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Tennessee and Its Government

Tennessee and Its Government. By: Sarah Jayne. Directions. Before you begin this WebQuest fill out the “Know” and “Want to Know” sections of your KWL chart. Write about things you believe the state government does and what the people that live in Tennessee have to do.

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Tennessee and Its Government

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  1. Tennessee and Its Government By: Sarah Jayne

  2. Directions • Before you begin this WebQuest fill out the “Know” and “Want to Know” sections of your KWL chart. Write about things you believe the state government does and what the people that live in Tennessee have to do. • After you finish the KWL chart begin reading the WebQuest. • Make sure to read each page carefully. • When you have finished reading a page click on the button that looks like this to go on to the next page. • If you need to go back click on the button that looks like this . • Make sure to click on every link on each page. Links are in all CAPITOLS and will be a different color than the other words. • If you have questions ask your partner to explain it to you, if you both need help raise your hand and wait for a teacher.

  3. What Does the Government Do? • There are many things in your town that the government owns and operates. If you go to a PUBLIC SCHOOL, the government pays the teachers, it builds city and county LIBRARIES, takes care of STATE PARKS, and even pays Police Officers. • The government is responsible for other things too; it checks the quality of the water that comes out of your faucets at home and runs the post office. • Are you a fan of the Tennessee Volunteers? The state of Tennessee owns and operates the University of Tennessee and even built the FOOTBALL STADIUM there. • Who do you think builds and takes care of STATE ROADS? The government that’s who.

  4. State Roads • This is a picture of a road before it was the governments job to take care of them. • Do you think it would be easy to drive on these roads? • A hundred years ago, when people still used horses and wagons to travel, most roads between cities were owned by people and not the government. • You had to pay a fee, called a toll, to use them. • These roads were not even paved! • Back then, some "highways" were hard to walk down, let alone drive along. • Today there are still toll roads in some states, but almost none in Tennessee.

  5. Public Schools • A hundred years ago a lot of kids didn’t go to school because there weren’t many public schools. • Today the government has made it so that every child in Tennessee can attend school for free. • University School is a public school. • Where do we get our money for books, computer, and other items we need?

  6. Libraries • A hundred years ago there were practically no libraries in Tennessee. • The first libraries were located in cities, and a lot of them were donated by rich people from other parts of the country. • Most of the libraries you use today were built in the last 30 years and paid for by government programs. • These are pictures of the Downtown Public Library in Nashville.

  7. State Parks

  8. UT Stadium • Neyland stadium at the University of Tennessee seats 104,079 people. • This stadium was built using taxes paid by people who live and shop in Tennessee.

  9. Where Does the Government Get Its Money? • So the government pays your teacher and buys your school desk, do you think the government has a lot of money? Well, it does, and it doesn't. Because every penny that the government spends has to be collected from people like you and me. The money that people like you and me pay to the government is called TAXES. • By the way, even you have paid taxes, but you might not have realized you did. When you buy a piece of candy or a stick of gum you have to pay taxes on it. The price you paid was actually a few cents higher than the price you saw when you picked it up at the store. The extra few cents is called sales tax.

  10. Taxes • Taxes pay for the government.. • No one can escape paying taxes. • Everyone who lives in the United States has to pay taxes. • The government sets tax rates, which tell how much we all have to pay in taxes. • The amount we each pay in taxes has to do with how much we earn, how much we spend, what we spend our money on, and how much property we own. • Someone who is rich, spends a lot of money and has lots of property pays higher taxes than someone who has less money and spends little.

  11. Branches of the State Government • Tennessee's system of government is explained in the state CONSTITUTION. • The state has three branches of government. • They are called the executive, the legislative, and the judicial, just like the U.S. government.

  12. Constitution • Do you know what a constitution is? It is a document that decides the basic beliefs and laws of a nation, state, or social group. It also sets the powers and duties of the government and guarantees certain rights to the people in it.

  13. How Does the Government Work? If a member of the Tennessee state senate wants public schools to have more buses and wants the state to pay for them he or she has to propose a law, also called a bill, to spend more of the state's tax money on buses for schools. If the bill gets passed by the house and senate it becomes a law.  The GOVERNORand the people who work for him will then enforce the law. That's the job of the executive branch. The governor will spend money to buy more buses. The problem is when people spend money other people are not always happy about it. Let's say, for instance, that some parts of the state complain that they aren't getting all the money that they are supposed to get under the new law. They might file a lawsuit in court to challenge the way the law is being enforced. That lawsuit might go all the way to the Tennessee Supreme Court, which might change the way all the new school bus money is being spent. This is a picture of the Capitol Building in Nashville.

  14. The Governor • PHIL BREDESEN is the governor of Tennessee. (Visit his page and read the section titled governor’s facts and the letter on the first page) • He was first elected in November 2002 and was re-elected in November 2006.

  15. How Do We Choose Our State Leaders? • Remember the election we had in November? That election was not only to choose a president but also to elect our state officials such as Senators, and State Representatives. • Voting is how we choose who is going to be in our state government. • When you turn 18 you can register to vote for state and U.S. officials. • Only Tennessee CITIZENS vote for Tennessee state officials. • Do you know if your parents vote? • Everyone feels differently about different ideas so everyone votes for different people and that’s okay.

  16. What Does it Mean to be a Citizen? What are some things good citizens do? • Vote • Jury duty: A jury is a group of citizens who are called to a courtroom to hear and decide a legal case. • Pay taxes • Respond to the call of duty: This means if your state or country needs you volunteer to help. • Help others • Obey laws • What does it mean to be “a good citizen?” • Being a good citizen carries many responsibilities. • To be a good citizen means to help others, do something good for the community, and do what our system of government expects and needs you to do. • Not everyone makes good choices but we can thank the people who are good citizens for our freedom.

  17. Show You Know • Name 3 things the government uses its money for. • ___________________________________________________________ • ___________________________________________________________ • ___________________________________________________________ • How does the state government get its money?___________________________________ • Name something you would pay taxes on. _______________________________________ • Name the three branches of government and tell what their job is. • ____________________________________________________________________________ • ____________________________________________________________________________ • ____________________________________________________________________________ • Who is our governor and how did he become our governor? ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ • If a state official wanted to pass a law what would they do first? _______________________________________________________________________ • Name two things good citizens do. • ______________________________________________________________________________ • ______________________________________________________________________________ • What do you think it means to be a good citizen? _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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