Civics Honors students will:
 Attend two government meetings
o Act as a reporter by writing a factual article
o Act as a concerned citizen by writing an editorial
 Watch political shows and programs weekly
o Present information to the class
o Sunday political shows:
ABC This Week with George Stephanopoulos
CBS
Face the Nation with Bob Schieffer
PBS
The McLaughlin Group
Fox
Fox News Sunday w/ Chris Wallace
NBC Meet the Press with David Gregory
CNN State of the Union with Candy Crowley
o Other news shows and programs are acceptable
 Fareed Zakaria GPS (CNN Sundays) – great for foreign policy issues
 The News Hour on PBS (weekdays at 7:00 p.m. on CPTV) – in depth news
 Major network news shows on ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, PBS, etc.
 60 Minutes (CBS Sundays at 7:00 p.m.)
 Anderson Cooper 360 and The Situation Room (CNN weekdays)
 Radio: National Public Radio (npr.org and 90.5 FM)
 Write weekly current event summaries on various topics and share info with the class
 Contact member(s) of federal, state and local government regarding various issues
o Attempt to have a written editorial on a government issue published
 Debate issues of concern
 Detect bias in news, articles, speeches, advertisements and other media
o Analyze multiple viewpoints
o Vary sources
 Communicate frequently with their parents or other adults
o Discuss/debate issues
o Interview adults
o Take notes
 Develop written journal responses and reflections
o Based on issues
o Prompts
o DBQ’s
Unit 1- Government and Economic Systems
Know: What does government do for citizens?
Compare and Contrast democracy and dictatorship.
What are the responsibilities/ duties of citizens in a democracy?
What are the essential characteristics of a democracy?
(combine soil and characteristics)
Is capitalism best?
Skills: Learn to read the text- analyze structure
Note-taking and outlining
Identify/ summarize main idea
Current event summary
Performance Task:
Economic systems marketplace simulation
Honors Topics
Globalization + Foreign Relations
 What is free trade?
 Trade with China, protectionism, outsourcing vs. insourcing
 Do “free trade” agreements help create jobs or export jobs?
Arab Spring
 How has this citizens’ movement changed government?
 What is the impact on U.S. foreign relations?
Religion
 How much should religion and government be mixed?
 Should there be a “wall of separation” between church and state?
Developed-Developing-Underdeveloped Nations
 Should developing countries have the freedom to use their resources despite
environmental impact? (energy, natural resources vs. maintaining environment)
 What is the social responsibility of manufacturers and consumers? (sweatshops, rare
earth metals, blood diamonds, gold mining, rainforest destruction, etc.)
Free Market Economics (Conservative-Liberal views, role government in the economy)
 Is Obama a socialist?
Hobbes-Locke-Rousseau, Montesquieu, Marx-Smith
 Which philosophies are the most integrated into our government and economic
systems?
Unit 2- Political Parties, Elections and Interest Groups
Know: Dem v. Rep (What are You?)
Propaganda (Campaign, Interest Groups, PACS, ads, lobbyists, etc.)
Election Process (Primaries, Nomination, Convention, etc.)
Voting (Importance, qualifications, procedures, 2000 election, etc)
Skills: Compare 2 or more points of view regarding the same subject
Assess the extent of reasoning and evidence in support of author’s claim
Thesis Development
Performance Task:
Create your own party project
Honors Topics
Detect bias in news sources
 Fox vs. others
 Political commentary
Tea Party’s influence on today’s politics
 How has the Tea Party affected compromise between Democrats and Republicans?
 Government debt, spending, taxation
 Role of government: less gov, more gov, private vs. public sector
Analyze TV/political ads, importance of mass media in campaigns
 Should candidates use negative advertising vs. positive?
 Should candidates be held accountable for misinformation?
Impact of superpac’s and the Citizens United decision
 Are corporations people?
 Should campaign spending be limited?
 What is the role of money in election campaigns?
Unit 3 – The Constitution
Know: Declaration of independence
Fed v. anti-fed
Principles
Constitutional Rights
Skills: Analyze a series of events and determine cause and effect
Analyze primary sources
Compare 2 or more points of view regarding the same subject
Support thesis with textual evidence
Performance Task:
Constitutional Right Research/Presentation
Honors Topics
Primary Sources: Declaration of Independence, Fundamental Orders, English Bill of Rights,
Magna Carta, Federalist Papers, U.S. Constitution
 How have the ideas of others influenced the development of our government?
o Popular sovereignty
o Limited government
o Federalism
o + other principles (checks and balances, separation of powers)
Unit 4 – Legislative Branch
Know: CT Reps
Congressional Powers (purse, commerce, elastic)
Congressional Demographics (chart analysis)
House v. Senate (qualifications, terms, procedures, powers, leadership)
Skills: Integrate Charts, Graphs, Data
Assess extent of reasoning and evidence support authors claim
Performance Task:
Congressional Profile Development Task (Manchurian Candidate Southington)
Honors Topics
Impact of lobbyists, interest groups, fundraising, constant campaigning
 Citizens United vs. McCain-Feingold
 How should congressional elections be reformed?
Contact a member of Congress regarding an issue
 Write, e-mail, personal meeting
Unit 5 – Executive Branch
Know: Electoral College
Qualifications, Terms, Powers
Chiefs/Roles
Bureaucracy (Cabinet, departments)
Skills: Compare and Contrast Treatment of the Same Topic in Several Sources
Analyze primary and secondary sources
Compare 2 or more points of view regarding the same subject
Performance Task:
Chiefs Project
Honors Topics
Use of technology by presidents: photographs, movies, radio, TV, social media
 T. Roosevelt, FDR, Nixon-JFK, Reagan, Obama
Expansion of executive power
 New Deal, 9/11, Watergate
Bureaucracy
 private sector vs. public sector – should we reduce or expand gov.?
Explore cabinet departments and their function
 How does government affect our lives?
Unit 6 – Judicial Branch
Know: Civil v Criminal
Judicial Review (Marbury v Madison, landmark cases)
Shaping of Public Policy
Structure, qualifications, terms, etc.
Jurisdiction (original v appellate, state v federal)
Lady Justice
Skills: Analyze a series of events and determine cause and effect
Analyze primary and secondary sources
Compare 2 or more points of view regarding the same subject
Assess extent of reasoning and evidence support authors claim
Performance Task:
Case Study Project
Honors Topics
Evolution of court rulings
 Dred Scott, Plessy, Brown
Strict vs. loose interpretation of constitution
 Liberal – Moderate – Conservative justices
Term limits
 Should judges/justices have term limits?
 Should judges be subject to election?
Unit 7 – Rights, Liberty, and Justice for All
Know: Bill of Rights, (protections and limits)
Evolution of the Vote
Equal Protection, Affirmative Action, Discrimination, Rights of the Accused
Citizens’ rights and responsibilities
Immigration (demographics, naturalization, myths and realities)
Skills: Cite Textual Evidence
Accurate summary of key points
Determine meaning of word or phrase in text
Compare 2 or more points of view regarding the same subject
Performance Task:
What’s Your Right: Case Study Presentations
Honors Topics
Evolution of court rulings
 Dred Scott, Plessy, Brown
 Bakke/affirmative action
Liberty vs. Security
 impact of 9/11, government rules vs. citizens’ rights and freedoms
Voting laws
 Should electronic voting be allowed?
 Should voting be mandatory?
Plan for immigration reform
 Should amnesty be offered to some illegal aliens?
 Does immigration help or harm our country?