In this unit students explore the rights and responsibilities of citizenship. Through a lesson on the Bill of Rights, students learn how government affects their daily lives by identifying situations in which specific rights are involved. They also explore why rights have limits and the relationship between rights and responsibilities. In exploring the responsibilities of citizenship, students focus on the need for citizens to be informed about public issues. They deepen their understanding of public issues and the importance of citizen action in a democratic republic. They identify public policy issues facing citizens in the United States and then use sources to analyze information about a particular issue. In exploring the issue, they evaluate alternative resolutions and analyze how conflicts among core democratic values often lead people to want different resolutions to a public policy issue. Finally, students demonstrate competency in expressing their own opinions relative to a public issue in the United States and justify their opinions with a reasoned argument.