Beginning the Week of March 2nd:
Unit 4: Loyalty, Voice, or Exit
Students explore the key concepts of loyalty, voice, and exit, natural rights, the common good, the social contract, and the right to monitor and speak out against your government. They explore the story of Prince Hall, an abolitionist community leader in Revolutionary Boston who used petitions as his primary tool in the fight against enslavement. Students participate in a simulation involving debates among a network of Black activists led by Hall. They also re-engage with the text of the Declaration of Independence and learn about Cicero, Aristotle, Locke, Rousseau, the Magna Carta, and the Great Law of Peace.
The unit is built around a Petition project. In the Petition Project, students write a petition drawing on foundational democratic ideas to argue for a change in their community.
Role
Petitioner
Time Frame
17 Lessons
What can I do when my values and my community’s actions are not aligned, and how can understanding foundational ideas help me?
How do I decide if, when, and how to engage in civic and social action?
How have old ideas inspired changemakers and how do they inspire me in my role as a changemaker?