Download Create Your Own Country

Agenda for April 8, 2015
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Do not get your binders
Get into pairs
Create a Nation-State Project (Wed/Thursday)
Presentations will be on Friday and Monday
Instructions handout & Ppt. Presentation
Rest of class period plan and brainstorm
Create Your Own Nation-State
Example: The United States of
America
• Country’s name: The United States of America
• My partner and I chose this name because we
wanted our country to represent the unification
of fifty provinces in North America. We included
the word “united” in the title because we wanted
to show other countries that the people of our
nation will stand firm no matter what happens.
We included the word “America” in honor of the
Italian discoverer Amerigo Vespucci, who realized
that the Americas were not part of Asia but a
“new world” altogether.
United States of America Physical Map
*Five physical features*
United States of America Political Map
*Location of country will affect its climate/temperature*
Students must
decide how big
their country is
going to be and
the nations it will
border.
•Size
•Shape
•Location
•Neighboring
countries
• We wanted to place the capitals of our states near
natural resources as much as possible. Capitals such
as Denver, CO and Little Rock, AK are near rivers and
have access to waterways for trade between states.
Some of the states in our country are physically
constrained due to geographical features. States such
as Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas have borders based
on rivers such as the Rio Grande, Red and Mississippi
Rivers. In some cases, physical features can divide
states as is the case with the Appalachian Mountains
dividing West Virginia and Virginia. These geographical
features can make it difficult for people to move
around and interact with one another.
Flag of the United States of America
• The stars in our flag represent the fifty states that
make up our country. The thirteen stripes
represent the fact that country started out as
thirteen colonies over 200 years ago.
• The white stands for purity and innocence.
• The red stands for valor.
• And the blue stands for justice and freedom.
Population of the United States of America
• Total Population: 308,745,547*
• Level of Education
– Average highest – bachelor’s degree
• 33 percent of adult population over 25 have one
• Wealth
– Gross Domestic Product (GDP):16.77 trillion USD
(2013)**
– GDP Per Capita: 53,041.98 USD (2013)**
*U.S. Census (2010)
**World Bank (2015)
Population of the United States of America
(Cont.)
• Location
– 80.7% of people in urban areas (249,253,271)*
– 19.3 % of people in rural areas (59,492,276)*
• Languages Spoken
– Predominantly English
– Other languages include Spanish, Chinese and
Korean
*U.S. Census (2010)
Population of the United States of America
(Cont.)
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Cultural Traditions
 The 4th of July – Holiday that commemorates the day the Declaration of Independence was
signed by the Founding Fathers. Activities that take place during this day include:
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Popping Fireworks
Visiting family
Having cook-outs or barbeques
Visiting South Padre Island (South Texas)
 Thanksgiving – Holiday that centers around giving thanks for the year by eating a big meal with
family members. Foods eaten during Thanksgiving include:
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Turkey
Stuffing
Cranberry sauce
Mashed Potatoes
Tamales (South Texas)
Agenda for April 9, 2015
• Do not get your binders
• Take out Brainstorm sheet from yesterday & directions
• Get into pairs
• Create a Nation-State Project
(Government/Economy sections)
• Presentations will be on Friday and Monday
• Instructions handout & Ppt. Presentation
• Rest of class period plan and brainstorm
• Outside of class pairs should be working on ppt.
presentation or brochure
Government
• We decided that the United States should have a
representative democracy. People can have a say in
government that way.
• We wanted the United States to be a two-party system so
that the parties could balance each other. The two parties
we came up with are:
– The Republican Party – A conservative party that works to keep
the economy strong and provide more jobs for people.
– The Democratic Party – A more liberal party that believes
people should share their wealth and provide services
(healthcare, education, etc.) for each other through taxes.
Government (Cont.)
• The citizens of the United States vote for people
representatives or senators to represent them in
government.
– The senators and representatives work together in
Congress at Washington, D.C.
– They must run for re-election every 2 or 4 years.
• The people also vote for who will be their president,
which is the leader of the United States.
– He can only serve two terms in office
– A new president is elected by the people after his terms
are over
Protecting the Country
• The United States has had to deal with guerilla
warfare in recent years because of terrorist
organizations like Hezbollah and Al-Qaeda
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• In response, the U.S. needs to monitor these groups
and watch them to make sure that they cannot plan
anymore attacks on American soil.
Protecting the Country (Cont.)
Keeping Order
• The United States deals with crimes/felonies a
certain way. Here are a few:
– Public Indecency – a few months in jail and a fine
up to $2,000
– Public Intoxication – fine of up to $500
– Manslaughter – up to 20 years in prison and a fine
of up to $10,000
Helping Citizens
• Most of the services the government will provide will come
from tax money
– The government will fund public transportation for people who
don’t have cars
– The government will employ teachers to ensure the children of
its citizens are educated and able to work in society
– Healthcare programs like Medicare and Medicaid will be used to
give people who need medical attention but can’t afford access
to medical facilities
– Organizations will be established to monitor the quality of food
grown in the United States (FDA)
– Technologies like computers and digital phones will be made
available to citizens at venues such as public libraries or schools
to ensure that they remain in contact with one another
Making Laws
• The Five Freedoms of
the United States of
America
• The freedom of
speech
• The freedom of the
press
• The freedom of
religion
• The right to bear arms
• The right to a fair and
speedy trial
• The Three Forbidden
Things
• You cannot burn the
United States flag.
• You cannot have
dual-citizenship in
another country
aside from the U.S.
• You cannot get in the
way of police officers
trying to do their job
Economy
• The United States will have a free-market
economy so that businesses can make more
jobs for people.
• The money we will use in this country is called
a dollar.
Economy (Cont.)
• The United States will
focus on certain fields to
make money. These
industries are:
• Service Sector: 79% of
economy
• Manufacturing: 14% of
economy
• Construction: 4% of
economy
• Mining: 2% of economy
• Agriculture: 1% of
economy