CITIZEN ME!

CITIZEN ME!

All the layers to YOUR citizenship!

I wonder what a

CITIZEN is?

A citizen is… A. a person who does good deeds.

THANKS!

C. a member of a community with rights and responsibilities.

B. someone involved in politics.

D. an adult.

TAKE A GUESS!

Of a state?

Am I a citizen of my school?

So does that mean that I’m a

citizen?Of a city?

We’re citizens of SOMETHING,

right?

YES! A community is group of

people that share an environment. Every day you are part of

several different layers of community.

That means you have many different levels of

citizenship!

Citizenship Pyramid

SIDE ONE:Levels of

Citizenship!

LevelsThe people we live with make up the smallest “community” we belong to.

Natio

n

Stat

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City

Hom

eSc

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Write “People I live with” here:

HOME

LevelsOur school or workplace is a community too. These are the people we interact with outside our homes every day .

Natio

n

Stat

e

City

Hom

eSc

hool

Record the name of your school here…

SCHOOL

Levels You are a citizen of the city in which you live.

Natio

n

Stat

e

Scho

olCit

y

Hom

e

Record the name of your city (or the city or town closest to you) here…

CITY

STATEOur country is made up of 50 states (and a district, too!). You are a citizen of the state where you live.

Natio

n

Stat

e

Scho

ol

Levels

Hom

e

City

Write the name of your state here…

NATIONYou are also a citizen of your country!

Natio

n

Stat

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Scho

ol

Levels

City

Hom

e

Write down the name of the nation in which you live here…

Does your SIDE ONE

look like this??

Natio

n

Stat

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Scho

ol

Levels

Your School

United StatesState Name

WAIT!Why should I

care?

Nearest City or Town

Hom

e

City

“People I live with”

Where do these rights and

responsibilities come from?

Let’s find out!

Citizenship Pyramid

SIDE TWO: Origins of Rights

and Responsibilities!

ORIGINS OF RIGHTS &

RESPONSIBILITIESIf being a

citizen means having rights

and responsibilities, where do rights

and responsibilities

come from?

We get our rights and responsibilities as citizens from…

A. different places depending on the level of citizenship.

THANKS

AGAIN!C. politicians.

B. one member of the community who decides for us.

D. the President.

TAKE A GUESS!

NATION

In the United

States we are

guaranteed a

list of rights in

our

constitution.

United States Constitution

Stat

e

City

Origins

Record it here!U.S.

ConstitutionHo

me

Scho

ol

Natio

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NATION

STATEEach state has its own constitution that guarantees rights to the state’s citizens.

State Constitution

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e

City

Origins

Record it here!

U.S. Constitution

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Natio

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State Constitution

STATE

Cities usually have

a city charter. This

document tells how

the city will run. It

usually contains

some rights and

responsibilities of

city citizens.

City Charter

CITY

Stat

e

City

Origins

Record it here!

U.S. Constitution

Hom

eSc

hool

Natio

n

State Constitution

City Charter

CITY

Most schools have a school handbook that lists the students’ rights and responsibilities. (mostly responsibilities—more about

that later!)

School Handbook

SCHOOL

Stat

e

City

Origins

Record it here!

U.S. Constitution

Hom

eSc

hool

Natio

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State Constitution

City CharterSchool Handbook

SCHOOL

At home, the

adults in charge

decide what your

rights and

responsibilities

will be. Maybe

these will get

written down—but

usually not!

HOME

Stat

e

City

Origins

Record it here!

U.S. Constitution

Hom

eSc

hool

Natio

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State Constitution

City CharterSchool Handbook

Adults in Charge

HOME

Stat

e

City

Origins

U.S. Constitution

Hom

eSc

hool

Natio

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State Constitution

City CharterSchool Handbook

Adults in Charge

Good Job!

Now let’s look at some examples of

the kinds of RIGHTS citizens

have at each layer of

citizenship!

Citizenship Pyramid

SIDE THREE:Rights!

Now that I know where rights and

responsibilities come

from…

RIGHTSWhat are

rights??

Rights are… A. things adults get to

do.

GOT IT!

C. electric bulbs that let you read in the dark.

B. privileges the President has.

D. a privilege or a claim to something.

TAKE A GUESS!

So, what kinds of rights do

citizens have at each level?

RIGHTS

RIGHTS

You would need a pyramid the size of the ones in

EGYPT

to list all the rights citizens have at each level. Let’s just list a few examples:

NATIONGuarantees

really BIG rights

like freedom of

speech, freedom

of religion, and

the freedom to

assemble in

groups.

United States Constitution

Stat

e

City

Record it here!

Freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom to

assemble in groupsHo

me

Scho

ol

Natio

n

United States ConstitutionRights

STATEState constitutions usually repeat many of the rights listed in the U.S. Constitution. But often they add more…

State ConstitutionFor example, your state constitution might guarantee the right to a free education, or the right for kids under 14 not to work.

Stat

e

City

Record it here!

Hom

eSc

hool

Natio

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Right to free education, Right of children not to

work

Freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom to

assemble in groups

Discuss It:Why don’t you think the U.S. Constitution

gives the right to education? Should it?

State ConstitutionRights

This gives you

the right to

services your

city provides,

like sidewalks

or parks.

City Charter

CITY

Stat

e

City

Origins

Hom

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hool

Natio

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Right to use sidewalks and

parks

Freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom to

assemble in groupsRight to free education, Right of children not to

work

Discuss It:

Would it be a problem

if the U.S.

Constitution talked

about sidewalks?

City Charter

Record it here!

CITY

Hey! I don’t see any rights in my school handbook. All I see is stuff kids aren’t supposed to do!

School Handbook

SCHOOL

I can answer that one!

Sometimes rights…

Rights

Responsibilities

…are the flip side of responsibilities.

So if the handbook says you can’t do something…

... it is silently giving the right to do something

else.

You have the right to bring

a regular wallet.

No wallets with chains!

So school handbooks are usually the opposite of the U.S. Constitution

because they list responsibilities instead of

rights.

Try out some examples of how responsibilities

can silently tell you what your rights are!

“Do not throw food in the lunch room” is silently saying you have the right to :

Eat in the lunch room!

“Students must be seated during athletic activities” is silently saying you have the right to :

Attend athletic activities!

“No t-shirts with inappropriate slogans” is silently saying you have the right to : Wear appropriate t-shirts to

school!

Stat

e

City

Rights

Record it here!

Hom

eSc

hool

Natio

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Attend sports, eat in

lunchroom

Freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom to

assemble in groupsRight to free education, Right of children not to

workRight to use sidewalks and

parks

Discuss It:

What rights do

you have at your

school?

SCHOOL

The adults in

charge at home

give you rights

that only apply at

home.

For example, you

probably have the

right to eat the

food they buy, and

you might have the

right to watch TV

and play video

games.

Adults in ChargeHOME

Stat

e

City

Record it here!

Hom

eSc

hool

Natio

nTV, video

games, eat food

Freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom to

assemble in groupsRight to free education, Right of children not to

workRight to use sidewalks and

parksAttend sports, eat in

lunchroom

Remember:

These are all

just examples!Rights

HOME

Citizenship Pyramid

SIDE FOUR:Responsibilitie

s!

Yikes! What does

this mean??

RESPONSIBILITIES

Responsibilities are… A. things only adults have to

do.

COOL!C. unpleasant activities adults

force kids to do.

B. duties we have to other people, to the government, or to the law.

D. chores you do outside.

TAKE A GUESS!

The adults in

charge at home

give you duties

you are only

responsible for at

home.

For example, you

might have to

make your bed,

walk the dog, or

wash the dishes.

Stat

e

City

Record it here!

Hom

e

Scho

ol

Natio

nMake bed, walk dog,

wash dishes

Discuss It!

What

responsibilitie

s do you have

at home?

Responsibilities

Well! I don’t have any trouble figuring out what my responsibilties at school are!

They’re all listed right in the school handbook!

SCHOOL

At school, you are responsible for following

the rules.You already learned that school rules usually tell

you what NOT to do.

Responsibilities

Stat

e

City

Record it here!

Hom

eSc

hool

Natio

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Behave in class No gum, hats,

weapons

Discuss It:What

responsibiliti

es do you

have at your

school?

Make bed, walk dog,

wash dishes

SCHOOL

City charters

often contain

rules, kind of

like a school

handbook.

Laws that apply

only within a

city are called

ordinances.

CITY

If a city ordinance tells you not to do something...…then you know you

have a responsibility not to do that thing.

Even if the ordinance just says what the punishment is...…you can still figure out

that you have a responsibility not to do that thing.

Stat

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City

Hom

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Natio

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No barking dogs,No kites in park

Remember:

These are just

examples! What

responsibilities do

you have in your

town?

Record it here!

Make bed, walk dog,

wash dishes

Behave in class No gum, hats,

weapons

Responsibilities

CITY

STATEPaying TAXES is one of the biggest responsibilities you’ll find in a state constitution…

State ConstitutionFor example, your state might have taxes on property

you own, on income you earn, and even on the stuff you buy at the store!

Make bed, walk dog,

wash dishes

Behave in class No gum, hats,

weapons

No barking dogs,No kites in park

Stat

e

City

Record it here!

Hom

eSc

hool

Natio

n

Property tax, income tax,

sales tax

Discuss It:What do you think the state uses your taxes for?

State ConstitutionResponsibilities

NATION

The Constitution

does not have a

list of

responsibilities,

but that doesn’t

mean there

aren’t any.

United States Constitution

Read what the Constitution says about treason:

From this, you can figure out that citizens of the United States have a responsibility not to commit what?

TREASON

Treason can be two things:

1) Making _______ against the United States.

2) Giving _______ and ____________ to enemies of the United States.

waraidcomfor

t

war

warcomfor

taid

aid comfort

The Constitution guarantees the right to vote……but what would happen

if voting day came and nobody voted?

But that’s not all!

Voting is a responsibility we have……because our society

can’t function without it!

Stat

e

City

Responsibilities Recor

d it here!

VoteDon’t commit treason

Hom

eSc

hool

Natio

nMake bed, walk dog,

wash dishes

Behave in class No gum, hats,

weapons

No barking dogs,No kites in park

Property tax, income tax,

sales tax

Stat

e

City

VoteDon’t commit treason

Hom

e

Scho

ol

Natio

n

Make bed, walk dog,

wash dishes

Behave in class No gum, hats,

weapons

No barking dogs,No kites in park

Does your RESPONSIBILITIES side

look something like this?

Property tax, income tax, sales tax

NICE JOB! Now, following your

teacher’s instructions, build your

Citizenship Pyramid!