Today you are going to learn about our country's political system and what does it means to live in a democracy.

- What is a Democracy? (Pg.3-4)

    TABLE OF CONTENTS 

What we are going to learn today:

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George Washington, 1st U.S. President

- The Constitution and the Bill of Rights (Pg.6-9)

- Branches of Government (Pg.11-14)

- Voting Rights(Pg.10)

Did you know this about the word democracy?

In Greek DEMOCRACY [demokratia]

DEMOS means PEOPLE and KRATOS means RULE. Not only the Greeks but the French in 1570s [démocratie] (14c.), from Medieval Latin [democratia] (13c.).  In 19c. England it could refer to "the class of people which has no hereditary or other rank, the common people." In 19c. U.S. politics it could mean "principles or members of the Democratic Party."

The "c" next to the numbers means century.

About 2,000 years ago, the Greeks come up with a political system known as a democracy: A form of ruling in which the people meet to decide new laws and to choose their leaders.

  WHAT IS A DEMOCRACY?

Do you live in a democratic republic?

                                     &

How can a government be democratic?

IT'S YOUR TURN!

There are words spread around the next pages, find them and form the sentence. BE ON THE LOOKOUT!

TIME FOR A GAME

The Constitution : the Bill of Rights

   Our constitution sets the rules that guides how our country, state, or other political organization works. The Constitution states what the branches of the government are, what powers they have, and how they work. The Constitution also dictates the rights the citizens have, this is the Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights is also based on several previous documents, including the Magna Carta.

system

The First Ten Amendments to the Constitution

1st-

GUESS THE AMENDMENTS THAT ARE ILLUSTRATED!

2nd-

The right to bear arms.

3rd-

4th-

People are protected from unreasonable and unlawful search at their private property.

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  Abraham Lincoln, 16th U.S. President

a

5th-

6th-

7th-

you have the right to remain silent...

Right to a speedy, public trial.

8th-

Those accused will not suffer cruel punishments.

9th-

Americans have additional rights that are not listed in the Constitution.

10th-

Powers not given to the U.S. government by the Constitution belong to the states.

political 

ANSWERS TO THE BILL OF RIGHTS ACTIVITY

1st Amendment: Promotes freedom of speech and religion, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, and the right to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

3rd Amendment: Prevents the government from placing troops in private homes.

5th Amendment: Grants people the right to choose not to testify in court if they feel their own testimony will incriminate themselves. It also prevents people from being tried for the same crime twice.

7th Amendment: Provides that some civil cases can be heard and decided upon by a jury. 

   Voting is a process by which a group of people can decide things fairly when they do not all agree. Voting is an important part of the type of government called democracy. In a democracy, people use voting to choose government leaders, or to vote for or against certain laws. The right to vote is called suffrage.

VOTING RIGHTS