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Citizenship at key stages 1 and 2 (Year 3-6)
Unit 10: Local democracy for young citizens
Section 2: Representing you, me and us
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Objectives |
| Children should learn: |
- who represents people in the community and how the representatives are chosen
- about the parish, town, city or county council - its role and organisation
- about what councillors do, including how they make decisions, and about the role of the mayor
- about the role of MPs in representing local people in Parliament
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Activities |
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Outcomes |
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Children: |
- How are we represented in local government? Ask the children to look up 'electorate' in the dictionary and to discuss, in pairs, what they think it means. The pairs share their findings with the class.
- Ask the children who their local councillors are and who their local MP is. Tell the class about them and how they represent people, their different roles locally and nationally, and that everyone who is eligible can vote for who they think should represent them. From their knowledge and what they have investigated, the children make a class list of what they think local councillors do and what services the council provides. Introduce the idea of council tax as a way to pay for services. The children could research how the council tax is spent on the community's behalf.
- As a visitor exercise, invite a local parish or ward councillor to the school to answer children's questions about what councillors do and how the council is organised and managed, how they make decisions, and how young people can be involved.
- Discuss the role of the mayor, eg in ceremonies, the regalia and symbols of office. Is the local mayor elected? Refer to a story or a children's TV programme in which a mayor has a role. Ask the children to use local newspapers and other media to find out about the frequency of council meetings and about any decisions the council has made recently. Compare how the local council discusses issues and makes decisions with how this is done at school, eg by the class or school council. How are young people involved in the local council's decision-making?
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- describe some aspects of local democracy, referring to the role of the local council and elections
- know what councillors do, how they are chosen, and how they make decisions for and on behalf of the communities they represent
- know about council services and functions
- know who their local councillors are
- know that MPs represent people in Parliament and that this is where national issues are discussed and voted on
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Points to note |
- The activities in this section can be linked with unit 1 'Taking part - developing skills of communication and participation' and unit 8 'How do rules and laws affect me?'.
- Information on the electoral register, local councillors and MPs can be obtained from local post offices and libraries. Information on the 2001 general election and votes cast is on the BBC News Vote 2001 website. The local press is usually a good source of information on councillors and the mayor's official engagements.
- Many council offices can provide information. The local council's website will have useful information, eg on council tax and what it is spent on, that could be printed off in advance. Some council websites have a children's section; if they don't, the children could suggest what a children's section might include and how young people could be consulted on local decisions and policies.
- The local newspaper may be able to provide access to its picture library.
- Information on the use of visitors is in the Teacher's guide.
- Link with history: teaching about democracy and power at different times in the past will link with the activities in this section.
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This unit is divided into sections. Each section contains a sequence of
activities with related objectives and outcomes. You can view this unit by
moving through the sections or print/download the whole unit.
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