Strand: Civics and Government
Content Standard III: Students understand the ideals, rights, and responsibilities of citizenship and understand the content and history of the founding documents of the United States with particular emphasis on the United States and New Mexico constitutions and how governments function at local, state, tribal, and national levels. Students will:
5-8 Benchmark 3-A: demonstrate understanding of the structure, functions and powers of government (local, state, tribal and national):
Performance Standards
1. explain how the three branches of national government function and explain how they are defined in the United States constitution;
2. identify the fundamental ideals and principles of our republican form of government (e.g., inalienable rights such as “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” the rule of law, justice, equality under the law);
3. identify and describe the significance of American symbols, landmarks and essential documents (e.g., declaration of independence; United States constitution; bill of rights; the federalist papers; Washington, D.C.; liberty bell; Gettysburg address; statue of liberty; government to government accords; treaty of Guadalupe Hildago; Gadsden purchase);
4. compare and contrast the basic government sovereignty of local, state, tribal and national governments.
1. describe the concept of democracy as developed by the Greeks and compare the evolution of democracies throughout the world; and
2. describe the concept of republic as developed by the Romans and compare to other republican governments.
1. explain the structure and functions of New Mexico’s state government as expressed in the New Mexico constitution, to include:
a. roles and methods of initiative, referendum and recall processes;
b. function of multiple executive offices;
c. election process (e.g., primaries and general elections);
d. criminal justice system (e.g., juvenile justice);
2. explain the roles and relationships of different levels of the legislative process, to include:
a. structure of New Mexico legislative districts (e.g., number of districts, students’ legislative districts, representatives and senators of the students’ districts);
b. the structure of the New Mexico legislature and leaders of the legislature during the current session (e.g., bicameral, house of representatives and senate, speaker of the house of representatives, senate pro tem);
3. compare the structure and functions of the New Mexico legislature with that of the state’s tribal governments (e.g., pueblo Indian council; Navajo, Apache and Hopi nations).
1. explain the structure and functions of the national government as expressed in the United States constitution, and explain the powers granted to the three branches of government and those reserved to the people, states and tribes, to include:
a. the federal system (dividing sovereignty between the states and the federal government and their supporting bureaucracies);
b. the sovereignty of Native American tribes in relation to state and federal governments (and government to government relationships); bill of rights, amendments to constitution;
c. the primacy of individual liberty;
d. constitution designed to secure our liberty by both empowering and limiting central government;
e. struggles over the creation of the bill of rights and its ratification;
f. separation of powers through the development of differing branches;
g. John Marshall’s role in judicial review, including Marbury v. Madison;
2. identify and describe a citizen's fundamental constitutional rights, to include:
a. freedom of religion, expression, assembly and press;
b. right to a fair trial;
c. equal protection and due process;
3. describe the contributions of Native Americans in providing a model that was utilized in forming the United States government (Iroquois league);
4. explain and describe how water rights and energy issues cross state and national boundaries.