Skip to content
LessonPrint

What Rules Do Here

A 40-minute Kindergarten lesson on how rules work in a classroom and a school, and who they apply to.

What Rules Do Here is a free 40-minute Kindergarten to Grade 2 social studies lesson plan for Common Core standard D2.Civ.12.K-2 — explain what rules do in a classroom and a school. It is timed across 5 sections, gives the exact wording to use where the wording carries the mathematics, names 3 misconceptions with the teaching move that addresses each, and ends with an exit ticket and a printable worksheet with its answer key.

Grade:
Kindergarten to Grade 2
Length:
40 minutes
Standard:
D2.Civ.12.K-2

Kindergarten to Grade 2 · Civics

D2.Civ.12.K-2

Identify and explain how rules function in public (classroom and school) settings.

Objective

Students will be able to say who a rule applies to and what it makes possible.

Students are successful when they can

  • Says who the rule applies to.
  • Says what it makes possible.
  • Notices a rule that applies to adults too.

What you need

  • The class rules and the school rules
  • The printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan

The lesson

Warm-up — who does this rule apply to?

5 min
  1. Read three rules. For each, ask who has to follow it.
  2. At least one applies to adults as well.

Teach — a rule makes something possible

13 min
  1. Take 'one person speaks at a time'. Ask what it stops. Everybody talking.
  2. Then ask what it makes possible. Being heard.
  3. Say that the second answer is the better one — rules are for something, not only against something.
  4. Do 'share the blocks': it makes it possible for everybody to build.
  5. Find a rule the teacher follows too and say so.
“That is what it stops. Now tell me what it lets us do.”

Guided practice — stops and makes possible

12 min
  1. Pairs take four rules and write what each stops and what it makes possible.
  2. They mark which apply to adults as well.
  3. Take feedback on the hardest 'makes possible'.

Independent practice

8 min
  1. Students complete the why-that-rule page.
  2. Read each rule aloud.

Close

2 min
  1. Give one rule. Take what it makes possible.

What goes wrong, and why

Each of these is a reasoning error rather than carelessness. The fix addresses the reasoning.

Only says what a rule stops.

Why: Rules are usually announced as prohibitions.

Fix: Ask the second question every time. The 'makes possible' answer is the one that changes how rules feel.

Thinks rules are only for children.

Why: Children are who they are announced to.

Fix: Find one the adults follow. Fire drills work well.

Thinks a rule applies only where it is written.

Why: The sign is on one wall.

Fix: Ask whether the corridor rule stops at the door. Some rules travel and some do not.

If they are not there yet

  • Two rules rather than four.
  • Give the 'stops' and collect the 'makes possible'.

If they finish early

  • Find a rule that stops more than it makes possible.
  • Write a rule for a new part of the school.
  • Say what makes a rule easy to follow.

Exit ticket

One person speaks at a time. What does that rule make possible?

What to look for: Being heard, or something like it. Only naming what it stops means the second question needs asking each time.

Printable practice for D2.Civ.12.K-2

Free to print and copy, answer key included. Each sheet can generate a fresh set of problems for a retake.

Questions about What Rules Do Here

How long does the What Rules Do Here lesson take?

40 minutes, split across 5 timed sections: warm-up 5 min, teach 13 min, guided practice 12 min, independent practice 8 min, close 2 min. The minutes are stated per section and add up to the stated length, so the plan can be cut or extended at a section boundary rather than abandoned halfway.

Which standard does What Rules Do Here teach?

D2.Civ.12.K-2 — D2.Civ.12.K-2, Civics for Kindergarten to Grade 2: “Identify and explain how rules function in public (classroom and school) settings.” In plain terms, explain what rules do in a classroom and a school.

What do I need to teach this lesson?

The class rules and the school rules and the printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan. Everything listed is either ordinary classroom equipment or a free printable from this site — there is nothing to buy and nothing to prepare beyond photocopying.

What mistakes should I expect in this lesson?

Three, each a reasoning error rather than carelessness: only says what a rule stops; thinks rules are only for children and thinks a rule applies only where it is written. The plan gives the thinking behind each one and the teaching move that addresses the thinking rather than the symptom.

How do I know whether the lesson worked?

The exit ticket asks: “One person speaks at a time. What does that rule make possible?.” Being heard, or something like it. Only naming what it stops means the second question needs asking each time. That tells you whether the class needs a reteach or a thirty-second conversation before you plan tomorrow.

Is there a worksheet to go with What Rules Do Here?

Yes — 1 printable D2.Civ.12.K-2 worksheet, linked at the end of the plan and free like the rest of the site. Each one comes with an answer key and 25 versions, so the practice after the lesson can be a different paper on every desk.

Is What Rules Do Here free to use?

Yes. The plan, its printables and their answer keys are free to read, print and photocopy for your own class, with no account and no email capture. It was last reviewed on 7 September 2026. Please do not resell it or republish it as your own.

Last reviewed 2026-09-07. Aligned to D2.Civ.12.K-2 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.