How To Build Your Own Country

Have you ever wanted to just be ‘the boss’? To make all the decisions, to say how things ought to be run? Of course you have! Now is your big chance… Soon you will be getting your license to ‘drive the earth’. You will be old enough to start making the decisions that will affect other’s lives on the earth that you are sharing with them. Why don’t we practice right now? If you could create the perfect place to live, what would it look like? What would it be like to live there?

Here is your opportunity to Create-a- Country! We’ve been talking this year about how governments work. Your assignment is to build a country from scratch, using your imagination and the guidelines on the following pages. Be creative and have fun!

Step 1 Stake Out Your Identity

Naming Your Country  Research the origins of other countries names.  Explore the origin of your own country name. Then brainstorm a name for your classroom “Micro-nation”.  Think about what you want the name to say about your “Micro-nation”.

Use one of these “official” prefixes  Independent Republic of …  United Federation of…  Dominion of …  Kingdom of …  Union of …  Queendom of …  Empire of …  Sovereign State of …  People’s Republic of…  United States of … Then pick a fitting description to add to it

Design A Flag & Choose a Motto Choose an emblem that best represents your classroom Micro- nation. Many countries have a motto that consists of just three words. Come up with three words that sum up your hopes for your Micro-nation.

Pick a Background or create your own, but keep it simple

Add a decorative motif, or make your own and pick some colors

Map it out! Create a map of your country, decide how large or small it should be. Does it have a coastline? Does it border another country? (Maybe a real one or another group’s country). Is your country an island? Where in the world is it located?

Make it Realistic  Decide on placement of cities and towns  Give it varied terrain: mountains, valleys, swamps, beaches, flatlands, farmlands, tropics, desert, etc…  Where is the capital?  Decide on size, make it comparable to a real country, how many square miles is it?

Use your Map Skills  Use the skills you learned from our globe project

Make a Legend  In the bottom corner give it a legend for the terrain, and a compass rose

Step 2 Run the country

Set up a Government  Choose which kind of government your country will have (oligarchy, theocracy, dictatorship, democracy, etc.)  Who will lead your country?  How will they stay in power?

Write a Constitution  Principles of the country  Statement about individual’s rights  Role of constitution as law  Parts of government  How parts work together  A way to change constitution in the future

Making the Laws  Make some laws that will protect your citizens, their freedom, and their property  How will laws be enforced?  Who decides what laws go into effect?

Serving the Citizen’s needs  Jobs  Health Care  Clean environment  Roads, bridges, transportation  Defense (army, navy, air force)  Education  Justice System

Work together with your group on these four elements. Each piece should be about one - two pages long, make it visually interesting with photographs, etc.

Each person will be creating one major element:  Set Up Government  Write a Constitution  Make The Laws  Serve the Citizens

The Economy  Economy is the production, distribution, and exchange of goods & services  Work with your group to create a document explaining how your country makes money, and what it does with that money to serve the citizens  Explain what your currency is, and how it works

Taxes!  Most countries use citizen’s money to help pay for services.  Decide if you want to tax people’s earnings (income tax) or things they buy (sales tax). Or both.  What do these taxes pay for?

Holidays  You’ve worked hard up until now: take a break  What kinds of holidays will you have, how often will you celebrate them?  Create a document where you lay out some festivities and why you celebrate them  Research other holidays for inspiration

Step 3 Put it all together

Your finished Product will have:  A cover representing your country’s flag  All four major documents, well-written and consistent with one another  Pictures, maps, texture to give a visual representation of your landscape  A few pages of extras: (economy, taxes, holidays, etc)

Presenting Be prepared to present your country to a variety of different audiences: (classrooms, teachers, administrators, other grades, etc)

Presenting  Each group member should be prepared to answer a variety of questions.  Make sure you can explain your ideas and why they would work in a realistic world  Have fun with it and be comfortable

You Rule! So, yes, you can build your own country even if it’s just among friends & classmates. Remember: be good to your people, they are your greatest asset. If you are mean or unfair to your citizens they could revolt and form their own government. Good luck!