Constitution of Imagination: What do you Declare?

Materials:

• One large sheet of paper

• Clipart and/or magazines clippings

• Computer and printer (if using clipart)

• Scissors

• Glue Stick or tape

• Marker

Optional Materials:

• Decorating materials (such as stickers and glitter)

Instructions:

1. Students should think of an imaginary country. Their country can be in space, in the sea, in a fictional world, or wherever else they imagine. Students can create a name for this country and verbally brainstorm what the people in the country are like (see example of my brainstorming).

2. Then have the students imagine that they are the Founding Father (or Mother) of the country they created, and now they have to create a "Constitution of Imagination" for their people to live by.

3. The students will model their country's "Constitution of Imagination" after America's Constitution, so the student's Constitution should contain answers to the following questions: Where does the government get its power from? What are 3 rights of the people that can never be taken away? If the government takes away those 3 rights, what can the people do?

4. Have students verbally brainstorm imaginative ideas for how their country will answer the three questions. Their answers can be as silly as they want.

5. Students should look in magazines and/or online for clipart of photos representing their answers to the three questions listed in step 3.

6. Students can print and cut out these images. Ensure that all printed images are small enough to fit on a piece of large paper.

7. If desired, students can date and decorate the heading of their paper before gluing the images onto the paper (see example of the dated decorated heading).

8. Have the students glue or tape their images onto the paper (see example of the glued images)

9. Finally, students can sign their "Constitution of Imagination" with their best John Hancock signature. Then if students feel comfortable, they can present their Constitution and the rules they included.

Storytelling example:

1. My country is called Utopia; it is in the clouds. The people, Utopians, wear all white and can fly, so they blend into the clouds. Very few people know that Utopia exists.

2. In Utopia, the government gets its power from the sun. The people have the ability to make the sun shine; each time they do, the government gets a small amount of power.

3. Utopians also have the right to always eat ice cream, dance, and laugh. The government is not allowed to take away these three rights.

4. If the government takes away these three rights from the people, the Utopians will make it rain. When it rains, each raindrop will take away a small amount of power from the government.

Sample Photos: