Week 1

Classroom Citizenship & Constitution

Essential Question(s):
1. What do people have to do to make democracy work?
2. What are the rights and responsibilities of a student-citizen in this class?
Enduring Understanding(s):
1. Being free means also having responsibilities.
2. Education is important to all of our futures, so we all must contribute to
making a classroom community that is peaceful and supportive of
learning.

Vocabulary & Terms:
Annotate, Social Contract, Constitution, Democracy, Citizen, Compare, Contrast,
Synthesize, Primary Source, Secondary Source

Performance Tasks:
Students will read, annotate and analyze primary sources and synthesize them
to create their own definitions of democracy.
Students will be quizzed on key terms at the end of the week
Students will collaborate in the process of creating a classroom constitution.


Day One:
Learning Target: I will understand the rules and procedures of this class.
Time Students Do Teacher Does
0-6 Do Now: What is the purpose of
education for you?
Welcome students, explain
routine of the Do Now and what
students should have to begin
each class
6 -15 Listen to the teacher, Look over
hand-outs, Ask appropriate
question
Explain importance of working
together to achieve our goalsour
personal goals are unique to each
of us, but we will best be able to
achieve them if we are respectful,
supportive and caring toward one
another for the whole year.
Review rules and procedures (how
to use binders, journals, jobs, etc.)
and demerit systems. Hand out
guidelines, binders/journals,
vocabulary sheets, clock buddies
sheets.
15-20 Physical Activity: Circulate the
room and fill in Clock Buddies
sheet.
Explain how "clock buddies
works.
20-25 Individual Activity: What if Ask students to brainstorm
possible situations that might
come up in class (e.g. I am thirsty,
I finish my work early, I have an
emergency)
25-35 Class Discussion: What if Direct Instruction: Ask
students to share their what if?
scenarios. Suggest ways that these
situations might be handled and
suggest solutions that do not
disrupt learning.

35-45 Silent Reading: Class syllabus Pass out syllabus and monitor
silent reading
45-50 Debrief: What questions do you
have about the class syllabus?
Ask students to what questions
they have about the class syllabus
50-55 Read-aloud: Dreams
Langston Hughes; Curious Case
of Benjamin Button quote.
Read-aloud: Dreams
Langston Hughes; Curious Case of
Benjamin Button quote.
55-60 Exit Slip: What are your goals
for this year?



Day Two:
Learning Target: I will be able to make connections and ask questions while
reading. I will be able to annotate a whole text.
Time Students Do Teacher Does
0-5 Do Now: What are the
rights and responsibilities of
a good citizen in his or her
community?
Facilitate the beginning of class and
get students started on Do Now
5-8 Class discussion answers
to the starter
Make list of student answers on the
board
8-18 Physical Activity:
PopupinionWhat does
being a good citizen mean?
Facilitate activity and discussion
18-23 Listen as teacher introduces Hand out and introduce Its a
reading and models how to
think and annotate while
reading
Human Thing
Read aloud introductory paragraph
and think-aloud to show how to
make connections and annotate.
23-43 Individual Activity:
Complete and annotate
reading individually (w/
short partner conversation in
the middle of the activity)
Circulate room and answer
clarifying questions.
Instruct students to have a partner
conversation for 2 minutes in the
middle (ask partner: what examples
of citizenship, community, and core
values are you seeing in the
reading?)
43-53 Partner Activity: Answer
focus questions with your
partner using specific
examples from the text.
Model how to use a specific
example to support an answer
53-55 Read-aloud: Quote from
Martin Niemoller
Read-aloud: Quote from Martin
Niemoller
55-60 Exit Slip: Why is good
citizenship important? What
can we do to be good citizens
of our community?
Explain exit slips and answer
clarifying questions



Day Three:
Learning Goal: I can explain the connection between freedom and
responsibility.

Time Students Do Teacher Does
0-4 Do Now: What do you think
would happen if the students
were in charge of every
decision in school?
Facilitate Do Now
5-7 Class Discussion: What do
we think would happen?
Facilitate quick class discussion
7-25 Listen to the teacher explain
what we will be
reading/listening to and what
to listen to when reading.
Then listen to the radio
program
Explain the This American Life
episode we will be listening to.
Explicitly note the connection
between freedom and responsibility
in a democracy. Instruct students to
look over reading questions before
they read. As we read, pay attention
to what you see as the pros and
cons of such a class and annotate
your paper.
26-28 Partner Conversations: Circulate the room and make sure
Discuss your reactions to the
program with your partner.
What did you think
conversations are on topic
28-36 Individual Activity:
Answer the guiding questions
about the radio program
using full sentences and
specific evidence from the
transcript of the show.
Circulate room; answer clarifying
questions. Remind students to
reread the transcript to find specific
examples
36-50 Class Discussion:
Responses to the program
and the study questions.
Focus question: What do the
students in a democratic
classroom have to do to make
it successful and educational?
What does this mean for us as
a class?
Facilitate discussion using
questions from study guide
50-55 Individual Activity (If
productive discussion does
not last): Go through your
vocabulary sheet and fill in
definitions for all the terms
we have learned thus far.
Circulate room. Remind students
that they may discuss the
definitions with those around them.
Make sure conversations are on
topic.
55-60 Exit Slip: What do you think
people have to do to make
democracy work?
Answer clarifying questions


Day Four
Learning Target: I can explain what a social contract is and help create one for
the class.
Time Students Do: Teacher Does:
0-7 Do Now: Look at quotes from
different responses to our first
Do Now (What is the purpose
of education for you?).
Synthesize these quotes into a
one sentence explanation of
what the purpose of education
is for our class.
Display quotes from What is the
purpose of education for you?
responses (may also want to
make a Wordle of those
quotes.)
Clarify the definition of
synthesize for the class.
7-12 Listen to direct instruction.
Fill in definition of social
contract in vocabulary terms.
Direction Instruction:
Explain the idea of a social
contract. Explain that a
constitution is a written social
contract.
12-15 Ask clarifying questions Ask students what questions
they have. (subject matter is a bit
complex)
15-23 Partner Activity: Look over
the U.S. Constitution with your
partner. What do you notice?
Identify the preamble, articles,
and amendments.
Pass out copies of U.S.
Constitution.
Circulate the room and answer
clarifying questions/make sure
students are on task.
23-24 Read-aloud: Preamble to the
U.S. Constitution
Read-aloud: Preamble to the
U.S. Constitution
Explain that the preamble is that
part that sets out who the
constitution is for and what the
purpose of it is.
26-50 Partner Activity: Complete
the classroom constitution
worksheet.


Hand-out copies of classroom
constitution worksheet.
Remind students to draw on
everything we have talked about
the last three days: The purpose
of education, the responsibilities
of citizens, and what people have
to do to make democracy work.
Circulate the room to make sure
students are on task.
50-55 Partner Activity: Pick the
two articles from your list that
you think are the best/most
important. Put a start next to
them.
Instruct students about this next
step
55-60 Exit Slip: Why is it important
that your articles be included in
the classroom constitution?
Teacher homework: Type up each
groups preamble and chosen
articles for class tomorrow.

Day 5
Learning Target:
Time Students Do Teacher Does
0-6 Do Now: What do you think of
our class constitution? What do
you like/dislike? Would you
make any change?
Pass out a copy of the classroom
constitution (typed up and
printed night prior) to each
student.
6-25 Class Discussion: Are we
content with this classroom
constitution? Are there any
changes we would like to make?

After discussion, take a vote to
ratify the classroom constitution.
Facilitate class discussion. Do
we support this class
constitution? Are some articles
repetitive? Encourage students
to compromise if they cannot
agree on every article. Remind
students that democracy does
not mean everyone getting
exactly what he or she wants!
Explain the definition of ratify
and take vote to see if we 2/3rds
want to ratify our constitution.
25-35 Individual Activity: Read over
the list of preambles that the
class created. Choose two that
you think are best for our
constitution.
Pass out list of potential
preambles and give class
instructions. Tally up votes
afterward.
35-45 Vocabulary quiz: Have
students integrate vocabulary for
the week to answer the question
(this will be in the form of
sentence frames or just a written
paragraph): Explain the
connection between freedom and
responsibility for citizens in a
democracy.
Pass out quiz and have students
complete individually.
45-46 Listen to instruction Direct Instruction: In this
class we want everyone to learn
that literature is history and
history is literature. So when we
write the story of our class
constitution, we are also writing
the history of our class.
47-60 Quick-Write: Write the history
of our classroom constitution?
What was the process? What was
your role? How do you feel about
the final draft?
Circulate room and answer
clarifying questions.