Who Decides What in Town?
A 40-minute Grade 2 lesson on which town roles hold which powers, and where each one stops.
Who Decides What in Town? is a free 40-minute Kindergarten to Grade 2 social studies lesson plan for Common Core standard D2.Civ.1.K-2 — say what the people in charge are supposed to do. 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.1.K-2
Kindergarten to Grade 2 · Civics
D2.Civ.1.K-2
Describe roles and responsibilities of people in authority.
Objective
Students will be able to say what a town role can decide and what it cannot.
Students are successful when they can
- Names what the role decides.
- Names something it cannot decide.
- Says who decides that instead.
What you need
- The council minutes and the school log
- Role cards
- The printable practice sheet linked at the end of this plan
The lesson
Warm-up — who closed the school?
5 min- Read the log entry for the flood. Ask who decided to close.
- The head teacher, not the council.
Teach — every power has an edge
13 min- Take the head teacher: can close the school, cannot raise the river wall.
- Take the council: can fund the wall, cannot decide a single school day.
- Say the Grade 2 addition: powers have edges, and knowing the edge tells you who to ask.
- Do the curator and the market inspector the same way.
- Match three problems to the right person.
“That is not theirs to decide. So whose is it?”
Guided practice — can and cannot
12 min- Pairs take six roles and name one thing each can and cannot decide.
- For each 'cannot' they name who can.
- Take feedback on the hardest.
Independent practice
8 min- Students complete the who-decides page.
- Read each role aloud.
Close
2 min- Name a role and the edge of its power.
What goes wrong, and why
Each of these is a reasoning error rather than carelessness. The fix addresses the reasoning.
Thinks the council decides everything in the town.
Why: It is the most obvious authority.
Fix: The head teacher closed the school. Powers are divided.
Names a power with no limit.
Why: Limits are invisible until tested.
Fix: Ask what that person cannot do. Every role has an answer.
Thinks a role's power comes from the person.
Why: The person is who they see.
Fix: A new clerk has the same powers. It belongs to the role.
If they are not there yet
- Three roles rather than six.
- Give the 'can' and collect the 'cannot'.
If they finish early
- Find a decision two roles share.
- Say what happens when two powers conflict.
- Say who checks whether a role is used well.
Exit ticket
Name one thing the head teacher can decide and one they cannot. Who decides that?
What to look for: A power and its edge with the right alternative. No limit named means the edge question needs asking.
Printable practice for D2.Civ.1.K-2
Free to print and copy, answer key included. Each sheet can generate a fresh set of problems for a retake.
- Who Decides What in Town?Draw a line from each person to what they decide.
Questions about Who Decides What in Town?
How long does the Who Decides What in Town? 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 Who Decides What in Town? teach?
D2.Civ.1.K-2 — D2.Civ.1.K-2, Civics for Kindergarten to Grade 2: “Describe roles and responsibilities of people in authority.” In plain terms, say what the people in charge are supposed to do.
What do I need to teach this lesson?
The council minutes and the school log, role cards 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: thinks the council decides everything in the town; names a power with no limit and thinks a role's power comes from the person. 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: “Name one thing the head teacher can decide and one they cannot. Who decides that?.” A power and its edge with the right alternative. No limit named means the edge question needs asking. 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 Who Decides What in Town??
Yes — 1 printable D2.Civ.1.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 Who Decides What in Town? 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.1.K-2 of the C3 Framework for Social Studies State Standards.