Our Constitutional Connection
What is a citizen's responsibility to participate in civil society?
Photo Credit: We the People by Stefan Ogrisek is licensed under CC by 2.0
Young people view the language of citizenship and philanthropy in the Constitution. They define philanthropy and identify philanthropic activities within the home, school, community, state, and nation, This includes voting. They become familiar with the roles and services provided by federal, state, and local governments and discuss the importance of electing officials who are trustworthy and committed to the common good.
Participants define philanthropy as givng time, talent or treasure and taking action for the common good. They identify philanthropy in a read-aloud story and the regional news.
Literature and primary documents help youth understand the role of the Constitution for the United States. They overview the three branches of government described in the first three articles and learn that government officials are serving with their time and talent for the common good. With the goal to look for traits of trustworthy officials, youth use the Internet to research their own state officials. They gather data and summarize what they find.
Three amendments to the Constitution extended voting rights to more citizens. Look at the language of these amendments and the effectiveness of everyone actually getting the vote. Youth discuss the purpose of voting, and they take action to make a difference, such as by making posters about the history of voting rights.