Resource Collection > Civic Engagment
Inspiring Civic Engagement Collection
This full week of resources contains everything middle school students need to understand their roles as local and global citizens.
Each lesson builds essential skills—like critical thinking and reading comprehension—by exploring what it means to be an active and engaged citizen.
Guiding Question
How can understanding our roles as local and global citizens empower us to identify problems and drive positive change in our communities and the world?
Day 1
This lesson sets a foundation for your students to ask what it means to be a citizen.
The teacher’s guide provides step-by-step instructions for you to guide your students through anticipating, reading, and completing activities that check for understanding.
Skill
- Promote reading comprehension
- Apply concepts to scenarios
Citizen Me
Students learn about their evolving rights and responsibilities as citizens within their home, school, city, state, and nation.
Day 2
Building on students’ understanding of what it means to be a citizen, this lesson expands the question of exploring what it means to be a citizen of the world.
Through class discussions and a map analysis activity, students will learn to identify the mindset of a global citizen and define global citizenship.
Skill
- Develop critical thinking skills
- Analyze scenarios
- Practice map interpretation
The Global You
Students will define global citizenship, understand its mindset, and analyze how a country’s decisions impact neighbors.
Day 3
With this WebQuest, go beyond simple learning to application. By navigating curated online resources, students will analyze information, draw conclusions, and define for themselves what it means to be a civic hero.
Skill
- Apply concepts to real-world scenarios
- Promote reading comprehension
Civic Heroism!
Students learn about the duties of a U.S. citizen and consider how citizens translate everyday civic duties into acts of heroism and engagement.
Day 4
In this lesson, students transition from learning to application, actively using their new knowledge through gameplay. The post-game quiz or discussion questions can be used to reinforce key ideas.
Skills
- Gather evidence to support an idea
- Analyze and interpret situations
- Apply solutions
Day 5
This capstone lesson bridges the gap between the classroom and the community. Students will gain a deeper understanding of the action steps they can take to address problems in their communities.
Skills
- Practice critical thinking
- Analyze a situation and apply solutions
- Identifying and applying concepts to real-life situations
Students Engage!
County Solutions Civic Action Plan
Looking to go deeper?
This is a lesson-based civic action project you can do with your students right in the classroom!
Students examine the broad context of their issues—including the role of county and other levels of government—and focus on bringing about local change using strategies tailored to their individual issues.
When you’ve finished the unit, students will have a completed action plan to resolve a community matter. Whether you ask students to take it beyond that is up to you!