What's up everybody?

Welcome to Kid Civics, a place for kids who want to make a difference in the world.

I'm Cameron.

Today we're going to be learning about our constitution.

I think the Constitution is amazing.

And here's what our Constitution sets up.

Our government.

And in a democracy, the government is the place where citizens can come together to create the kind of world in which we want to live.

It's our meeting place where decisions are made that affect all of us in a good way, or in a bad way.

And the cool thing is, no matter how young or how old you are, you have a chance to influence those decisions.

All you have to do is learn how the rules work.

The Constitution is the ultimate rulebook.

So let's get started.

Here's three really cool things about the U.S.

Constitution.

First, the United States Constitution holds the record for being the oldest single text that governs an entire country in the world.

Second, the original constitution without amendment is around 4500 words.

That may sound like a lot, but actually it's one of the shortest governing texts in the world.

By comparison, India's constitution has over 100,000 words.

The constitution of the state where I live, Michigan is over 44,000 words.

So really, the U.S.

Constitution accomplishes a lot without using many words.

Third, even though the Constitution was written in 1787, it was based on ideas that were developed about 100 years before.

These ideas were called social contract theory, and they answered important questions like what is the purpose of government?

Why do the people need a government?

And what is the relationship between the government and its people?

The US Constitution and just questions like why do people need a government?

Doesn't the government just take our money and taxes and make rules that ruin our fun?

And wouldn't we be better off living without a government?

Let's think for a minute what that would look like.

If you think about your classroom as being a society, what would it look like without any rules?

It might sound like fun at first because everybody gets to do what they want.

But before you know it, the bullies are taking everyone else's lunches.

The class clown is standing on the bookshelf, pounding his chest like a gorilla.

And everyone is running around and screaming, total disaster, right?

So your class might want to come together and say, we need some rules so that we can all learn and grow together.

And so everyone gets to eat their own lunch.

We also need a government to create a peaceful, orderly society that protects what the Founding Fathers called natural rights.

The guy given rights that everyone is born with.

You have them just because you're a human being.

No one can take these rights away.

In fact, the very reason why we have a government is to protect these rights.

They include life, the right to live without fear of being killed.

Liberty.

The right to be free.

To do things like speak your mind and practice what religion you choose, and property the right to own things like your lunchbox and a Little Debbie or your mom packed you for lunch.

So you say the government is the people's idea.

And that's what's really special about the U.S.

Constitution.

It starts with three words.

We the people.

That means that it creates a government based on the consent of the government.

That's us.

It also means that the people give the government permission to create laws that then we must obey.

But unlike some other countries, we the people get to choose who makes those laws for us.

We do that by casting our vote during elections.

This makes us what the Founding Fathers called a republican government.

Not to be confused with the with Republican.

That's a different entirely.

In a Republican government, the people choose the representatives in the government to make decisions on their behalf.

And that, my friends, is why I think the Constitution is pretty great.

It gives us the power to create the kind of change in which we want to live.

Pretty cool Until next time, remember the words of the great Indian civil rights leader, Mahatma Gandhi and be the change you wish to see in the world.

See ya.