1. What FOrms of government are out there?
Exploring Governments Throughout the World

2. Where did the Founders get a model for government?
The Founders modeled our government based on the Roman Republic.
“Republic” comes from the latin “res publica” which means thing or property of the people.
So, a republic is a country that has a government in which power is held by the people.
WORD WALL WORD!
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3. WORD WALL WORD! What is a “Democracy”?
Democracy is literally defined as “rule of the people”
This means that a government that takes the form of a democracy is one in which all citizens can exercise some kind of political power
What are some examples of “political power” citizens can exercise?
Voting
Running for office
Contacting public officials
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4. What kinds of republican government are there?
Direct Democracy
Based on the definition of “democracy” how would you define a direct democracy?
Draw a picture to illustrate your definition of direct democracy!
Representative Democracy
What is a “representative”?
An elected person to act and speak on behalf of others
Based on the definition of “representative” and “democracy”, how you would define representative democracy?
Draw a picture to illustrate your definition of representative democracy!
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5. What is direct democracy?
Direct democracy is a government where the people have an individual voice in government.
Government
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6. It is what is best for the most amount of people…
What would you say…
The advantages are to direct democracy?
Every individual has a voice in government
Works well in small communities.
If we take a vote in the classroom, we are acting as a direct democracy.
The disadvantages are to direct democracy?
Too many voices at once
Only works in small communities
Not efficient
What do you mean?
WORD WALL WORD!
Government
What is the common good?
It is what is best for the most amount of people…
Individual becomes greater than the common good
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7. Common Good Common good – good of the community as a whole
When do we act in favor of the common good on a daily basis?
For example, if I were ordering pizza for the whole class, would I just order my favorite (and we will pretend my favorite is anchovies with pineapple)
or would I get something that the class as a whole would enjoy (like plain cheese or peperoni)?
Acting in favor of the common good puts the group before the individual.
Why is this a good thing?
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8. What is Representative Democracy?
Representative democracy is a system where individuals have a voice in government through elected representatives
Government
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9. What would you say… The disadvantages are to representative democracy?
The advantages are to representative democracy?
Representatives are elected to represent the common good instead of individual interests
Representatives make the system more efficient – it’s their job to know the laws and the system
People get a say in government through someone elected by the people
Works well in large areas with diverse populations
The disadvantages are to representative democracy?
Individuals must set aside their private interests and personal concerns for the sake of the whole – some people are not comfortable with this
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10. SPEED DATE! ONE MINUTE Everyone stand up.
Half of the class, go to one side of the room. The other side of the class, go to the other side.
Line up facing each other.
You will have 1 minute each. One side will speak, the other side will listen only. After one minute, the other side may speak. You must use the entire minute to explain your answer!
After each side has spoken, one line will shift down one person. The person on the end will go to the other end of the line.
ONE MINUTE
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11. Answer this question:
What do you think is more important: Individual interests or the common good?
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12. So we learned about representative governments….
What other kinds of governments are out there?
Direct Democracy
Representative Democracy
Communism
Monarchy
Oligarchy
Autocracy
Saudi
Arabia
North Korea
Vietnam
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13. As these governments are being discussed…
Draw a diagram of the government we are discussing.
Think about the definition and illustrate the definition in a way that makes sense to you.
Some examples would be the direct democracy and representative democracy diagrams:
Government
Government
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14. Communism
In a communist government, the government believes in owning all means of production and eliminating private property
This means that all things are owned by the government and shared by the people.
The intention of this system is to ensure that everyone has equal access and property
However, this system can become corrupt quickly with the government removing all rights of the people
Vietnam
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15. King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia
Monarchy
A monarchy has a king, queen, emperor or empress.
The ruling position can be passed on to the ruler’s heirs.
In some traditional monarchies, the monarch has absolute power, like in Saudi Arabia.
But a constitutional monarchy, like the United Kingdom, also has a democratic government that limits the monarch's control.
Image from the New York Post
King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia
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Queen Elizabeth II

16. Oligarchy
A government in which control is exercised by a small group of individuals whose authority generally is based on wealth or power
This power may not always be exercised openly. Oligarchs sometimes prefer to remain the “power behind the throne.”
A modern example of oligarchy
could be seen in South Africa during
the 20th century where oligarchy was
based on racism.
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17. Autocracy
A government ruled by a single leader who has unlimited power and denies peoples’ fundamental rights.
In a military dictatorship, the army is in control. One person is in charge and often takes over by force.
Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, Sadam Hussein were examples
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18. CONSTITUTIONALMONARCHY
In your group…
Compare your illustrations of different kinds of government
Using the large chart paper, create one diagram for each government as a group. Be sure to talk through the definitions and incorporate everyone’s ideas.
DO NOT write the name of the government on the chart paper.
Once finished, post your 4 diagrams on the wall by your table.
CONSTITUTIONALMONARCHY
DICTATORHIP
COMMUNISM
OLIGARCHY
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19. What government is that?
Once you have posted your government diagram:
Rotating clockwise, go to the posters posted by the other groups and write which government they were illustrating on the poster. Work as a group to make your guess.
Group 1
Group 2
Group 3
Group 4
Group 5
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20. What Do these Governments Look Like?

21. Communism
Government
Government
Government
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22. Constitutional Monarchy
Government
Constitutional Monarchy
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23. Oligarchy
Government
Government
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24. Autocracy
Government
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25. What else is there? Another type of government is anarchy.
Anarchy is when there is a complete breakdown of government and the people fall into a start of chaos. There is no organization or control.
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26. What else is there?
Socialism is an economic system and political theory
First, what is an economic system?
A system of production and consumption of goods and services of a community
This includes the wealth and resources of a nation
The government’s role (or absence of a role) in the regulation of business and production.
Socialism is an economic system which
Promotes collective or governmental ownership
Administration of the means of production and distribution of goods by government or collective groups
This results in no free, competitive, private businesses
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