Waltrina D. Kirkland-Mullins
Week 1 - Duration: 3 days / 50-minute sessions
Focus Questions:
What does it mean to be an American citizen?
What are one's rights as American citizens?
What are the American Constitution and the Bill of Rights?
How does the Constitution impact our rights as American citizens?
Why might there be a need to amend the Constitution?
Day 1. Canvass students to determine their understanding of what it means to be a U.S. citizen and the privileges enjoyed as such. Record their responses on chart paper. Subsequently establish that there are multiple ways in which one can become an American citizen: being born within the United States or coming to America and undergoing the naturalization process. You may discover that some of your students or members of their family have undergone the naturalization: these students may be able to clearly articulate an understanding of the process. Allow them to explain that process to the class.
Highlight that being American entitles one to certain rights and privileges. This includes freedom to express oneself, the freedom to worship as one so desires, the right to a fair trial by jury, the right to vote in elections for public officials to represent us and our points of view, the right to run for public office, to apply for employment, and the freedom and right to have "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." With those privileges come responsibilities. Americans are expected to uphold our country's laws, to stay informed of issues that affect the American community, to respect the rights, beliefs, and opinions of others, to be honest citizens who pay their share of federal, state, and local taxes, to serve on a jury, and to defend our country should the need arise. Emphasize that many Americans today enjoy these freedoms. Doing so helps to keep our society intact.
Introduce the terms Constitution, Bill of Rights, and Amendments, and have students share what they know regarding our country's legislative documents. Generally state that our rights as Americans are outlined in the Constitution, and that this legal document serves as the foundation in the governing our country and its people. Share that the Constitution begins the Preamble, which briefly summarizes its guiding principles, and the first 10 Amendments of the Constitution are known as the Bill of Rights. Add that on occasion, rules, rights, and privileges outlined in the Constitution have been amended and that, to date, 27 amendments have been made.
At this point, ask: "Why might there be a need for the Constitution to be modified?" Record student responses, and encourage them to keep this question in the back of their minds as the unit study progresses.
Make Language Interactive
Along with academic vocabulary, on an ongoing basis, introduce and reinforce domain specific vocabulary. Have students maintain a new words folder or vocabulary journal to record newly discovered words and definitions. Doing so proves empowering to young learners and enhances language expression. A few domain-specific words with which to begin include:
Related Activities: Design a Classroom Constitution. Inform students that the framers of our country's Constitution, known as the Founding Fathers, underwent a democratic decision-making process when constructing the law of the land. Brainstorming and debating, planning, voting, and coming to consensus to create and implement the law were part of the process. Share that like—the Founding Fathers—students will collaborate in groups of 3 or 4 to establish classroom community rules.
Agreed-upon rules will be referred to as Articles. They will serve as guiding principles for creating and maintaining a welcoming, friendly, learning environment for all community citizens. Members within each group will select one representative to speak on the group's behalf. Each representative will present their group's recommendation(s) before the entire classroom body. Recommendations are recorded. Students vote and come to consensus regarding select "social-interaction legislation." Each student signs off on the document, affirming that all "classroom citizens" will adhere to the "Articles" contained therein. For future reference, the Constitution should be posted in a visible location within the classroom. Articles will be revisited on a routine basis, particularly when a classroom citizen's rights and/or privileges are violated, and the law must be enforced. Through this approach, children get a general feel for the democratic process.
Have students create posters depicting the liberties we enjoy as American citizens.
Show "School House Rock" film clip re: the United States Constitution (see Internet Resources) Have students commit Preamble song to memory.
Days 2 - 3. Canvass students to determine their familiarity with vocabulary and concepts that relate to the U.S. government. Introduce the words democracy, executive branch, legislative branch, and judicial branch. I found that the majority of my students are familiar with the terms; however, most are unable to articulate that a democracy is a form of government by the people, where citizens elect representatives to help decide how a country or community should be run. They are unfamiliar with the three branches of government. They do not know that the Legislative Branch is comprised of the Senate and the House of Representatives, collectively referred to as Congress. Most associate the Judicial Branch and the U.S. Supreme Court with "policemen, crime, and arrests." They do not affiliate the Judicial Branch with settling different kinds of problems and arguments confronted in our nation OR applying the law to determine whether those laws agree or disagree with America's Constitution. They too are unaware that the Supreme Court is the highest court in the land. Providing students with a basic understanding our government setup and responsibilities is thus important: make use of on-line posters, graphic organizers, and more to foster understanding in this regards resources (see Bibliography – Internet Resources).
Related Activities: Have students observe the "Three Branches of Government" film clip (access http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pyqEAPYnhjk&feature=related). For shared or independent reading, have students review, analyze, and discuss the responsibilities of each of these branches (access "Three Branches of Government article at http://kids.usa.gov/three-branches-of-government/index.shtml). Subsequently have students create a Branches of Government poster highlighting the members, their, roles, and the responsibilities of each branch.
Provide a general overview of the United States Constitution. Highlight the 14th Amendment; emphasize that it addresses citizenship rights and equal protection of the laws embraced within the U.S. (access Grade 2 and 3-friendly on-line informational reading selection at http://www.usconstitution.net/constkidsK.html).
Week 2 - Duration: 2 days / 50-Minute Sessions
Focus Questions: Has there been a time in American History when unjust laws affected select groups of people? If "yes," what people were impacted, and how were their rights as American citizens affected?
Were laws used to sanction segregation?
What do the terms "For Colored Only" and "Jim Crow" imply?
Days 1 and 2. Introduce the above-noted questions to determine student familiarity regarding societal inequities and our government's involvement in addressing such concerns. Record their responses.
Subsequently introduce two film clips: the first, a montage of discriminatory posters and billboards entitled "Segregation in the USA" (accessible via http://www.youtube. com/ watch?v= c-7eNRB2_0Q). The second, a news report accompanied by photos entitled "California: First State to End School Segregation" (accessible via http://www.youtube.com/watch?v= juGzbgciQ3w). Instruct youngsters to closely observe the pictorial images in both film clips, zeroing in on everything from people's facial expressions to the venues in which people are situated. Additionally listen closely to the narration in the second clip. Through the use of these resources, students a sense that Jim Crow practices were not limited African-Americans.
Related Activities: After observing the film clips, have students create a "Feelings Chart." Initially, have students contribute words that depict how one would feel being a victim of segregation and race prejudice. (Upon administering this activity, my third graders across abilities levels came up with the words "bullied, disliked, unaccepted, excluded, dejected, degraded, lonely, isolated, inferior, unhappy, melancholy, disliked, shunned, irritated, angry, infuriated, hated, and victimized.) Post the chart in a visible classroom location. Add new feeling words to the list as the unit study continues; students will use it as a reference for story-writing purposes.
Introduce the words to Rodgers and Hammerstein's thought-provoking song, "You've Got to Be Carefully Taught." Have children analyze the lyrics. Subsequently inquire: "Why might the composers of this song have created it? What message are the composers attempting to convey? Do you believe race prejudice and discriminatory practices are concepts that are taught? Explain.
Using magic markers, colored pencils, multicultural, and/or other art media, have students in teams of 3 to 4 work together to create a poster highlighting ways to combat race discrimination and prejudice. Students should incorporate captions to accentuate each artistic image. Host a classroom art show. Invite other classes to tour the exhibit: have students explain the rationale behind the work to visiting guests.
