Students learn about local government in Texas. First, they examine the function of counties and research their own county. Then they learn about types of municipalities and forms of city government. Next they read about special districts and give information about their own school district. Finally, they prepare a presentation for a third-grade class about local government in Texas.
Students read an introduction to local government in Texas, including examples of everyday services such as garbage collection, and consider how city and county governments affect daily life. They respond to a word cloud prompt by listing one or more services that their local government provides.
Teacher MovesPreview the experience, highlight the lesson objective, and connect local government to students’ lives. Review word cloud responses, affirm accurate examples of local services, and correct misconceptions (for example, clarifying that interstate highways, the Supreme Court, and national parks are not local government services). Organize students into small groups for the next three scenes.
Students examine a brief excerpt from the Texas Constitution and read background text explaining the role and historical origins of Texas counties and their elected officials. They read Local Government in the Texas Constitution to understand how the Constitution defines county government, then work in small groups to complete a graphic organizer summarizing county courts, taxes and revenue, organization, and officials. Students identify the county in which their school is located and use the Texas Counties Website to explore their county’s website, investigating county offices and services. Each group writes and posts a paragraph describing key areas of service provided by their county.
Teacher MovesSupport students in interpreting the constitutional language about counties and guide them in extracting main ideas for the graphic organizer. Ensure students correctly identify their school’s county and, if a county website is unavailable, direct them to a nearby or familiar county. Circulate as groups explore the county website, prompting them to notice different offices and services, and provide feedback on their paragraphs to reinforce accurate understanding of county functions.
Students view an image of a Texas city hall and read an explanation of incorporated and unincorporated communities, as well as the difference between home rule and general law cities. Working in small groups, they discuss these ideas and respond to two polls about whether their school is in a municipality or an unincorporated town and, if in a municipality, whether it is likely a home rule or general law city. Students then read about the council-manager and mayor-council forms of city government and, using four Texas city websites (Houston, San Antonio, Dallas, and Austin), determine which form of government each city uses. A group note taker records their answers and posts an explanation of how they identified each city’s form of government based on information from the websites.
Teacher MovesClarify the concepts of incorporation, home rule, and general law cities, and use poll results to check students’ understanding of where their school fits. Guide students in distinguishing between council-manager and mayor-council structures, prompting them to look for evidence such as the presence of a city manager or a strong mayor on each city’s website. If groups struggle to find the information, model how to navigate the Government or Organizational Chart sections of the sites and help students articulate clear explanations for their conclusions.
Students read about special districts as independent, single-purpose governmental units that often cross county or municipal boundaries, and learn that school districts are the most common type in Texas. In small groups, they contribute facts about their own school district to a shared table, avoiding repetition of previously listed facts. They then plan and create a presentation for a third-grade audience explaining the structure of local governments in Texas. The presentation must define local government; define county, municipality, and special districts; give examples of services and which body provides them; and include a real-life example of how their local district operates. Groups post a script, image, or link to their presentation (created in a format such as Prezi, a timeline tool, an online slide presentation, or another approved tool) to a discussion wall.
Teacher MovesSupport students in gathering accurate information about their school district by helping them answer questions such as who the superintendent and school board head are, how many middle schools exist, and whether there are charter schools. Remind groups to tailor their presentations to a third-grade audience with clear, simple explanations and concrete examples. Monitor posted presentations for accuracy and completeness, and, if time permits, invite groups to present their work to the class.
Students complete the exit quiz by answering all the questions.
Teacher MovesFacilitate the assessment and use student data to evaluate understanding, address misconceptions, and identify areas for growth.
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