The History of the Vote - Reading Comprehension
for edHelper.com subscribers - Sign up now by clicking here!

The History of the Vote Reading Comprehension
     The History of the Vote reading comprehension (sample is shown below)



The History of the Vote
By Phyllis Naegeli
  

1     Voting is an important privilege protected by our Constitution. Today, all citizens over the age of eighteen are given this right. But, it hasn't always been this way. Many people fought long and hard to win the right to vote.
 
2     When the Constitution was written, the subject of who could vote was not covered. This left the decision up to the states. At first, only wealthy white men who owned property and were over the age of twenty-one were allowed to vote. As time went on, laws were passed to give all white men over twenty-one the right to vote. Most of these laws prohibited women and blacks from voting. This meant that these groups were without a say in who governed them.
 
3     In the early 1800s, women began to speak out about political issues, such as slavery and alcohol. Yet without the right to vote, they felt stifled in their work. A movement to give women equal rights began with the primary focus of obtaining the right to vote. Women who participated in this action were called "suffragettes." They held rallies, conventions, protests, and even hunger strikes. When the Wyoming Territory granted women the right to vote, it added fuel to the fire of the movement. The first proposed law to give women this right was introduced to Congress in 1877. It gained little support, and the battle continued.

Paragraphs 4 to 9:
For the complete story with questions: click here for printable



Weekly Reading Books

          Create Weekly Reading Books

Prepare for an entire week at once!


The 1890's
             The 1890's


More Lessons
             Election 2004: United States Elections
             Election 2008: United States Elections


United States
             United States


    American Government  
 
    Black History and Blacks in U.S. History  
 
    Children in History  
 
    Government Careers  
 
    Hispanic Heritage  
 
    How Can I Help?  
 
 
    Immigration  
 
    National Parks and Monuments  
 
    Native Americans  
 
    Presidents of the United States  
 
    Women's History  
 


United States History
    A Nation Divided
(1840-1861)
 
 
    A New Nation
(1776-1830)
 
 
    After the Civil War
(1865-1870)
 
 
    American Revolution  
 
    Cold War
(1947-1991)
 
 
    Colonial America (1492-1776)  
 
    Lewis and Clark
(1804-1806)
 
 
    Pearl Harbor  
 
    Spanish American War (1898)  
 
    The 1890's  
 
    The 1900's  
 
    The 1910's  
 
    The 1920's  
 
    The 1930's  
 
 
    The 1940's  
 
    The 1950's  
 
    The 1960's  
 
    The 1970's  
 
    The 1980's  
 
    The 1990's  
 
    The 2000's  
 
    The Civil War
(1861-1865)
 
 
    The Great Depression
(1929-1945)
 
 
    The United States Grows
(1865-1900)
 
 
    The War of 1812  
 
    Wild, Wild West  
 
    World War I
(1914-1918)
 
 
    World War II  
 


50 States

             Fifty States Theme Unit


Document Based Activities
      Document Based Activities



Copyright © 2018 edHelper