Description

What are the rights and responsibilities of citizenship? Who are your state and local elected officials? Which officials can you turn to for help? This integrated unit uses reading strategies, reflection activities, graphic organizers, and technology tools to teach the rights and responsibilities of citizens. The US and Florida constitutions are examined to document the purpose, structure, and responsibilities of the branches of government and those elected officials who serve in them.

Duration

The planned duration of this activity is 11 days.

Lesson Plans

Citizenship
What is citizenship? Using the preambles from the US Constitution and the Florida State Constitution as references, students determine rights and responsibilities of citizenship. This introductory lesson for the unit, We the People, introduces students to the concept of citizenship that will be the common thread throughout the entire unit.

Class President
Have you wondered what kind of person makes a good president? Students learn strategies to develop reading vocabulary and learn to identify comparison and contrast as an aid to comprehension as they follow Julio and his secret desire to become class president. The novel, Class President, is used for this ten-day lesson.

Getting to Know Our Elected Officials
Who is your favorite elected official? Students choose an elected official to research, and share their information in a report. The report must be focused, contain supporting details from various sources, and use correct conventions including indentation.

Buying and Budgets
How do you decide if you can afford to buy something new? Using a budget lets you know where your money is being spent as well as how much money you have left to spend. In this lesson, students use tables to solve budget problems. Addition and subtraction of decimals are used in the problem-solving process.

Branches of Government
Are the different parts of government confusing to you? Students will use graphic organizers to assist them in learning about the three branches of government.

Makers of the Law, The Legislative Branch
Who makes the law? Students learn about the legislative branch of government, its structure, function, and basic responsibility, as well as whom their legislative representatives are. This lesson focuses on state and county legislatures.

Enforcers of the Law, The Executive Branch
Have you ever wondered just what a governor does at work? Students learn about the executive branch of government, its structure, function, and basic responsibility, as well as whom their elected officials are for this branch. This lesson focuses on Florida’s executive branch of government.

Is it Legal? - The Judicial System
Our governor suggests laws, and our congress passes the laws, but who makes sure the new laws are legal? Students learn about the judicial branch of government, its structure, function, and basic responsibility, as well as whom their elected officials are for this branch. This lesson focuses on Florida’s judicial branch of government.

Power to the People
Reviewing the branches of government can be a boring, tedious procedure, but students will be happy to show what they know while participating in this game type review.