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6th grade · Social Studies · Unit 9 of 14

Taking Part

Speak up, check facts, decide together

What your child practices

Ways to take part before and after 18, volunteering and civil society, petitions and peaceful protest, deliberating about tensions in our democracy, and checking news for reliability.

Alabama Course of Study content standard: 6.18 · ways citizens take part and influence government

How we explain it

Children can open this short lesson before they practice.

  1. A stakeholder is anyone affected by an issue. A public hearing lets people speak to officials.
  2. Misinformation is false or misleading information. Check a claim before reposting it.
  3. A nonprofit works for a cause, not to earn profits for owners.

Example: Which shows good digital citizenship? False posts spread fast. Checking first stops misinformation. Answer: checking a claim before reposting it

Taking Part in Alabama

In the Alabama Course of Study, this is unit 9 of 14 in 6th grade Social Studies, after Rights & Amendments and before North America Before Contact.

Gradelings describes a child's practice on this unit as Beginning, Approaching, Meeting or Exceeding (Four practice steps). That reflects practice, not a report-card mark: the teacher decides the mark.

Source: Alabama State Department of Education (ALSDE)

Sample questions

A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.

  1. Question 1

    Why is jury service an important civic duty?

    • Trials depend on ordinary citizens judging the facts
    • Judges decide everything anyway
    • It's optional for everyone
    • It pays very well

  2. Question 2

    What is lateral reading?

    • Skimming headlines
    • Reading only one site
    • Reading sideways
    • Leaving a site to see what other sources say about it

  3. Question 3

    Why do people join groups like neighborhood associations?

    • To avoid neighbors
    • To pass federal laws
    • To vote twice
    • To work with others on local issues

  4. Question 4

    Which shows good digital citizenship?

    • Spamming officials
    • Checking a claim before reposting it
    • Sharing private information
    • Posting rumors

  5. Question 5

    What is the first thing to check about a viral post on a political issue?

    • Its colors
    • Its length
    • Who made it and whether reliable sources confirm it
    • How many likes it has

  6. Question 6

    An op-ed in a newspaper is…

    • An opinion piece
    • An advertisement only
    • A neutral news report
    • A government law

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