Overview_schoolprograms

Civic Learning in Charlotte For more information visit www.kidsvoting.org and watch for e-news updates

Providing the opportunity for K-12 civic education in Charlotte Kids Voting Mecklenburg connects classroom education with community civic learning opportunities help students in school (supporting K-12 goals in history, civics and language arts), build civic literacy and develop young people as effective citizens and leaders. Civics in Action: Programs and Resources Kids Voting Mecklenburg programs and resources effectively combine classroom education and community learning opportunities to maximize comprehension and impact. It’s the best way for students to develop civic literacy and build leadership skills. Classroom Resources Aligned to NC Standard Course of Study Themes center on government, citizenship, leadership Civic Education partners

o Kids Voting o Civic Action Project o Civic Education Consortium

o iCivics o Newspapers in Education o Others

Guides aligning civic education resources to local government resources, leaders, issues Local curriculum and resources about local/state/national government, leaders, civic

participation, current events, etc. Teacher support

Civic Learning Opportunities Youth Civics/Local Government Youth Voice/Civic Leadership Civic Learning Center – resources for civic learning opportunities through the year Kids Voting Election Ways to connect to local government, leaders and opportunities for civic participation Special events: Constitution Day, Election Day, MLK Day, President’s Day, State of the

Union, Black History Month, local government budgeting, 2012 Elections and Conventions, debates and more

Contact Amy Farrell, Executive Director Kids Voting Mecklenburg Email: [email protected] Phone: 704-343-6999 Web: www.kidsvoting.org Facebook: www.facebook.com/kidsvotingcharlotte

Kids Voting Mecklenburg 704-343-6999 [email protected]

Twitter: www.twitter.com/kidsvotingclt

Overview – 1

Web: www.kidsvoting.org Facebook: www.facebook.com/kidsvotingcharlotte

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.kidsvoting.org/

http://www.facebook.com/kidsvotingcharlotte

Education Impact

For more information visit www.kidsvoting.org

Kids Voting Mecklenburg educates K-12 students about government, leadership and citizenship through a combination of classroom education and community learning opportunities. Programs and resources help students in school (civics, history, reading, writing and more), build civic literacy and develop young people as effective citizens and leaders. Targets learning opportunities for high school students, especially 10th grade civics

through local and state government

Introduces civic concepts in grades K-8 through connections to reading, writing, math and social studies

o Helps reading comprehension of information and nonfiction, communication skills, writing opinions and more

o Links civic learning to grade-level focus – study of community, state, nation and global studies to enable students to connect real-world experiences with historic and global topics

Addresses the civic learning achievement gap

Develops 21st century learning skills, leadership and citizenship

Makes local government and civic learning relevant, accessible and meaningful

Links classroom learning with community experience to boost comprehension

Increases standards-based resources available to 5,000 teachers

Increases learning opportunities available to 140,000 students

Standards-based

K-8 social studies and language arts

Civics and Economics, US History, World History

Civic literacy: multidisciplinary, 21st century learning

Connects to all core subjects

Persuasion, argument

Gathering and evaluating information

Critical thinking

Making decisions

Comparing and contrasting information, drawing inferences and making conclusions

Connecting personal knowledge and local issues with national, global or historic events

Analyzing data

Solving problems

Communication, collaboration, technology skills



Education Impact – 1



Classroom Resources Overview For more information visit www.kidsvoting.org

Kids Voting Mecklenburg educates K-12 students about government, leadership and citizenship through a combination of classroom education and community learning opportunities. Programs and resources help students in school (civics, history, reading, writing and more), build civic literacy and develop young people as effective citizens and leaders. Classroom resources

Standards-based resources integrating the study of government, citizenship and leadership into different contexts

Useful tools that connect real-life experiences and current events with classroom education to increase student interest and comprehension

Easy to use, flexible and adaptable, plug into existing lesson plans, fit time requirements and curriculum goals

Organized in one place – you don’t have to search the web for content

Relevant, usable throughout the year

Includes

Resources and tools at www.kidsvoting.org: Classroom Resource Library, Civic Learning Center, civic education resource links, government info, videos, games, etc.

Curriculum from civic education partners

o Kids Voting USA o Civic Education Consortium o Civic Action Project

o iCivics o Newspaper in Education o Others

• Guides aligning civics resources to local government resources, leaders, issues Local and state government resources, editable presentations, easy-to-understand

information about policies, issues and decisions

Education guides for civic learning opportunities including Constitution Day, Election Day, MLK Day, President’s Day, State of the Union, Black History Month, local government budgeting, 2012 Elections and Conventions, Debates and more

Civic learning opportunities connecting students with local government

Parent and teacher information about government and civic issues

Kids Voting Mecklenburg

704-343-6999 [email protected] Twitter: www.twitter.com/kidsvotingclt

Classroom Resources – 1


How to access • E-newsletter and learning opportunity updates: sign up for list [email protected] • Available on website: www.kidsvoting.org • The Classroom Resource Library is in the Civic Education Section • The Civic Learning Center is accessible on the homepage and education section • Some PDF files are password-protected: civicliteracy



mailto:[email protected]


More information about Classroom Resources

Standards-based, easy-to-use lessons and resources from civic education partners

Kids Voting, Civic Ed Consortium, Civic Action Project, iCivics, Newspapers in Ed, others

Locally-developed tools and resources linked to Charlotte-Mecklenburg

Civic Learning Center

Accessible through www.kidsvoting.org

Highlights educational resources and learning opportunities (teachers, parents, students)

Quickly share info, digital content, highlight current events and learning opportunities

Classroom Resource Library

250+ lessons for elementary, middle and high school

Guides aligning civic learning to NC Standard Course of Study

K-8 Social Studies and Language Arts

High School World History, Civics & Economics and US History

Local government links, map, posters, editable presentations and other resources

Educator’s guides, ESL lessons, curriculum summaries and more

Classroom Resources and Learning Opportunities positively impact students

Elementary

Introduce students to civics concepts through reading, writing, math and social studies

Themes about civics, community, government, leadership, history

Aligned to NCSCOS

Increases learning opportunities tied to social studies, reading and writing

Middle

Continue civic learning process

Use local, state and national government and civics to compare, contrast and illustrate Global Studies in 6th and 7th grades and North Carolina study in 8th grade

History of democracy, citizenship, leadership, government at different levels

Strong linkages to language arts goals, especially reading information and public documents, critical thinking, evaluating information and writing

High

9th grade – World History foundations of democracy, comparative politics, civics

10th grade – Multiple Civics & Economics goals and objectives, especially state and local government, leadership, civic participation and responsibility, politics, law

11th grade – Foundations of US democracy, history of suffrage, politics, more



Classroom Resources – 2


Civic engagement and leadership opportunities, service-learning, more


Civics in Action: Learning Opportunities For more information visit www.kidsvoting.org and watch for e-news updates

Impact Combines classroom learning with real content and/or experiences The best way to build knowledge, skill and comprehension Learning opportunities narrow gaps among at-risk students

Elections and Voting: Kids Voting Election October and November Student mock election on local, state and national races; service-learning in polls

Voting available online, in polling places and at school

Additional opportunities for student council elections (remainder of year)

Government, Citizenship, Leadership: Civic Learning Opportunities

All year

Discussion questions, resources and education guides for current and special events

Constitution Day, Election Day, MLK Day, President’s Day, State of the Union, Black History Month, local government budgeting, 2012 Elections, Conventions, Debates, more

Opportunities to visit, learn about and interact with government and leaders

Local Government and Law: Youth Civics Program November-December/ February-April; Resources through year

Students learn about local government and visit government meetings, courts, media

Different opportunities

o 6-week evening program (high school students only)

o Instruction for students visiting government meetings for extra credit

o Government presentations and resources for the classroom or home study

o Being developed: videos and other online resources; students watch meetings on TV or online, participate in polls, text response and other ways to engage

Youth Voice and Civic Leadership September-May

Youth civic leadership council of high school students who identify and address school/community issues and advise local government leaders

Civic leadership mentoring

All high school students invited to participate

Being developed: opportunities to participate at school and via web



Learning Opportunities – 1


Being developed: video resources and curriculum for all grades

Building Civic Literacy from an Early Age For more information visit www.kidsvoting.org

Civic learning covers a range of topics involving government, law, civic participation and leadership. Here are a few examples of civic literacy integration at different grade levels. (NC Standard Course of Study for Social Studies, Language Arts, Core Standards and Essential Standards.) ELEMENTARY SCHOOL Kindergarten Understand the roles of good citizens; express an opinion and share it with others First Grade Know history and significance of national holidays, community services, why laws are needed, different kinds of leaders; reading and writing information; communication skills; connecting ideas and events Second Grade Understand the purpose of governments, and roles and responsibilities of citizens; government services, structures and leaders in a community; read and write information, express opinions clearly and persuasively; connect issues, events and ideas Third Grade Local government, leaders, issues, economy and history, economic development; connections between local, state and federal government; civic engagement, debate and student voice; citizenship, elections and voting; read, analyze and write information, communicate a position in writing and conversation Fourth Grade North Carolina government, laws, issues, economy, leaders and history; connections between local and state government; citizenship, democracy, rights and responsibilities; read, analyze and write information; analyze and connect historic events; read and process information from different sources; effectively participate in conversations; write opinion pieces that clearly state and reason a viewpoint Fifth Grade United States government, laws, issues, economy and leaders; connections between US and global governments and economies; democracy, citizenship, civic participation, communicating with officials, elections and voting; connect ideas, concepts and events in texts; read, analyze and write information; write reasoned opinion pieces; communicate a position and listen to others in a conversation; evaluate speaker point of view, bias

Kids Voting Mecklenburg Educational programs and resources build civic literacy from an early age to help students in school (core curriculum and graduation requirements) and develop young people as effective citizens and leaders.


Civic Literacy/Curriculum Standards – 1



MIDDLE SCHOOL Sixth Grade Read, analyze and summarize historic documents and information; understand political, social and economic significance of historic events and issues; compare historic and current events; understand the development of governments, political systems and political thought in different places; compare the rights and responsibilities of citizenship in different places Seventh Grade Read, analyze and summarize historic documents and information; connect and analyze global interactions and political, social and economic issues, events and conflicts; understand the development of governments and political thought in different places; compare rights and responsibilities for citizenship in different places; compare government and political leader and powers in different places Eighth Grade Read, analyze and summarize historic documents and information; read and evaluate information for fact, opinion and judgment; analyze and connect history, decision-making, conflict, compromise and negotiation in North Carolina and United States government; connect political, economic and social issues, events and conflicts in the US and NC; actions and impacts of leaders and citizens; North Carolina economics; local, state and national government history, leaders, issues, politics and history; rights and responsibilities of citizens in North Carolina; civic participation and leadership HIGH SCHOOL World History Read, analyze and assess historic documents and information; connect historic and current events, issues, policies and leaders in different places; understand the development of democracy and other forms of government Civics & Economics Read, analyze and understand public documents and information; read and evaluate for fact, opinion and judgment; Understand the founding principles of the United States; analyze and understand local, state and national government connections, structures, functions, rights and laws; connect policies and issues in local, state and national governments; understand the political process; understand the legal system, rights of citizens, laws and public policies; understand the roles and responsibilities of citizens, civic participation, civic engagement through debate, voice, voting; conflict and negotiation; economies, government budgets and taxes; civic leadership US History

Kids Voting Mecklenburg Educational programs and resources build civic literacy from an early age to help students in school (core curriculum and graduation requirements) and develop young people as effective citizens and leaders.


Civic Literacy/Curriculum Standards – 2


Read, analyze and assess historic documents and information; read and evaluate information for source, bias and point-of-view; connect historic and current perspectives and issues; analyze key political, economic and social events and issues during different periods of US history and connect to current events and issues; understand the development of the United States politically, socially and economically; understand how the three branches of government impact different levels of government, events and issues; understand the roles of citizens and leaders