Using a brainstormed list of health and safety issue areas, participants design and implement a survey. They poll a group of friends and family to determine what health and safety issues are of greatest concern in their community.
Students write to pen pals in a different community and discuss ideas related to a service project. For example, the pen pals may plan and monitor a canned-good donation project.
This lesson is a celebration to culminate this intergenerational project. The children make a final visit to the senior center or retirement home where all the participants gather for a snack and a farewell celebration. The children read aloud and give their published Living History Books to their senior friends. They debrief the entire project through journal entries.
Young people prepare for their visit to the retirement home by writing an autobiography. They work together to come up with questions to ask their senior friends.
Literature and primary documents help youth understand the role of the Constitution for the United States. They overview the three branches of government described in the first three articles and learn that government officials are serving with their time and talent for the common good. With the goal to look for traits of trustworthy officials, youth use the Internet to research their own state officials. They gather data and summarize what they find.
Benjamin Franklin's work was in service to making a better world, and he influenced the nonprofit sector. His book, Poor Richards Almanack, makes connections to the common good through personal virtue and actions. The participants choose quotes to create posters that communicate their commitment to the common good.
We look at the Society of Friends/Quakers and describe how this group promoted the common good. The Quakers pushed for religious freedom and freedom of choice, which are Core Democratic Values. As a group, they formed organizations to promote social change in the areas of slavery, prison conditions, poverty, Native American affairs and other social causes.
When the site is selected, they make a final plan for what plants to put into the garden based on soil, location, and availability. They make a plan to seek donations of plants or funds for their garden.