Explanation: The United States has a representative democracy, which means that citizens vote for people who will represent them in the government, making laws and decisions that reflect (or are the same as) what the citizens want. If Americans do no...
Explanation: Americans have many rites of passage (or important things that one does to move from one phase of ones life to another phase) when becoming adults. One rite of passage is getting a drivers license when they turn 16. Another rite of passa...
Explanation: Changing ones citizenship (or the country that one belongs to) is a very serious life decision. Sometimes people think they want to become U.S. citizens because they want to have the benefits (or the good things) that all Americans have,...
Explanation: I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Probably almost all Americans can recite (or say without readi...
Explanation: The United States is full of many different kinds of people with many different experiences, education, and beliefs. But no matter how different they are, they all have certain rights (or things that people can do) in common, meaning tha...
Explanation: The United States is a land of opportunity, which means that there are a lot of things that people can achieve (or do) if they want to. But some opportunities are reserved (or set aside) only for U.S. citizens. What can citizens do that...
Explanation: People who come to live in the United States as resident aliens (or people who can live and work in the United States but are not citizens) can do almost everything that American citizens can do, but there are two important differences....
Explanation: Voting is one of the important rights (or freedoms) that Americans have, but not everyone can vote. The Constitution, which is the most important legal document in the United States, has 27 amendments (or changes or additions to the Cons...
Explanation: There are 435 members in the House of Representatives. Can you imagine trying to make laws or to get any work done without a clear leader who can guide (or lead) all those people? The person who does this is called the Speaker of the Hou...
Explanation: Senators, representatives, and the president of the United States almost all have political affiliations (or membership in a political party), but not necessarily the same ones. Sometimes most of the members of Congress have the same pol...
Explanation: More than 300 million people live in the United States and they have many different opinions about how the government should be. If each of them voted independently (or alone, not paying attention to what other people are doing), then it...
Explanation: Each of the fifty states has a capital (or a city where government buildings are and important decisions are made) for its state government. But what about the federal (or national) government? Where is its capital? Our Founding Fathers...
Explanation: States are vested with (or are given) many powers and responsibilities, so they need to have strong leadership (or direction and management from one person or a small group of people). The leader of each state is called a governor. Each...
Explanation: Sometimes people who come to the United States from other countries are surprised by the differences among individual states. Things that are legal (or allowed by law) in one state may not be legal in another! Many of the things that are...
Explanation: When the 13 original states united (or came together) to make a new country, each of the states wanted to keep its powers and independence (or ability to make its own decisions). But the new federal (or national) government would also ne...
