Why do we need laws and where do they come from?
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can explain why laws are needed and also where our laws come from.
Key learning points
- Laws ensure justice, fairness, safety and clarity, protecting rights and providing rules for society.
- Legislature creates laws through Parliament, with Bills going through stages before becoming Acts.
- The legislative process ensures laws reflect society's needs and values.
- Common law is created by judges in cases where no legislation exists, setting legal precedents.
- This allows the law to adapt to new issues quickly, without waiting for Parliament's action.
Keywords
Legislation - a law or a set of laws that have been passed by Parliament; the word is also used to describe the act of making a new law
Legislature - the lawmaking body of the state, i.e. Parliament in the UK
Common law - law made by the decisions of judges over the years
Precedent - a legal decision made by a judge that must be followed in future similar cases
Common misconception
Pupils may think that the Prime Minister and their government make the laws in the UK, single handidly.
Although the Government have mandate to drive their manifesto intentions, laws still pass through the whole of Parliament.
Teacher tip
The UK Parliament website has a Parliamentary Bills page where you can see all the Bills currently going through Parliament; this can be interesting to look at with pupils.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Depiction or discussion of sexual content
Depiction or discussion of serious crime
Supervision
Adult supervision required
Licence
Lesson video
Loading...
Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What is this describing? A law or a set of laws that have been passed by Parliament; the word is also used to describe the act of making a new law.
Q2.Which of the following correctly describes the three parts of Parliament?
Q3.Which of the following correctly describes the role of the police in law-making?
Q4.Match the word to its correct definition.
the age at which you can do something as defined by the law
the minimum age someone can be legally responsible for a crime
rules made by Parliament to order the way in which a society behaves
Q5.A is a person who helps create, debate and decide on new laws; in the UK, these are Members of Parliament and members of the House of Lords.
Q6.Which of the following is the correct end for this sentence? A democracy means rule by the ...
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Complete the sentence: Laws ensure , fairness, safety and clarity, protecting rights and providing rules for society.
Q2.Match the word to the correct definition.
the lawmaking body of the state, i.e. Parliament in the UK
law made by the decisions of judges over the years
legal decision made by a judge that must be followed in the future
Q3.Order the stages of the legislative process.
Q4.The legislative process ensures laws reflect the needs and values of .
Q5.Which of the following is true about how laws are made in the UK?
Q6.Match the legislation to the year it gained Royal Assent.
2010
1997
2006
2016
To help you plan your 11 citizenship lesson on: Why do we need laws and where do they come from?, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 11 citizenship lesson on: Why do we need laws and where do they come from?, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 4 citizenship lessons from the Does our legal system protect citizens' rights? unit, dive into the full secondary citizenship curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.