

Curriculum for Grades 9-12, Teacher Materials for Lesson 17:
Now I See Why That Happened!


This activity goes with the TIMELINE OF SUFFRAGE HISTORY handout and causes students to read, analyze and correlate the information it contains. It also leads them to work with history to discern cause and effect relationships between major events and the changes that resulted from them. The events chosen are a cross-section of the milestones in the historic legal struggle to effect suffrage for all. Events are presented in chronological order to facilitate the students' grasp of the order of progression in this democratic evolution.

Effects of the laws are listed out of chronological order so that students will have to search through the TIMELINE. Each pass through the TIMELINE to find a match will afford them another opportunity to encounter the information again, to view it in the order of occurrence, and thus become more familiar with both events and their relationship to each other.

This activity can be used as a pre and post-test, a review quiz, or as a worksheet. The latter option can be an individual home assignment or in-class activity, or a group worksheet to be done collaboratively. Make enough copies of Student Lesson 17 for each student. Be sure each student has a copy of the TIMELINE OF SUFFRAGE HISTORY, Student Lesson 15 to use with this assignment. The answers are provided at the end. Note that item 10 has two answers; you might wish to remind students ahead of time that one event will have two answers.

1.Seneca Falls, N.Y. Convention, 1848


3.14th Amendment, 1868

4.State of Wyoming, 1869

5.15th Amendment, 1870

6.State of Mississippi, 1890

7.17th Amendment, 1913

8.19th Amendment, 1920

9.24th Amendment, 1964

10.Voting Rights Act, 1965 ,

11.26th Amendment, 1971

12.Amendments to Voting Rights Act, 1982

13.Motor Voter Law, 1993

A.Allows 18-year olds the right to vote

B.Enacts first mandatory poll tax & literacy test




F.Announces formally a desire for voting rights for women


H.Defines the "right to vote"


J.Sets the precedent of full suffrage for women

K.Outlaws the poll tax

L.Guarantees suffrage to all women in the U.S.


N.Provides citizens with the ability to elect ALL members of Congress

  1. F
  2. G
  3. E
  4. J
  5. H
  6. B
  7. N
  8. L
  9. K
  10. I, M
  11. A
  12. D
  13. C

Vermont Secretary of State Deb Markowitz: