Elementary Education Program

Department of Teacher Education & Learning Sciences

Design Document for Lesson Plan

Name: Sydney Neaves & Sara Savino

Grade Level: 4
Concept/Topic: Rights and Responsibilities of N.C. Citizens
Length of Lesson (in minutes): 30 Minutes

Learning Objectives:
● Students will be able to verbally differentiate the difference between a right and a
responsibility.
● Students will be able to sort and identify the rights and responsibilities within the North
Carolina constitution.

Under which standards from North Carolina Standard Course of Study (NC-SCOS)
● 4.C&G.2.2 Give examples of rights and responsibilities of citizens according to the North
Carolina Constitution.

Key Tasks/Activities:
● Explain that as citizens, we have certain responsibilities that we have to uphold because
we are given these rights.
● Teacher and class read specific rights of the North Carolina Constitution together. The
teacher highlights rights found in the constitution and gives an example of a
responsibility that goes with that right.
● For example, a right that could be highlighted is “Freedom of speech and of the press are
two of the great bulwarks of liberty and therefore shall never be restrained, but every
person shall be held responsible for their abuse.”
● A responsibility that a teacher could add to this would be “We are responsible for
listening to others’ opinions and allowing them to speak, even when we disagree with
them.”
● A right that could be highlighted is “The people have a right to the privilege of education,
and it is the duty of the State to guard and maintain that right.”
● A responsibility that a teacher could add to this would be “We are responsible to attend
school and learn.”
● Students are separated into groups. Different groups are given different excerpts from the
NC constitution.
● The teacher can write the sentence stem on the board “Because we have this right, we are
responsible to/for…”
● Students are instructed to find rights themselves within their excerpts and highlight them.
With each right they find, they should write a responsibility on a sticky note that goes
with that right.

What is your rationale for why you have selected these particular tasks/activities to meet your
learning objectives?
 Elementary Education Program
Department of Teacher Education & Learning Sciences

● Rationale: The reading of the North Carolina Constitution allows students to become
familiar with their rights and responsibilities as a North Carolina citizen. Where the
students will decide within their group what is a right and a responsibility and how to
differentiate between the two. Developing responsibility for selected rights within the
constitution.

Anticipating Students’ Responses: How do you anticipate that students will respond to your
planned activities/tasks? This does NOT mean their response effectively, but instead their
response academically (e.g., What prior knowledge or conceptions might they bring? How do
you think they will approach or solve the task(s)?). When necessary, please insert images of
your handwritten anticipated approaches/strategies. Be specific! Use your anticipated responses
to help you plan your questions in the lesson plan.
What Prior knowledge may they bring in?
(summarizing based on lesson plan)
● Anticipated student response is an unawareness of rights and responsibilities of N.C.
Citizens. With confusion differentiating between a right and a responsibility.
● Mixing up rights and responsibilities. Difficulty reading through the constitution and
making sense of it.
● We anticipate the students approaching the tasks with enthusiasm for learning as well as
asking questions to make sense of the objectives.

Responding to Students’ Responses: Describe how you will provide scaffolding for students
who are stuck, and describe how you will extend the thinking of students who have a firm grasp
on the target content/objectives.
● Students who are stuck
○ Have sentence stem on the board to scaffold writing of responsibilities; “Because
we have this right, we are responsible to/for…”.
○ Give students a reminder of what a right is, and how responsibilities stem from
rights. Giving example for right previously stated and a responsibility that goes
along with it.
○ Encourage group work and content centered discussion to get students back on
track.

● Students who have a firm grasp

○ Encourage students to think of multiple responsibilities that go with a right.
○ Give students another right and allow them to form another responsibility.
○ Ask students verbally what is the relationship between a right and a responsibility.
○ Allow students to pair with students who are struggling, allowing them to take on
the role of “teacher”.

Development of Practices among Students: Which disciplinary practices does your lesson aim
to develop? (e.g., “construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others”, “develop
and use models”) How do the task(s) develop the target practice(s)?
 Elementary Education Program
Department of Teacher Education & Learning Sciences

● The activity develops the theme of Government, the lesson connects to this theme by
allowing students to learn more about the N.C. Constitution. Developing their knowledge
as citizens to become aware and able to identify rights and responsibilities stated and not
stated within the constitution.
● This activity also allows students to construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning
of others during the card sort. Where with a partner the students will work together and
discuss where each picture of a right/responsibility goes and work together to defend
their own answer as well as agree/disagree with another student.

Assessment: Describe your assessment plan for the targeted learning objective(s). What
specific data/information will you use, and how will that data/information tell you that the
students have/have not met the objective?

● Card sort of examples of rights & responsibilities, where teachers will formatively assess
students by asking questions and prompting for explanations.
● Students will be given a deck of cards and paired into groups of 2. Where the students
will have the two headings of ‘Right’ and “Responsibility’ the students will then take the
other cards in their deck and determine if they are a right or a responsibility and place
each card under each heading. Working as a group to complete this and discussing with
each other and the teacher.
● The teacher should walk around the room and listen in to student talk, as well as ask
questions to assess students’ understanding of rights and responsibilities.

Vocabulary/Language Function: Define vocabulary that students will need to know in order to
access the content and goals of your lesson. Be precise and careful with your language. Please
attend to three types of vocabulary: *
● Right: rights are what every individual deserves so that we can live in a world that is fair
and just. “I have the right to speak without being interrupted”
● Responsibility: something that is your duty to do. It is something that affects other
people's lives.
“I have the responsibility not to interrupt or to allow anyone to be interrupted.”
● Constitution: a body of fundamental principles according to which a country, state, or
organization is governed.
● Citizen: Individual who lives in a certain area with certain rights and responsibilities
● Freedom- the right to act, speak and think as a person wants to
● Liberties- the right or power to act and choose freely
 Elementary Education Program
Department of Teacher Education & Learning Sciences

Classroom Management Plan: Describe your classroom management plan. Explain how you
will motivate students to engage in the lesson, how you will set and enforce expectations, and
how you will ensure that transitions are smooth and efficient.

● Expectations will be set at the beginning of the lesson when we are talking about rights
and how individuals have the right to talk without interruption. Where it will be
reinforced that students are to be listening and holding up their responsibility as a citizen.
● Students will be paired into groups of 2 for card sorts, these groups will be preplanned to
ensure students work efficiently and effectively.
● Students will be encouraged to be engaged throughout the lesson by teacher motivation
as well as sufficient scaffolding inserted when deemed necessary.
● Expectations will be enforced by telling students they can watch others do the card sort if
they do not follow the classroom rules and expectations.
● Students are expected to raise their hands when speaking out.
● Students are expected to talk quietly when working with a partner.
● Students are to disagree respectfully and justify their own opinions.

Link to Lesson Plan Document: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1lh4cBbiFEwa9bBxm5-

P2jjKfVg2KoFDssLVoU72QKKc/edit?usp=sharing

Card Sort Link:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1n5pDi1LbpiJlmw5j5tEgLwCCCzi8oZO1ukrixhYoY
HY/edit?usp=sharing

Constitution Excerpts Link

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1tTRziz5aLUoHOJuMqVozJeGdX0lhEqNhaWV43N
YFtrk/edit?usp=sharing