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DRAFT 1.0 • September 2026 • Audience: students, parents, school boards, educators, policymakers

Civic mechanics

Civics should teach students how public decisions actually work. Start with three questions: Who has authority? Who pays? How does the decision get made?

Who has authority?

Students should be able to identify whether a problem belongs to a city, township, county, school board, court, state agency, Legislature, governor, Tribal government, Congress, or another institution.

Who pays?

Students should understand property taxes, sales taxes, income taxes, fees, public budgets, borrowing, grants, and the difference between approving a program and paying for it.

How does the decision get made?

Students should know how elections, ordinances, statutes, court decisions, agency rules, school-board votes, budgets, agendas, public hearings, meetings, minutes, and public records fit together.

What students should be able to do

  • Read a city-council or school-board agenda and identify the decision being considered.
  • Explain which level of government has legal authority over a practical problem.
  • Trace how a proposed rule, ordinance, budget item, or law moves from proposal to decision.
  • Identify who pays for a public service and which tax, fee, or budget source supports it.
  • Distinguish the roles of judges, juries, prosecutors, attorneys, police, agencies, legislators, and elected executives.
  • Find a public notice, meeting packet, minutes, budget document, or public-records process.
  • Explain how to vote, contact an official, submit a comment, attend a meeting, or petition government without being required to support a particular cause.

Civic knowledge is not compelled political activity.

Students should study protest, organizing, litigation, elections, lobbying, negotiation, and reform as parts of history and civic life. The Minnesota Learning Project does not propose making participation in a political cause, or agreement with a prescribed political method, a condition of academic success.

Related: Grades 6–8 • Policy Standards • Compare