Influential Documents Matching Activity for Civics

Students match primary source quotes from the Magna Carta, Mayflower Compact, English Bill of Rights, Common Sense, and Social Contract to the document’s title and description in this quick, fun Foundations of Government: Influential Documents Matching Activity that helps students review the major Influential Documents from American Government! Perfect for a middle school Civics, American History, or United States Government class! 

(This matching activity is included in the Colonists’ Library Activity Set. That resource includes a 5-page article, 2-page review, this matching activity, and a Book Cover creative project. I’ve made this Matching Activity available as a stand-alone item for teachers who don’t need the full reading passage and review!) 

Aligned to Florida State Standards for Civics, SS.7.CG.1.4 The Enlightenment and its Influences and SS.7.CG.1.3 Influential Documents, this cut-and-paste matching activity provides students with a partially-filled in chart listing the major influential documents Titles, Descriptions, and quotes pulled straight from the documents. Students fill in the missing squares, proving their comprehension of each of the major influential documents.

I’ve included two versions of the matching chart, one with more of the quotes filled in, and one that’s a little more challenging. Decide which version your kids can handle! 

Students are asked to connect primary source quotes from the following Influential Documents to their names and descriptions:

• Magna Carta
• English Bill of Rights
• Mayflower Compact
• Social Contract
• Common Sense

The quotes include:

• “No free man shall be taken or imprisoned […], or outlawed or exiled […] except by the lawful judgment of his peers or by the law of the land.” (Magna Carta)
• “… Do by these Presents, solemnly and mutually in the Presence of God and one another, covenant and combine ourselves together into a civil Body Politic…” (Mayflower Compact)

The descriptions include:

• “A belief that the people of a society enter into a contract with their ruler or government, where the people consent (or agree) to be governed so long as the ruler agrees to protect their natural rights to life, liberty, and property.” (Social Contract)
• “A document written by the English Parliament in 1689. Expanded the powers of Parliament, limited powers of the king, and defined the rights of the English people.” (English Bill of Rights)
• “This document reflected author Thomas Paine’s views that colonial representatives, not the King of England, should make the laws in the colonies. Written to convince colonists to support independence from England.” (Common Sense)

The resource comes as a non-editable PDF with two versions of the Matching Activity chart, and two versions of the Cut-and-Paste Sets of Matches, as well as an Answer Key.

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