Students reflect on when and why rules are needed and the importance of rules in the classroom or in a community setting.
Civics Lessons
Grade Level: Grades K-5
Rules, Rules, Rules-The Eraser Game
Yertle the Turtle Mock Trial
This mock trial exposes students to the mechanics of a jury trial, and stresses the importance of functioning as a juror.
What Is A Good Rule? Creating Our Ballot Questions
This lesson offers students the opportunity to play the role of voters with special interests. Students draw up initiatives for new classroom or school rules. Working in groups of four or five, students share their ideas and rationale for new rules.
Connecting the Separate Powers
In this lesson, students will gain an understanding of the separation of powers using role playing and discussion. Students will identify which parts of the Constitution provide for the branches of our government, and will categorize public officials into one of these three branches.
Interpreting the Law
Students learn why laws need to be interpreted by discussing laws/constitutional provisions. They present their findings to the class.
The President’s Roles and Responsibilities: Understanding the President’s Job
Through these activities, students learn about the roles and responsibilities of the U.S. president and their own roles as citizens of a democracy.
What Makes a Court Supreme?
The purpose of this lesson is to help students understand the original purpose and
powers of the Supreme Court according to the Constitution. Students learn the Supreme Court’s role in preserving the U.S. Constitution and the balance of power it creates.
How Should We Choose People for Positions of Authority?
This lesson helps students to identify the requirements of a position of authority and the qualifications a person should possess to fill that position. Students learn a set of intellectual tools designed to help them both analyze the duties of the position and to decide if an individual is qualified to serve in that particular position. During the lesson students practice using the intellectual tools.
Michigan Court System
The lesson includes a read aloud book to teach students about the Michigan Court System.
We the Students: Writing a Class Constitution
The Preamble to the U.S. Constitution sets out the purposes or functions of American government as envisioned by the framers. Using the Preamble as a guide, students will identify the purposes of their own classroom and create a class “constitution.”