Civics & Citizenship · Year 6

Active learning ideas

Making Rules: Home & Classroom

Active learning works because students need to experience rule-making firsthand to understand its purpose. When they debate, survey, and design rules in real contexts, the abstract concept becomes concrete and meaningful.

• ACARA Content Descriptions
• AC9HASS6K01

• 30–50 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 4 activities

Activity 01

• Role Play
• 45 min · Pairs

Role-Play: Home vs Classroom Rule Debates

Divide students into pairs to role-play a family meeting and a class council. One pair acts as parents/teachers proposing rules, the other as children/students negotiating changes. Groups present their final rules and explain stakeholder roles to the class.

Differentiate the processes for making rules in a home versus a classroom setting.

Facilitation Tip

During the role-play, assign clear roles so students practice advocating for rules from different perspectives, including child input.

What to look for

Pose the question: 'Imagine your family is making a new rule about bedtime. Who needs to be involved in this decision and why? What makes a rule fair for everyone?' Facilitate a class discussion, noting student participation and reasoning.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Social Awareness
• Self-Awareness

Activity 02

• Role Play
• 30 min · Individual

Survey Station: Rule Interviews

Students create five survey questions about home and school rules. They interview family members at home and teachers at school, then compile data on a class chart. Discuss patterns in who makes rules and why.

Analyze the importance of involving stakeholders in rule-making processes.

Facilitation Tip

At the survey station, model how to ask open-ended questions and record responses neutrally to avoid influencing answers.

What to look for

Provide students with a Venn diagram template. Ask them to fill it in by listing rules specific to home on one side, rules specific to the classroom on the other, and shared rules in the overlapping section. This checks their ability to compare rule-making contexts.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Social Awareness
• Self-Awareness

Activity 03

• Role Play
• 50 min · Small Groups

Group Challenge: Design Fair Rules

In small groups, students brainstorm rules for a fictional playground. They vote on proposals, justify choices for order and fairness, and present to the class for feedback. Revise based on peer input.

Justify the necessity of rules for maintaining order and fairness in small groups.

Facilitation Tip

In the group challenge, circulate and ask guiding questions like, 'What problem does this rule solve?' to push thinking beyond compliance.

What to look for

On an index card, have students write down one rule they think is important for the classroom. Below the rule, they must write one sentence explaining who makes classroom rules and one sentence explaining why that specific rule is necessary for order or fairness.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Social Awareness
• Self-Awareness

Activity 04

• Role Play
• 35 min · Whole Class

Whole Class: Rule Timeline Mapping

As a class, map a timeline of a rule's life cycle from proposal to enforcement. Students contribute sticky notes with examples from home or school, then analyze differences in processes.

Differentiate the processes for making rules in a home versus a classroom setting.

What to look for

Pose the question: 'Imagine your family is making a new rule about bedtime. Who needs to be involved in this decision and why? What makes a rule fair for everyone?' Facilitate a class discussion, noting student participation and reasoning.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Social Awareness
• Self-Awareness

A few notes on teaching this unit

Teachers should emphasize that rules are tools for group success, not just orders from authority. Avoid framing rules solely as teacher-driven policies. Research shows students grasp fairness better when they co-create norms, so balance adult guidance with student voice.

Successful learning looks like students listening to others, sharing their own ideas, and revising rules based on feedback. They should connect their experiences to fairness, safety, and cooperation without conflating home and school contexts.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• Rules are always made only by adults in charge.

  During Role-Play: Home vs Classroom Rule Debates, provide scripts where students propose rules and adults respond, highlighting moments when child ideas are incorporated.

• Rules exist just to punish bad behavior.

  During Group Challenge: Design Fair Rules, ask students to list benefits of each rule before finalizing it, shifting focus from punishment to positive outcomes.

• Home and school rules follow the exact same process.

  During Survey Station: Rule Interviews, have students compare interview notes about how rules are decided at home versus at school, using data to identify differences in process.

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Methods used in this brief

• Role Play