4. The Civic Mirror
civicmirror.com
Who become
citizens that live in
a country that
looks like this
But we’ll come back
to this map shortly.
Civic Mirror Overview
5. The Civic Mirror
civicmirror.com
Civic Mirror’s Goals
The Civic Mirror’s real goals:
1. To teach you how our government, civic
system, and economy work by
experiencing them for yourself.
2. To teach you about life, the “real-world,”
and important “life-lessons,” and
3. To have lots of fun!
10. The Civic Mirror
civicmirror.com
Civic Mirror Overview
But …
Because there are not enough
goods and services to go around,
conflict arises as citizens
compete to provide for their
families.
11. The Civic Mirror
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Civic Mirror Overview
OK … so you might be thinking…
• How does this work?
• How do students live in a country?
• How do they get what they need?
• Does each student have his/her
own country, does everyone share
one?
12. The Civic Mirror
civicmirror.com
Civic Mirror Overview
Every Civic Mirror country
is a 36-Hex Map!
There exists both an
economy & a natural
environment.
You and your classmates
will live in this ONE
country.
15. The Civic Mirror
civicmirror.com
Civic Mirror Overview
Your country hex map will be
like a “civic mirror.”
As things happen in your
simulated nation, your hex
map will evolve to reflect
you and your classmates’
struggles, debates, and
individual ups and downs.
It will become a reference
point to help you relate to
and understand what goes
on in the real world.
16. The Civic Mirror
civicmirror.com
CIVIC MIRROR IN 6 RULES
1. Your family of seven needs food and
shelter to survive, and they want a bunch
of other things
1. Hexes provide what your family needs and
wants, and you and your fellow citizens
own them
17. The Civic Mirror
civicmirror.com
CIVIC MIRROR IN 6 RULES
3. Hexes must be powered with an energy
unit (E/I unit) before they can
produce/provide anything
4. You obtain E/I units by buying or trading
for them with the owner of the E/I hex
18. The Civic Mirror
civicmirror.com
CIVIC MIRROR IN 6 RULES
5. Once you have an E/I unit, you can power
your hex and sell or trade its wares to
your fellow citizens.
6. There is no teacher or god to tell you how
to do the above, so you must self-govern
the whole scenario using a simulated
version of your real country’s political,
economic, and civic system.
19. The Civic Mirror
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Civic Mirror Overview
And Don’t Forget !
Each of you will be
given a political,
economic, and/or
ideological
Hidden Agenda.
20. The Civic Mirror
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Civic Mirror Overview
The whole scenario is going to demand you
institute Law and Order.
Immediately you will be asking questions like…
o “Can he do that to me?”
o “Would I get in trouble if …?”
o “Why doesn’t somebody stop her? Or at least
say something!?”
o “Would I score points if taxes were raised?”
21. The Civic Mirror
civicmirror.com
Civic Mirror Overview
Now that we understand how the scenario works,
let’s learn how it sets up classroom events that
simulate the U.S. and/or Canadian system of
government, law, and economics.
The Civic Mirror is played in rounds, called
“Years.” And every country starts in the Year
2000.
Every Year is made up of 4 in-class events, called
“Seasons.”
And instructors decide how many “Seasons” are
played.
36. The Civic Mirror
civicmirror.com
REFLECTION &
CONNECTION
And then you’ll be
given opportunities to
reflect on and
“connect” what you’ve
learned and
experienced in
The Civic Mirror to
important issues and
events from the real
world!
