Unit Guide

Revolution, Evolution, Constitution

Maureen Greenly

How do we teach our students that there is a lesson to be learned from our past? I created this unit for my 7th Grade Social Studies class to show them how we can study historical events and compare and contrast them to today’s events in the world. The economic and political landscape has changed throughout the Middle East and North Africa and these shifts of power have become known as the Arab Spring. What may have started as a few isolated events has led to impacts that has shifted and reshaped this region.The purpose of this unit is to guide my students to identify how economic and political freedoms secure essential protections for individuals. By using the American Revolution and the Arab Spring to compare and contrast, I will be able to show my students how analyzing past events may help to secure a better standard of living for individuals and societies. The unit’s lessons follow a path from events that lead up to a country’s revolution, stages of a country’s evolution, and lastly toward a country writing a constitution. I want my students to be able to understand that effective citizens are committed to protecting rights for themselves, other citizens, and future generations and by upholding their civic responsibilities.