LWVNYS’s Education Foundation and the NYS Social Studies Supervisory Association (NYS4A) have produced seven lesson plans for teachers of the New York State Grade 12 Participation in Government course. The goal of these lessons is to educate New York State’s future voters to become active citizens. Students will develop a better understanding of how public policy is made in New York and learn more about their rights and responsibilities as citizens.
The seven lesson plans (available at www.lwvnycivics.org) are designed to provide teachers and students with information specific to New York State. Lessons can be customized to meet the needs of individual classrooms or student interests, and are designed to be inquiry-based and non-partisan. The lessons are based on the Key Ideas and Social Studies Practices of the New York State Social Studies Curriculum Framework. The lesson plans can be integrated into existing units or combined for a unit of instruction on New York government.
With these lesson plans, Participation in Government teachers can have ready-made resources which will engage high school seniors. Lesson topics include:
- The structure of NYS Government
- Individual rights and responsibilities in New York State
- Voting in New York State
- The Public Policy Process (Laws) in New York
- Influencing New York State Government
- Participating in Political Action in Your Local Community
- Participating in Community Service in Your Local
The lesson plans were written by three New York Social Studies teachers: Kathleen Argus, Syracuse City School District; Jody Butts, Susquehanna Valley Public Schools; Robert Keyser, Shenendehowa Central School District.
The goal is to distribute this information to all area schools. If you are interested in helping to do this, please contact LWV of Syracuse Youth Director, Margrit Diehl at margrit.diehl@gmail.com.
