Texas TEKS 8.15.B

Social Studies8th GradeGovernment

The Standard

summarize the strengths and weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation

Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Social Studies

Teacher's field guide

What Students Need to Do: Students identify powers the national government had and limits that made governing difficult. They summarize both strengths and weaknesses using examples such as western land policies, taxation, trade, and enforcement.
What Mastery Looks Like: A student can describe at least two strengths and two weaknesses with accurate evidence. They can connect each feature to a result, such as organized settlement, unpaid debt, or disputes between states.
Common Misconceptions: Students may say there was no national government, rather than a weak one. They may think Congress could collect taxes or enforce laws. Some confuse powers later granted by the Constitution with earlier powers.
How to Assess It: Use a two-column exit ticket labeled Strengths and Weaknesses. Students list two examples in each column and explain one result caused by a weakness.

Lesson moves

Give pairs government power cards to sort under Strength or Weakness, then require a written reason for each placement.
Ask students to write: Which weakness created the greatest danger for the new nation, and what evidence supports your answer?
Play Articles Challenge by reading government scenarios and awarding points when teams correctly identify a strength, weakness, or missing power.
Give students a mock school council that can request dues but not collect them, then discuss whether it could pay its bills.

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