Student Handouts

• Communities Essay

• Republic
• Political group
• Family
• James Madison
• Democracy
• Alexis de Tocqueville
• Virtue
• Constitution
• Founders
• Public action

Ask students to make three columns on their own paper with these headings:

1. My action
2. Rules or expectations I follow
3. People who have some effect on my actions

Have them list in column 1 some key aspects of their daily routine just from the time they wake up until they arrive at school. Then have them fill in columns 2 and 3 for each of the actions they list.

After giving a few minutes for students to fill in their charts, ask: Who has more of a direct effect on your morning activities: national figures, state officials, local influences, community figures, or family?

If time permits, you might expand the timeframe to have students consider their daily activities from waking up to going back home.

Write the Guiding Question on the board: What is community and how do community interactions affect our lives?

Ask students to keep that question in mind as they read the Communities essay, either individually or in small groups.

Lead a class discussion of the Guiding Question.

Then ask: What are your rights and responsibilities within your community?

Create an exit ticket in Google Classroom or on the white board where the word community is written, and students must write 1-2 sentences answering the question: What is a citizen’s responsibility in a community?

Create a word bubble map with the vocabulary, with community as the center bubble – bubbl.us is a good site to create a mind map