#1243.

Developing a Class Constitution

Social Studies, level: Middle

Posted Tue Aug 10 17:55:38 PDT 1999 by George Cassutto
(nhhs@fred.net).
The World of Social Studies
North Hagerstown HS, Hagerstown, MD
Materials Required: Blackboard, newspaper, Computers, Internet
access
Activity Time: 2-3 class periods
Concepts Taught: Civics, Government, Democracy, Compromise

Objectives: The students will

I. Become familiar with the course requirements and class procedures
for US Government and relate this process to the development of the
US Constitution.

II. Receive instructional materials and be instructed on how to use

them.

III. Identify areas of American life that are influenced by and have an
influence on American Government.

Warm Up Activity: Why Study Government?

A) Have students list orally all of the services government provides.

Place student responses on the board.

B) Ask the students what society might be like if there were no form of
government. Discuss the roles that government plays in our society.

C) Place the following three terms on the board:

FEDERAL STATE LOCAL

Have students place their previous responses under what they believe
is the correct column. Then carry out the process as a class and allow
the students to correct their own papers and keep for further reference.

Main Activity: Establishing a Class Constitution

A) After students have received the teacher's grading policy, students

will help establish classroom procedures by creating a Class
Constitution.

B) Have students brainstorm all the issues that effect learning in a

classroom. List issues and rules on the board.

C) Divide the class into groups of four students. Have student-groups

develop a written rule for the five most important classroom issues
according to the wishes of their group. This means each group must

first prioritize their agenda, and then they must develop a rule that is
realistic and that has a suggested set of consequences. Inform them
that they will vote on competing bills, and that like the President, the
teacher has veto power (and can also reject part of a bill as in a "line
item" veto).

D) Collect suggested rules. Debate them in class. Allow students to

discuss the votes for 5 minutes privately in order to "trade votes" and
lobby each other. Have students vote on the bills. Amend them to fit
school policies and procedures. Develop them into a class constitution.

Note: the process must be repeated for each class you have. As Chief
Executive, you can integrate the best of each classes' bills into one
document, and then present the final document for "ratification" to the
individual classes later. The teacher must have final approval over all
bills.

Another note: If you have a Class Constitution in place, the same

process can be done to "amend" the existing constitution. Have each
class become a "state" holding a constitutional convention. When 3/4
of all the classes vote in favor of a constitution, it is ratified. Keep the
teacher's veto power, but indicate that this is a major difference
between the simulation and reality because the President has no place
n the amendment process.

Wrap-Up Activity: Government In The News

A) Present today's newspaper to the students. Read aloud several

headlines or place them on an overhead.

B) Have students discuss how the government is involved in the

headlines you selected. Choose several that do not have a
governmental application. See if students can make a connection
where none existed, or if they can recognize that there may not be a
governmental connection to everything.
mpineda@cumbresbogota.edu.co

C) Encourage students to watch the national and local news

broadcasts and to read the local newspapers. Their chances of
success in the course will be greatly improved if they are attentive to
the news.

Enrichment: The American Citizenship Test

Have your students try their hand at the test that immigrants must take
to become American citizens. The test can be found on the web site of
the Washington Post at http://www.washingtonpost.com/wpsrv/national/daily/nov/18/citizen.htm.
This page contains links to the National Archives and Records
Administration, which has posted digitized versions of the key
documents of American government and history.

Evaluation: The lesson will be evaluated by:

I. the accuracy of student's written responses;

II. student's scores on future tests and quizzes.