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When Voters Write the Law Themselves

8th grade nonfiction passage about ballot initiatives and referendums: 279 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

8th grade nonfiction ballot initiatives and referendums 279 words

When Voters Write the Law Themselves

Most laws in the United States are written by elected lawmakers. In about half the states, however, voters have another option. They can use a process called a ballot initiative to propose a law or a change to the state constitution, and then decide on it themselves at the polls. In these states, ordinary people can act as lawmakers for a day.

The steps are usually demanding. First, the supporters write the exact wording of their proposal, and an official often reviews it. Then they collect signatures from registered voters. The number required is set by state law, and it is usually a percentage of the voters in a recent election. If enough valid signatures are verified, the proposal is placed on the ballot, and the voters of the whole state vote yes or no. If a majority says yes, it generally becomes law.

A related tool is the referendum, which is a vote on a law the legislature has already passed. In some states, voters can collect signatures to ask for such a vote, and in others the legislature itself sends a measure to the people. Either way, the voters get the final word.

Supporters say these tools give citizens a direct voice when lawmakers are slow to act. Critics warn that a long, complex ballot can be confusing, and that a well-funded campaign can sway the outcome. Both points are worth thinking about. There is no national ballot initiative, so this power exists only in states and in many cities and towns. If you ever see one on your ballot, reading the full text and the official voter guide is the best way to vote wisely.

Questions

  1. What is a ballot initiative? in the text

  2. What must the supporters of an initiative collect? in the text

  3. What is a referendum? in the text

  4. Is there a national ballot initiative? in the text

  5. Why do supporters like these tools? think about it

  6. Why does the passage suggest reading the full text and the voter guide? think about it

Words to know

initiative
a way for voters to propose a new law themselves
signatures
names that people write by hand to show they support something
referendum
a vote by the people on a law already passed
legislature
the group that makes the laws for a state or nation
critics
people who point out the problems with something
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One passage, three levels

The same topic and facts written three ways, so a mixed class can read and talk about one text. Each group’s sheet shows only a shape; the key says which is which.

● Easier · 276 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 5.7

Most laws in the United States are written by elected lawmakers. In about half the states, though, voters have another choice. They can use a process called a ballot initiative. With it, they can propose a law or a change to the state constitution. Then they decide on it themselves at the polls. In these states, ordinary people can act as lawmakers for a day.

The steps are usually hard. First, the supporters write the exact words of their plan. An official often reviews it. Then they collect signatures from registered voters. State law sets how many are needed. It is usually a percentage of the voters in a recent election. If enough valid signatures are checked, the plan goes on the ballot. Voters across the whole state vote yes or no. If a majority says yes, it generally becomes law.

A related tool is the referendum. It is a vote on a law the legislature has already passed. In some states, voters can collect signatures to ask for such a vote. In others, the legislature sends a measure to the people. Either way, the voters get the last word.

Supporters say these tools give citizens a direct voice when lawmakers are slow to act. Critics warn that a long, complex ballot can be confusing. They also say a campaign with lots of money can sway the result. Both points are worth thinking about. There is no national ballot initiative. This power exists only in states and in many cities and towns. If you see one on your ballot, read the full text and the official voter guide. That is the best way to vote wisely.

▲ This passage · 279 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 8.5

Most laws in the United States are written by elected lawmakers. In about half the states, however, voters have another option. They can use a process called a ballot initiative to propose a law or a change to the state constitution, and then decide on it themselves at the polls. In these states, ordinary people can act as lawmakers for a day.

The steps are usually demanding. First, the supporters write the exact wording of their proposal, and an official often reviews it. Then they collect signatures from registered voters. The number required is set by state law, and it is usually a percentage of the voters in a recent election. If enough valid signatures are verified, the proposal is placed on the ballot, and the voters of the whole state vote yes or no. If a majority says yes, it generally becomes law.

A related tool is the referendum, which is a vote on a law the legislature has already passed. In some states, voters can collect signatures to ask for such a vote, and in others the legislature itself sends a measure to the people. Either way, the voters get the final word.

Supporters say these tools give citizens a direct voice when lawmakers are slow to act. Critics warn that a long, complex ballot can be confusing, and that a well-funded campaign can sway the outcome. Both points are worth thinking about. There is no national ballot initiative, so this power exists only in states and in many cities and towns. If you ever see one on your ballot, reading the full text and the official voter guide is the best way to vote wisely.

■ Harder · 294 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 9.4

Most laws in the United States are drafted by elected lawmakers. In roughly half of the states, however, voters possess an additional option. They can use a process known as a ballot initiative to propose a law or an alteration to the state constitution, and then decide on it themselves at the polls. In these states, ordinary citizens are able to serve as lawmakers for a day.

The steps are usually quite demanding. First, the supporters write the exact wording of their proposal, which an official often reviews. Next, they must gather signatures from registered voters. The number required is established by state law, and it is typically a percentage of the voters who took part in a recent election. If enough valid signatures are verified, the proposal is placed on the ballot, and the voters of the entire state cast a yes or no vote. If a majority answers yes, the proposal generally becomes law.

A related instrument is the referendum, which is a vote on a law that the legislature has already passed. In some states, voters can collect signatures to request such a vote, while in others the legislature itself sends a measure to the people. In either case, the voters have the final word.

Supporters contend that these tools give citizens a direct voice when lawmakers are slow to act. Critics warn that a lengthy, complicated ballot can be confusing, and that a well-funded campaign can sway the outcome. Both concerns deserve serious thought. There is no national ballot initiative, so this power exists only in the states and in many cities and towns. If you ever encounter one on your own ballot, reading the complete text and the official voter guide is the surest way to vote wisely.

Download as one PDF

How to use it

  1. Press Read it big (or B) to put the text on the projector, or Full screen (F) to fill the whole screen.
  2. Ask the questions one at a time and use Show answer when the class has decided. A shows or hides every answer.
  3. Print student copy for the class, or Print with answers for yourself.

Ideas for class

  • Before reading, put initiative, signatures, referendum, legislature and critics on the board with their meanings from the Words to know section and have students predict what the text will be about.
  • Read it aloud once while students follow along, then have them reread it alone or with a partner. At a calm 100 words a minute it takes about 3 minutes to read aloud.
  • Use the Read it big button (or B) to put the text on the projector, and Show answer on one question at a time so the class commits to an answer first.
  • Question 5 asks the reader to infer. Ask students to point to the words in the passage that led them to their answer.
  • Ask students to write one question the passage did not answer, then look for the answer in a book or on a classroom screen.
  • Print the student copy for independent work and keep the answer-key copy for yourself.

Related

Questions

What reading level is "When Voters Write the Law Themselves"?

It was written for 8th grade. It has 279 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 8.5. That is a formula's estimate from sentence length and syllables, and it is not a Lexile or a guided reading level, so check it against your students.

What do the questions ask?

There are six. 4 ask for something the text says directly and 2 ask the reader to work something out from clues. Each has an answer in the key, and the answers are written as a teacher would accept them, not as the only possible wording.

How long does it take to read?

About 3 minutes read aloud at 100 words a minute. For a one-minute fluency check, paste it into the fluency timer and use the word count.

Can I print it?

Yes. Print student copy gives the passage, the questions with lines to write on, and the word meanings. Print with answers gives the same page with the answers filled in. Both are made in your browser.

Is this passage from a published book?

No. It was written for Peabody Teach, so there is no book to buy and no login to read it.

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