My work today was to create a project out of an existing lecture and reading unit so that it will afford me more time at the end of the year for my Cloud Institute project. I found after trying out the unit for the first time could could produce better results if I added more time to front load some of the vocabulary around sustainability and commons so that students have a better understanding of what these are. and therefore have a better understanding of the reasoning behind the project. By turning this unit into a jig saw style project I can add an additional week to my instruction on my Cloud Institute project entitled, Civics in Action.

Governments of the World - A Project

As we as a species have grown from small hunter-gatherer groups and transitioned into larger agrarian settlements, the people of the world’s societies found it necessary to create ways to organize their civilizations. They asked questions such as how should civilization be organized? What would an organizing organization look like? What laws should be in place to make the society function properly? Who should be incharge of this government?

“Government: the organization, machinery, or agency through which a political unit exercises authority and performs functions and which is usually classified according to the distribution of power within it.”

--Merriam-Webster

Types of Governments:

• Monarchy

• Dictatorship

• Democracy (Direct & Representative)

• Oligarchy (Junta)

• Theocracy

• Anarchy

The Task:

Identify and describe your assigned type of government and create a presentation that illustrates how this government operates.

The Process: 

Part 1: Identify and Research

1. First, you will be assigned a type of government.

2. Next,  research the following:.

   1. Provide a definition of this government

   2. Identify who is in control of this government

   3. Describe how this government works, including how decisions such as laws are made

   4. Describe the different types of governments that employ this type of government if there is more than one model

   5. Identify past and current countries that employ this type of government

   6. Identify the pros and cons of this government

   7. Based on your research, determine if this is the type of government you would like to live under - Make sure to include data and reasoning to back up your assertion.

Database for project use: (Talk to Michelle Lomis to get database links

Considerations: Think about the political, economic, cultural and social aspects. How may these impact what you are trying to achieve?

Sources:

• Each group member will need to find at least two unique sources. While I have listed the minimum number of sources needed for the project, the more details, facts, information, statistics, charts, etc. that you include, the better your argument will become.

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Part 2: Draft a Presentation Script

• Using your research, draft a script for your presentation

• Your script should include all the information in Step 2 of the Identify and Research stage and be in the same order presented above

• 
  

Part 3: Create a Presentation

• Your presentation should be a series of slides that should speak for themselves and is accompanied by an oral presentation in which each group member participates.

• Slides should be clear, clean, well organized and easily understood

• All required information needs to be presented - See above

• A bibliography in MLA8 format that will be added to your slide deck. Write down all your sources as you go so that you have them when you create your bibliography. 

  
  

Be Creative! 

In your presentation you must include all the information in Step 2 of the Identify and Research stage.

Part 4. Deliverables

• Share a copy of your presentation with the bibliography and script with me via MyBurkes

Part 5. Give Presentation

• Remember to speak slowly, clearly and with sufficient volume

• Be respectful to your cause and audience.  

• Include every member of your group in the presentation

• Presentations should last about 5-8 minutes 

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Due Date: Presentations will be held on XXXXX. All deliverables must be submitted prior to class that day.

8th Grade US History – Governments of the World - Evaluation Rubric 

**Rubric create but couldn't be copied onto this page

Score __________ out of 50 points