Identify and describe their community's and county's government and its functions.


1. Identify rules and laws made by the governing bodies of their school and community; from this, discuss why we have rules and laws.

2. Name their community's form of government and define very simply what that form means.

3. Define democracy and tell the ways voting can be used in a democracy; use voting to decide an issue in their own school or classroom after deciding who should be allowed to vote, how to make the vote fair, and what method of voting should be used (e.g. secret ballot, show of hands, voice vote).

4. Identify their community's current political leaders; invite a community political leader to visit the classroom to talk about what that person does and how this affects the students.

5. Invite a police officer or judge to the classroom to talk about her or his job and how this affects the students.

6. Visit their community's seat of government and talk to town officials on site; research and visit other buildings used for government in the community today or in the past.

7. Interpret and discuss grade-appropriate historical and contemporary New Hampshire stories and newspaper articles illustrating ideas central to democracy such as: individual rights and responsibilities: concern for the well-being of the community; tolerance for others; minority rights; equality of opportunity and equal protection under the law: the importance of education, work, and volunteerism. Discuss how these ideas have and will affect the students' own lives.