This is lesson 3 of a 6-lesson unit plan based on What Is a Government? By Baron Bedesky. After reading pages 4 – 7, students will use the text information to help distinguish between rules and laws. The lesson will begin with an introduction to rules, such as board game rules, and then students will distinguish between rules and laws using a Venn diagram. Students will then write a journal entry that answers the question, “Why do we need laws?”

This unit will support students as they explain why people form governments, the role of laws in government, the impact of government on daily life, and the ways the government protects the rights and liberty of American citizens. Students will engage in a read aloud of the text, What is Government, spread out over several lessons, emphasizing text features, vocabulary, central idea, and author’s purpose. In addition, the teacher will facilitate research, student presentations, expository writing, artwork, computer science, and identifying Florida symbols to help students solidify their interpretation as to why people form governments.