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Grade 4: Sample Learning Activities

• We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution, developed by the Center for Civic Education, provides a Level One student textbook and teacher's guide that introduce elementary students to the study of constitutional government in the United States. The student textbook includes information and student activities designed to help students "understand the most important ideas of our constitutional system and how they were developed." You can learn more about We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution by visiting the Center's website at www.civiced.org.
• Have students identify and describe the core values and principles that form the basis for our American constitutional democracy; ask students to explain how the United States Constitution and Bill of Rights provide the underlying framework for our governmental system
• Provide students with information about how New York State and their local governments are organized, focusing on the structures and functions of each. You can find more information about local governmental structures in the publication, A Look At Our Town, Village, City, County Government (1983) available from the New York State Education Department, Publications Sales Desk at (518) 474-3806. This publication, produced by the SED, Department of State, and League of Women Voters of New York State, was designed for use by grade 4 students to learn more about how local governments operate. It also includes student role play activities related to the concepts of power, leadership, and problem solving.
• Have students plan a classroom government identifying its purposes and functions, explaining how it might make rules and laws, and describing how it might interpret and enforce them. Ask students to explain how their government will separate powers and provide for checks and balances among the different branches of their government.
• Provide students with the steps in a public policy making process and have them: identify a classroom, school, neighborhood, community, or city-wide problem or issue; define and explain why the problem or issue is important; research and suggest alternative solutions to the problem or issue; evaluate the consequences for each alternative solution explaining what might happen if each alternative is implemented; prioritize the alternatives based on a set of criteria; and propose a plan of action for solving the problem or addressing the issue. Students might consider problems such as rules for school safety, care of school playground or gym equipment, school lunch programs, providing needed services for the elderly and home bound, developing an historic site or landmark, or planning a neighborhood or city recycling program. Student groups can present their policy making project to a panel of teachers, administrators, school board members, interested parents, and co! mmunity members for their reactions and questions. For more information about public policy making programs for elementary and middle level students, read about Project Citizen, a program sponsored by the Center for Civic Education at www.civiced.org.
• Provide students with the following statements*:
  • Americans believe in the importance of individuals
  • Americans believe in the importance of their schools, communities, states and nation
  • Americans believe in the equality of opportunity and equal protection of the law for all people
  • Americans believe in respect for the law
  • Americans believe in the importance of work
  • Americans believe in the importance of volunteering to help others.
  Poll students to determine if they strongly agree, agree, disagree, or strongly disagree with these statements.
  Ask students to provide examples that show how Americans values those ideas. For example, Americans demonstrate the importance of the individual by stating that the primary purpose of government is to protect the rights of an individual's life, liberty, property, and pursuit of happiness. Americans believe in the importance of their schools and communities by guaranteeing a free, public education for all children and by helping those less fortunate members of society. Americans believe in the equal protection of the law by guaranteeing that everyone is treated equally in the eyes of the law. Americans believe in the importance of volunteering as shown by the number of charitable organizations that provide assistance to others in need. These beliefs unite all Americans and help to define the rights and responsibilities of citizenship. Students should also provide examples of how those beliefs are practiced in their own communities. (Adapted from: National Standards for Civics and Government, Center for Civic Education, 1994, pp. 23-24.)
• Provide students with copies of the Mayflower Compact, the first two paragraphs of the Declaration of Independence, the Preamble to the United States Constitution, the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights, the Pledge of Allegiance, and the Gettysburg Address. Ask them to identify the values and beliefs expressed in these documents. Have students recite the key words and phrases found in these documents. Ask students to explain their meaning and tell why these words and phrases are important. Read aloud sections of the Declaration of Independence and define the meaning of terms such as "created equal," "unalienable rights," and "consent of the governed." Students should write one or two paragraphs explaining the meaning and importance of the Declaration of Independence and its role in the American Revolution. Have students illustrate each of the rights guaranteed in the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights. Discuss with students how life in the United States w! ould be different if one or more of the rights from the Bill of Rights were eliminated. (Parts adapted from: Education for Democracy: California Civic Education, Scope and Sequence, Los Angeles County Office of Education, 2003, p.107.)
• Theme One in the publication, Living Together Under the Law: An Elementary Law Guide, Law, Youth and Citizenship Program, New York State Bar Association, revised 2003 (see: www.lycny.org for ordering information) contains activities related to the importance of rules and laws in our lives as well as the significance of the Bill of Rights. In Theme One, pages 8 and 23-25, include an activity titled, "The Story of the Bill of Rights." Again in Theme One, pages 28-30 and 35-44, describe activities related to the importance of rules and laws and the rights guaranteed by the Bill of Rights. Theme Nine in Living Together Under the Law: An Elementary Law Guide focuses on the rights of individuals protected by the United States Constitution and Bill of Rights, specifically the rights to privacy and protection of property. This theme includes a variety of activities which involve students in applyin! g the rights contained in the Bill of Rights to various case studies. Living Together Constitutionally: An Elementary Education Citizenship Guide Based on the Pledge of Allegiance (1990) edited by Stephen L. Schechter and Arlene F. Gallagher, focuses on the meaning of the Pledge of Allegiance and includes primary and intermediate-level activities that address the core concepts and themes included in the Pledge. This excellent publication is available from the Council for Citizenship Education, Russell Sage College, Troy, NY 12180.
• Ask student to tell why the United States Constitution is an important document. Explain that the Constitution is a written document that defines and explains the structure and purpose of the United States government. The Constitution explains the shared powers of the federal and state governments. Review the following concepts and phrases found in the Constitution and ask students to define them in their own words: protection of individual rights; promoting the common good; limiting the power of government; division of powers; legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government; supreme law of the land; government of the people, by the people, and for the people; government as a servant of the people; the right to choose one's representatives; the right to change one's government and the Constitution; and an independent judiciary. (Adapted from: Education for Democracy: California Civic Education, Scope and Sequence, Los Angeles County Office ! of Education, 2003, p. 90 and National Standards for Civics and Government, Center for Civic Education, 1994, p. 28.)
• Divide the class into three groups and have each group review one of the first three articles of the Constitution (Article I, the legislative branch; Article II, the executive branch; and Article III, the judicial branch). Discuss why the Framers of the Constitution wanted to have separate branches of government. Would it have been better to give one branch of government the power to control the other two? Explain. (Taken from: Education for Democracy: California Civic Education, Scope and Sequence, Los Angeles County Office of Education, 2003, p. 91.)
• Have students research the contributions of John Hancock, George Washington, John Adams, James Madison, John Jay, Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin in terms of their roles in the founding of our national government. Ask students to prepare interview questions they would ask these founders and arrange a classroom press conference with students playing the roles of the founders and members of the press. (Adapted from: Social Studies Instructional Strategies and Resources: Prekindergarten Through Grade 6, New York State Education Department, 2003, p. 172.)
• Have students research people who helped extend our freedoms including Benjamin Franklin, Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, Abraham Lincoln, Susan B. Anthony, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Cesar Chavez, and Betty Friedan. Have students prepare reports that explain why these individuals are considered heroes? (Taken from: Social Studies Instructional Strategies and Resources: Prekindergarten Through Grade 6, New York State Education Department, 2003, p. 181.)
• Have students participate in a variety of activities that simulate what life would be like without rules or laws. For example, what would games like basketball, baseball, and soccer be like without rules? What would life in school and in their classroom be like without rules? What would life in their community be like without rules and laws? Ask students to brainstorm why groups and societies create rules and laws?
• Have students research the organization and major responsibilities of the national government. Have them design a chart that lists the branches of government and their different roles including:
  • Legislative - making legislation, for example, to stimulate economic growth or to protect individual rights such as freedom of expression and religion
  • Executive - enforcing laws, such as environmental protection laws that ensure clean air and water
  • Judicial - deciding cases, including those that protect individual's rights such as the right to a fair trial before a jury of one's peers
  Student groups can visit websites for these branches of government to learn more about what they do. They can also contact their local or area Congressional representative for more information about how Congress works.
  For the United State House of Representatives, visit http://www.house.gov
  For the United States Senate visit http://www.senate.gov
  For the United States Supreme Court visit http://www.supremecourtus.gov
  For the White House visit http://www.whitehouse.gov
  For the Library of Congress visit http://www.loc.gov
• Provide students with a list of the following public services and ask students to provide examples of who provides these services:
  • public safety (delivered by local police, fire, and public works departments; state police and federal agencies such as the FBI)
  • public utilities (delivered by water, gas, and electricity departments and private companies)
  • transportation (delivered by federal, state, and local public works and transportation departments responsible for streets, highways, bike paths, subway and bus systems, airports, and waterways)
  • education and recreation (delivered by the local and regional boards of education, libraries, museums, private organizations and volunteer groups) Students can write letters to these governmental agencies and other organizations to find out more about what they do, how they are funded, and what roles citizens can play in helping them to accomplish their goals. Have student list ways that citizens can participate in local decision making including voting, running for office, shaping public policy, serving on committees, volunteering for public health and service agencies, and attending governmental meetings.
  (Adapted from: National Standards for Civics and Government, Center for Civic Education, 1994, p. 31.)
• Ask students to identify their state and local representatives. Have students explain how they might go about contacting them. Students might invite their state and local representatives to the class to discuss a number of issues related to state and local government including:
  • how citizens can participate in local decision making
  • how citizens can influence laws and regulations
  • how citizens can attend and speak at governmental meetings
  • how citizens can participate in political campaigns
  • how citizens can voice their concerns and opinions
  • how citizens can circulate petitions and initiate laws and rules
  Have students create a chart showing the structure and functions of the branches of New York State and local governments. The chart should include the functions, leaders, and institutions associated with each branch. The chart should display this information for their state, county, and city, town, and/or village governments.
• Have students play a game of "Who Am I?" Ask one group of students to make a list of the different functions of different government officials (e.g., I make laws for the nation, who am I? I determine whether a law is constitutional, who am I?). Have a second group try to guess who the individual represents (in these examples, a member of Congress and a Supreme Court Justice).
• Provide students with the following list of local problems and ask them who they would contact to get help in solving the problem:
  • a lost pet or stray animals
  • a crime which they witnessed
  • a broken street lamp
  • a littered playground or city lot
  • a flooded street
  • an abandoned car
  • a missing schoolmate
  • a closed public swimming pool
  • a broken traffic light
  • an unsafe intersection
  Ask students to list other local problems and to tell which governmental official or which local governmental agency they would contact to get help in solving the problem. (Adapted from: National Standards for Civics and Government, Center for Civic Education, 1994, p.32.)
• Students can interview or survey school and community adults to find out how and to what degree they participate in political action or local policy making. Students can prepare a report, including charts and graphs, displaying the levels of citizen participation in their communities or neighborhoods. Collecting and compiling survey information provides an opportunity for students to work with frequency tables, graphs, charts, and averages.
• Have students contact the local historical society to identify important public or government buildings, landmarks and/or historic sites that tell the history of their community, neighborhood, or region. Ask students to explain why these buildings, sites or monuments are important and what they symbolize. Ask: What civic values do these local buildings, landmarks and sites commemorate?
• Ask students to brainstorm the qualities of an effective political leader. Have them rank them in terms of their importance and explain why they selected that ranking order. Have students identify leaders who demonstrate these effective leadership characteristics. Ask students to discuss why effective leadership is important in a representative democracy like the United States. (Adapted from: Education for Democracy: California Civic Education, Scope and Sequence, Los Angeles County Office of Education, 2003, p. 75.).
• Living Together Under the Law (for ordering information visit, www.lycny.org) includes an activity on selecting effective leaders in Theme Four. On pages 19-26 of Theme Four, "Selecting a New Park Director," students participate in a simulated interview process designed to help them understand how to apply selected criteria in choosing an effective leader.
• Have students write letters to local officials or to the local newspaper about an issue facing their community. Have students keep journals of the responses they receive and the actions taken in response to their letters. As a culminating activity, students can write short essays explaining how citizens can help make a difference by becoming involved in their local neighborhood or community. (Adapted from: Education for Democracy: California Civic Education, Scope and Sequence, Los Angeles County Office of Education, 2003, p. 93.)

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