1. IS AMERICA A DEMOCRACY?
IF NOT, WHAT ARE WE?

2. WHAT IS A DEMOCRACY? DEFINITION? “GOVERNMENT, RULE”
WHAT DOES “CRACY” MEAN?
LOOK IT UP IN THE
AMERICAN HERITAGE
COLLEGE DICTIONARY
“GOVERNMENT, RULE”

3. WHAT DOES “DEMOS” MEAN? LOOK IT UP IN THE AMERICAN HERITAGE
COLLEGE DICTIONARY
THE COMMON PEOPLE,
THE POPULACE

4. DEMOCRACY? GOVERNMENT BY THE PEOPLE, EXERCISED EITHER DIRECTLY,
OR BY ELECTED REPRESENTATIVES

5. If “THE PEOPLE” don’t rule, who else might rule?
We will write your ideas on the board
WHAT WOULD LIFE IN ONE OF THESE
SOCIETIES BE LIKE?
IN FIVE SENTENCES, DESCRIBE SUCH A SOCIETY:
Give three characteristics (strong, weak, free,
unfree, etc) and tell why you would or would not
want to live in such a society.

6. ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS TO BE
EXAMINED IN THIS UNIT
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE A “DEMOCRACY”?
IS THE UNITED STATES A DEMOCRACY?
Are we truly free?
ARE WE TRUE TO THE IDEALS OF THE PREAMBLE?
IS RISING INEQUALITY A PROBLEM FOR AMERICAN SOCIETY?

7. If so, how? DOES MONEY HAVE TOO MUCH INFLUENCE IN AMERICAN POLITICS?
IS OUR SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT OUTMODED?
Should it be abolished or changed?
If so, how?

8. DEFINE THE FIRST 11 WORDS ON
USING THE DICTIONARY
DEFINE THE FIRST 11 WORDS ON
THE VOCABULARY LIST

9. FREEDOM: DEFINE EQUALITY: DEFINE IF WE ARE FREE, WILL WE BE EQUAL?
DAY 2
FREEDOM: DEFINE
EQUALITY: DEFINE
IF WE ARE FREE, WILL WE BE EQUAL?
(Can you be free if you are not equal?.
If you are free, will freedom eventually result in inequality?)
WRITE ONE SENTENCE ANSWERING THE
QUESTION (and sign)

10. EXCHANGE YOUR ANSWERS: ON THE PAPER
YOU ARE GIVEN, WRITE A SENTENCE EXPLAINING
YOUR AGREEMENT OR DISAGREEMENT
(and sign)

11. EXCHANGE TWICE AS BEFORE
EXCHANGE AGAIN AND DO THE SAME
GIVE THE PAPER BACK TO THE ORIGINAL
CREATOR
BLOCK IV GOT TO HERE
NEXT QUESTION:
CAN A SOCIETY WITH EXTREME
INEQUALITY REALLY BE FREE?
Block I reached this point
EXCHANGE TWICE AS BEFORE

12. EXHANGE AGAIN AND READ ALOUD Discussion WITH NO SIDE CONVERSATIONS
OR INTERRUPTIONS

13. GIVE THE BEST BALANCE OF FREEDOM AND EQUALITY IN PERCENTAGES.
QUICK WRITE
GIVE THE BEST BALANCE OF FREEDOM AND EQUALITY IN PERCENTAGES.
GIVE THE BALANCE YOU THINK WE HAVE
IN AMERICA TODAY
EXCHANGE AND RESPOND IN TWO SENTENCES

14. SEVERAL ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS
WE WILL BE LOOKING AT THESE IDEAS
ALL THROUGH THIS UNIT.
WE WILL BE CONSIDERING
SEVERAL ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE A “DEMOCRACY”?
IS THE UNITED STATES A DEMOCRACY?
Are we truly free?
ARE WE TRUE TO THE IDEALS OF THE PREAMBLE?
IS RISING INEQUALITY A PROBLEM FOR AMERICAN SOCIETY?
DOES MONEY HAVE TOO MUCH INFLUENCE IN AMERICAN POLITICS?
IS OUR SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT OUTMODED?
Should it be abolished or changed?

15. AT THE END OF THE UNIT YOU WILL RE-DESIGN THE GOVERNMENT OF THE
UNITED STATES OF
AMERICA