constitution as the foundation of a federal system of government and the concept of “We the People” as the ultimate authority. The articles of the Constitution that defined the three branches of government are discussed, as is the concept of “checks and balances.” The Preamble is explored in depth, as are the first ten amendments that comprise the Bill of Rights and subsequent amendments to the Constitution. The program concludes with “The Almost Painless Review,” which offers an excellent synopsis of the entire program. Also, a Video Quiz is provided prior to the closing credits in order to help you assess student comprehension immediately following the video presentation.

Originally released by Media Rich Learning, 2012. Streaming video file encoded with permission for digital streaming by Infobase on February 07, 2018.

Constitutional Government (7:57); --Bill of Rights (3:03); -- Constitutional Amendments (2:03); -- Independence Hall (1:58); -- Review and Quiz (3:23); -- Credits: The U.S. Constitution (Revised) (0:07); .