Unit 5 Lesson 2 United States Citizenship p. 208-211

What is a character trait?

• how a person is in a situation and what kind of person someone is

• how someone runs in the hallway and brushes their teeth

• words to describe where and when a person was born

What do you think would be some character traits of a grandmother?

• kind, generous, loving

• unhappy, selfish, uncaring

• rich, successful, owns expensive cars

What are some important rights that an American citizen has?

• freedom of speech, freedom to have meetings together, freedom to believe in God, freedom to vote

• freedom to carry any weapons, freedom to say or write anything that will hurt people, freedom to yell "fire!" in a crowded movie theater

• Naturalized American citizens don't have the same freedoms as native-born citizens

Because American citizens have rights, they also have responsibilities.

What are responsibilities?

• things a person is expected to do

• things a person doesn't have to do

• things a person can do to do well in school

One responsibility for American citizens is to learn about their government.

Why is learning about their government important?

• They should be able to learn about America's past mistakes and know how and why to vote.

• They should be able to learn how to hurt America's government and why voting isn't really important.

• Native-born American citizens must learn about how their government is important, but naturalized citizens don't have to do so.

American citizens should be involved in their communities.

What are some examples of this?

• volunteering to help others, obeying laws, speaking up if something is wrong

• learning how to speak different languages, learning how to drive a car, understanding how to buy a house

• doing what leaders tell them to do (following instructions), calling the police to report on their neighbors

What are taxes?

• money that people pay to the government for its support

• yellow cars that take people where they want to go

• money that people pay to schools to study and learn

What can citizens' taxes be used for?

• to pay for roads, traffic lights, police officers and firefighters, national defense (the army, navy, air force, etc.)

• to pay for teachers in private schools like WISE

• to pay for people's houses, trips to other countries, and private buildings for businesses