Civics: Year-Long Overview

Civics: Year-Long Overview

To be productive members of society, students must be critical consumers of information they read, hear, and observe and communicate effectively about their ideas. They need to gain knowledge from a wide array of sources and examine and evaluate that information to develop and express an informed opinion, using information gained from the sources and their background knowledge. Students must also make connections between what they learn about the past and the present to understand how and why events happen and people act in certain ways.

To accomplish this, students must:

1. Use sources regularly to learn content. 2. Make connections among people, events, and ideas across time and place. 3. Express informed opinions using evidence from sources and outside knowledge. Teachers must create instructional opportunities that delve deeply into content and guide students in developing and supporting claims about social studies concepts.

In Civics, students explore the goal of a "more perfect union" and the role of the individual in the decisions of that union as they learn about the foundations, structure, and functions of the US government, politics and the role of the citizen, economic concepts, and financial literacy. The unit claim questions highlight the connections among the GLEs that students should make as they develop and express informed opinions.

Civics Content

Foundations of US Government

Structure of Government

Functions of US Government

Politics and the Role of the Citizen

The Economy

Civics Claims

A S OND J FMAM u e c o e a e a p a gpt vcnbr r y

t

Did the Founding Fathers make the best

choices for the United States?

X X

Does the government's structure help or hinder it from fulfilling the purposes espoused in the Preamble?

X X

How do US policy decisions affect society and the diverse collection of individuals within it?

X X

To what extent are individual citizens able to influence public policy?

X X

What is the proper role of government in the economy?

X X

Personal Finance

How can financial decisions affect your future?

X X

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Civics: How to Navigate This Document

The Civics scope and sequence document is divided into six units. Each unit has an overview, instruction which includes topics and tasks, and a unit assessment. Click on a link below to access the content.

Unit One: Foundations of US Government Unit One Overview Unit One Instruction Topic One: Types of Government Topic Two: Influences on US Government Topic Three: Creating the Constitution Unit One Assessment

Unit Two: Structure of Government Unit Two Overview Unit Two Instruction Topic One: Structure of Government Unit Two Assessment

Unit Three: Functions of US Government Unit Three Overview Unit Three Instruction Topic One: Domestic Policy Topic Two: Foreign Policy Unit Three Assessment

Unit Four: Politics and the Role of the Citizen Unit Four Overview Unit Four Instruction Topic One: Interplay between Individual Agency and Mediating Institutions Unit Four Assessment

Unit Five: The Economy Unit Five Overview Unit Five Instruction Topic One: Economic Concepts and Questions Unit Five Assessment

Unit Six: Personal Finance

Unit Six Overview

Unit Six Instruction

Topic One: Achieving Financial Literacy

Unit Six Assessment

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Unit One Overview

Description: Students learn about different types of government and explore how the US government came into being to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of a constitutional federal republic.

Suggested Timeline: 7 weeks

Civics Content Foundations of US Government

Civics Claims

Did the Founding Fathers make the best choices for the United States?

Topics (GLEs): 1. Types of Government (C.1.1-2) 2. Influences on US Government (C.1.3, C.1.4, C.1.6) 3. Creating the Constitution (C.1.5-6, C.2.6, C.5.1, C.5.3)

Unit Assessment: Students write a multiparagraph essay in response to the prompt: Evaluate the decisions made by the framers from the drafting of the Constitution through the ratification of the Bill of Rights.

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Unit One Instruction

Topic One: Types of Government (C.1.1-2)

Connections to the unit claim: Throughout this Civics course, students learn that the US government originated with a group of individuals who came together to found "a more perfect union" and explore the following questions: How "perfect" is the union they created? In what ways does the individual still play a role in the decisions of that union? For this topic, students consider the reasons societies institute governments and learn about the different types of governments that exist. By understanding alternative systems of government, students build the context necessary to understand why the framers chose a constitutional federal republic and evaluate their decisions at the end of the unit.

Suggested Timeline: 2 class periods

Use this sample task: Why Government? Who Rules?

To explore these key questions: Why do societies create governments?

That students answer through this assessment: Students engage in various class discussions to analyze sources about the purpose of government. Use a discussion tracker to keep track of students' contributions to the discussion and use this information to assign a grade to students. (ELA/Literacy Standards: RH.9-10.1, RH.9-10.2, RH.9-104, RH.9-10.9, SL.9-10.1a-d, SL.9-10.2) Students provide written responses to questions. Check these for a grade. Answers will vary but rationales should be logical and demonstrate understanding of the advantages and disadvantages of different types of government. (ELA/Literacy Standards: RH.9-10.1, RH.9-10.2, RH.9-10.4, RH.9-10.9, WHST.9-10.1a-d, WHST.910.4, WHST.9-10.9, WHST.9-10.10)

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