Unitary

In a unitary form of government, a central governmentcontrols ALL levels of government in the country. This single governmentassigns powerstate governments. For example, a leader might have the power to choosethe mayor of a town. There are many countries in the world organized in this way. Great Britain, France, and Cuba are examples of countries with unitary systems. Unitary government is not the structure of the USA (it’s federal), but some states like Georgia have a unitary government. The state has the power to create cities and counties or to break up counties and dissolve county and city governments, if it so desires.

FEATURES OF A UNITARY GOVERNMENT
Circle the correct features of a unitary government in the box below. Some features are incorrect.
Central government assigns powers to states
/ Government leaders choose a mayor of a town
Afghanistan / States control themselves
United States
The people of a state choose their governor / Saudi Arabia

Summarize unitary government:

In unitary government, the ______has all the power.

Unitaryreminds me of...

My picture shows unitary government because...

______

Name one positive thing and one negative thing about unitary:

One positive thing about unitary is:

One negative thing about unitary is:

Confederation

Some countries might agree that they would be better able to solve problems or provide for their people if they work together. They might sign a treaty to agree on certain things. Such a group would be called a confederation government. Membership in a confederation is voluntary. A country can decide to leave at any time. Confederations are not commonly found among governments of the 21st century. This is because there are several problems with them. They often have little power, because all the members must agree to decisions. Therefore, the central government is usually weak. The USA tried this type of government under the Articles of Confederation (1777-87), but the weak central government became a problem because Congress had no power to enforce laws. Later, the Constitution helped provide a federal government.

FEATURES OF A CONFEDERATION GOVERNMENT
Fill in the blanks in the cloze reading paragraph.
If two or more countries wanted to work ______, they would form a confederation. Becoming a member in a confederation is ______. If members want to leave, they can. In a confederation, laws are only passed when most or all of the ______agree on them. The ______government of a confederation is usually not very strong. In the 18th century, the ______was a confederation before it was federal.
voluntary USA members central together

Summarize confederation government:

In confederation government, different ______work ______.

Confederationreminds me of...

My picture shows confederation government because...

______

Name one positive thing and one negative thing about a confederation:

One positive thing about confederation is:

One negative thing about confederation is:

Federalism

In a federal form of government, power is divided between the central government and states. A constitution describes the rights, responsibilities, and duties of the central government and states. In this system, the central government does not have the ability to tell the states what to do. Many countries use this form of government to distribute power. Countries such as the USA, Mexico, Canada and Brazil are examples of countries with federal systems. In the USA, the centralgovernment has powers that the state does not, such as the power to declare war and sign treaties with other countries. States do have some powers that the central government does not. For example, the central government does NOT have the power to choose the governor of Georgia. Power to do this is held by the state, Georgia.

Fill in the chart below by referring to the text above.

FEATURES OF A FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
Power shared by… / states
Constitution includes… / rights / duties
Central government
allowed to… / sign treaties with other nations
Central government NOT allowed to…
State government allowed to…
Examples of federal governments / Brazil / United States

Summarize federal government:

In federalism, power is ______between ______and ______.

Federalismreminds me of...

My picture shows federal government because...

______

Name one positive thing and one negative thing about federalism:

One positive thing about federalism is:

One negative thing about federalism is: