Preparing for the Meeting: Local Government Teaching and Learning Unit

Year 4 

AC9HS4K08 – the roles of local government and how members of the community use and contribute to local services 

AC9HS4S05 – draw conclusions based on analysis of information 

AC9HS4S06 – propose actions or responses to an issue or challenge that consider possible effects of actions 

AC9HS4S07 – present descriptions and explanations, using ideas from sources and relevant subject-specific terms 

Year 5

AC9HS5K06 – the key values and features of Australia’s democracy, including elections, and the roles and responsibilities of elected representatives 

AC9HS5K07 – how citizens (members of communities) with shared beliefs and values work together to achieve a civic goal 

AC9HS5S05 – develop evidence-based conclusions 

AC9HS5S06 – propose actions or responses to issues or challenges and use criteria to assess the possible effects 

AC9HS5S07 – present descriptions and explanations, drawing ideas, findings and viewpoints from sources, and using relevant terms and conventions 

Year 6

AC9HS6K07 – the roles and responsibilities of the 3 levels of government in Australia 

AC9HS6S05 – develop evidence-based conclusions 

AC9HS6S06 – propose actions or responses to issues or challenges and use criteria to assess the possible effects 

AC9HS6S07 – present descriptions and explanations, drawing ideas, findings and viewpoints from sources, and using relevant terms and conventions 

Local Government Teaching and Learning Unit PDF

Faces of local government poster  

How Does Local Government Work? video

Council meeting script template – Word Doc

Council meeting script template –  PDF

Council agenda template – Word Doc

Motion on notice worksheet – Word Doc

Motion on notice worksheet – PDF

Deputation submission worksheet – Word Doc

Deputation submission worksheet – PDF

Staff submission worksheet – Word Doc

Staff submission worksheet – PDF

Councillor’s notes worksheet – Word Doc

Councillor’s notes worksheet – PDF

Recap the roles within a council and how each person contributes using the Faces of local government poster.

If you haven’t yet assigned staff roles, do so now. The governance officer, as well as the managers of finance, infrastructure and environment, community services, planning and compliance and corporate, should be assigned to their roles.

Optional activity

Re-watch the How does local government work? video to get more familiar with the day-to-day running of local government and how decisions are made.

Class Discussion
Brainstorm topics that could be discussed in the upcoming meeting. Once you have several topics brainstormed, vote on which topic(s) the class would most like to discuss. We recommend picking two final topics for discussion in the meeting. Select one councillor to champion each topic. Community members should also pick one topic to focus on for their contributions.

Distribute templates and worksheets and explain where the class must be at the close of the lesson (all submissions in, the meeting agenda set, and everyone clear on what/how they will contribute).

Working individually or in relevant teams, students will now prepare for the meeting based on the chosen topics.

• The mayor meets with the community members to discuss their feelings on the meeting topics. They then spend time practising the Council meeting script to prepare for their role, chairing the meeting.
• The governance officer collates the agenda. The agenda should include the Motions on notice, Staff submissions and Deputation submissions that have been submitted by their classmates.
• All council members meet with the community members to discuss their feelings on the meeting topics and then individually prepare their arguments for discussion into the Councillor’s notes worksheet. The councillors championing the topics will also have to write a Motion on notice and submit it to the governance officer for inclusion in the agenda.
• Community members (and returning officers) take time to discuss their views and opinions with the councillors and mayor. They also write Deputation submission on their chosen topic and submit these to the governance officer for inclusion in the agenda.
• Staff spend time researching the logistics of the Motions on notice based on their area of expertise. They provide their recommendations to the governance officer within the Staff submission template and must be ready to present their findings in the meeting if they are called upon.

When the lesson is almost concluded, reconvene to discuss where the class is at ahead of the council meeting and to answer questions about how the following lesson will run. All submissions must now be provided to the governance officer who may need a small amount of additional time to include any last-minute submissions.

Before the next lesson, the meeting agenda should be printed and displayed in the room for students to access. You will also need to support the students in:

• printing their scripts, notes and speeches.
• setting up the council chamber (council staff’s role).
• preparing to record the meeting minutes. This could be done by providing a computer with the Minute taking document (governance officer’s role).