Democracy and Its Influence: Origins


Democracy and Its Influence: Origins
Students consider what they know about democracy and explore the historical origins in Greece. They consider the influence of democracy in the United States and France. Then they describe limited governments and explain the reasons for limiting governmental control. Finally, based on a Churchill quote, they explain whether democracy is the best form of government.

This learning experience is designed for device-enabled classrooms. The teacher guides the lesson, and students use embedded resources, social media skills, and critical thinking skills to actively participate. To get access to a free version of the complete lesson, sign up for an exploros account.

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Teacher Pack

The Pack contains associated resources for the learning experience, typically in the form of articles and videos. There is a teacher Pack (with only teacher information) and a student Pack (which contains only student information). As a teacher, you can toggle between both to see everything.

Here are the teacher pack items for Democracy and Its Influence: Origins:

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In this experience, students consider what they know about democracy and explore the historical origins in Greece. They look at the influence of democracy in the United States and France. Then they describe limited governments and explain the reasons for limiting governmental control. Finally, based on a Churchill quote, they explain whether democracy is the best form of government.

The student pack includes an optional video, What did democracy really mean in Athens? 

Objectives:

  • Identify the origins of democratic forms of government.
  • Describe the influence of democracy on various societies.
  • Describe constitutional (limited) government.
  • Identify reasons for limiting power of government.


You have probably heard the word democracy many times in your lifetime. But where did this form of government come from—and how has that form of government played a role in history? That’s what you’ll explore in this experience.

 

Objectives:

  • Identify the origins of democratic forms of government.
  • Describe the influence of democracy on various societies.
  • Describe constitutional (limited) government.
  • Identify reasons for limiting power of government.


putting a vote into a ballot box

What words or phrases do you think of when you hear the word democracy? To list more than one idea, separate them with a comma, like this: hour, week.

Post your answer

As a class, without your teacher telling you anything, see if you can come up with a definition or a list of features of a democracy. 


Write your definition or features below.



Give students a few minutes to brainstorm and then discuss their definitions or lists. Tell students to keep those in mind as you explore the origins and influence of democracy.


When everyone is ready to continue, unlock the next scene.


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