Objective:

Students will understand basic concepts in civics and understand how citizens participate in their community.

Materials:

• Billboard with questions such as: “What is a community?”, “How do citizens participate in a community?”
• Worksheet on simple local community issues such as recycling, neighborhood cleanups, and helping the local homeless
• Blank pieces of paper
• Crayons and markers

Procedure:

1. Begin by introducing the lesson and explain what civics is to the students. Ask the students to think of examples of what it means to be a citizen in the community.

2. Have the students walk up to the billboard and write down on the worksheet their answers to the questions.

3. After the students complete the worksheet, have them draw pictures that show the roles of citizens in their community. Ask them what they can do to help around their community.

4. Discuss the roles of citizens in the community. Ask students how they can help their local neighborhoods.

5. This can lead to a discussion about social responsibility and how everyone has the duty to contribute to their community.

6. Have the students come up with ideas on how they can help the community. It can be anything from picking up litter, to participating in local cleanups.

7. Once the students come up with their ideas, assign them a task of implementing these ideas in real life.

8. Review the lesson and ask the students questions to assess their understanding.

9. Have the students share their ideas with the class and have peers encourage one another to contribute to their community.

10. Collect the worksheets and debrief the lesson.

Conclusion:

Explain to the students how important it is to contribute to the community and be a good citizen. Encourage the students to continue helping out in their local neighborhoods. Remind them that they are the leaders of tomorrow and their small contributions can lead to big changes.