Title: Middle East Government- Build your own classroom

Type: Compare & Contrast

Subject: Social Studies
Grade Range: 7th Grade
Description: A compare and contrast lesson in the form of a battle
Duration: 2, 50 minute periods
Essential Question: In what ways can the various government systems affect the way their
citizens live, in terms of their participation?
Question of the Day: In what government system is the power divided?
Evidence of Learning: objectives
The Student Should Know:
- The three different government systems within the Middle East are unitary, confederate,
and federal.
- Power is distributed in these government systems in three ways.
The Student Should Understand:
- Government systems are categorized based upon how they distribute the power.
The Student Should Be Able to Do:
1. Describe how the three government systems distribute power
2. Explain the level of citizen participation in the 3 government types
3. Understand & describe the 3 government systems charts.
4. Compare and contrast the three forms of government.
5. Describe Parliamentary and Presidential democracies.
Standards:
SS7CG4 The student will compare and contrast various forms of government.
a. Describe the ways government systems distribute power: unitary, confederation, and federal.
b. Explain how governments determine citizen participation: autocratic, oligarchic, and
democratic.
c. Describe the two predominant forms of democratic governments: Parliamentary and
Presidential.
TAG Standards:
ACS 1. The student uses written, spoken, and technological media to convey new learning or
challenge existing ideas.
ACS 8. The student participates in small group discussions to argue persuasively or reinforce
others good points.
ACS 10. The student supports and defends his/her own opinions while respecting the opinions of
others.
ARS 1. The student uses a variety of print and non-print resources to investigate a topic of
interest

CTPS 3. The student incorporates brainstorming and other idea-generating techniques (synaptic,
SCAMPER, etc.) to solve problems or create new products.
HOCTS 3. The student conducts comparisons using criteria.
Vocabulary: unitary, federal, confederation
Resources: , PowerPoint presentation, student devices (BYOT), build your own classroom
government sheet
Procedure:
Introduction:
1 The students will begin class with a small writing type prompt/assignment.
- Pick your favorite movie, book, video game, TV show, comic books, etc. with a
government structure present in the story line. (The Hunger Games, The Maze Runner,
Harry Potter, Divergent Series, Batman, etc.) Once youve picked what you are going to
decipher answer these questions
o What is the name of your book, movie, etc?
o Who rules the people?
o Who holds the power?
o Where does the power come from?
o How much say do the people have?
o How do citizens participate?
2

Students are then split into 3 government system groups based on ability and are assigned
Federal, Unitary, or Confederation. They are given page numbers in the CRCT book and
must find how their government system distributes power.

Students are to read for their information and complete their outline portion.

Students are then to pair and share with someone in their own specialty in order to
increase and share their information.

Have the students pair and share with someone they dont know in the other government
system. Have the students exchange information and complete their outline sheets
totally.

Students are then to return to their seats for a brief review to make sure every student is
on the same page with the information. It is given to them in PowerPoint form.

Students are then to break into groups of three to come up with similarities and
differences between the three.

Hold a class discussion of the similarities and differences in order to clarify the
information and to assess knowledge. Ask the students whether they agree with the

statements being made and why or why not. Ask the students why they chose the
similarities and differences they did. Why would they consider these to be the most
important ones? Ask them to justify their answers. Ask them why they think it is
important that they know this information. Why would it be important for a student to
know this information? Why would an adult need to know this information.
9

Present to them the real life examples of these different government systems:
o Federal: United States, UAE
o Unitary: Saudi Arabia
o Confederation: UN & OPEC

10 Complete the Kahoot quiz for the day with BYOT to see if the concept is grasped before
moving on to applying the information
11 Allow students time to complete the Build your own Government assignment. This
includes writing a persuasive paragraph as to why their government should be applied,
even if they have to play devils advocate.
12 Discuss the starter activity from the beginning of the period. Students will specifically
label their movie, book, etc. and base it off of the chart we have filled out in class. (2
days)
Assessment: Kahoot quiz of the day. Taken on the students BYOT. If the student does not have
access to BYOT an iPad or computer is provided for their participation.
https://create.kahoot.it/#quiz/66206d99-4fb0-493a-b89f-1aea1f401b5f
Differentiation: Think-pair-share activities will be based on ability. Student groupings will
vary throughout the lesson (whole group, small group, individual) and will be based on data (test
scores or learning inventory) or student choice. Build your own Government topics will be
assigned based on skill level and mastery of specific topics.
Extension: The BYOG Activity is divided into 3 tiers. Only the 1st tier is essential and the
following 2 tiers may be completed if time allows.
Remediation: Scaffolding and teacher support will be provided as needed for individual
students. Kahoot morning review session is offered the following morning for students who
score below on 80 on the Kahoot Quiz of the Day.
Helpful Technology:
https://create.kahoot.it/#quiz/66206d99-4fb0-493a-b89f-1aea1f401b5f