HSS Framework for Grade 12, Ch. 17, "Principles of American Democracy" pp. 439-442
1998 History-Social Science Content Standards, grade 12 pp. 54-59
Why does the Constitution both grant power and take it away?
What is the most powerful branch of government?
Why is it so hard and take so long for government to act?
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Inquiry: How did the Constitution structure the government?
The Three Branches of Government as Established by the U.S. Constitution: Students can construct a pie chart of the major responsibilities designated to the legislative branch of government, filling in the other two branches as they get to them .
Content: Discuss Article I of the Constitution as it relates to the legislative branch, including eligibility for office and lengths of terms of representatives and senators; election to office; the roles of the House and Senate in impeachment proceedings; the role of the vice president; the enumerated legislative powers; and the process by which a bill becomes a law (12.4.1).
Inquiry:
What can Congress do? Why is it so hard to get a law passed? Who gets elected to Congress, and who does not? Who has power in Congress? Besides members of the House and Senate, who else can affect the legislative process? Which house of Congress is the most democratic? Which house is the most effective? How can individual citizens actually participate in the legislative process? How, when and why does the legislature check the power of the executive? How do the differences/roles/functions in the Senate and House of Representatives impact access to the political process? How does the legislative process and legislative oversight illustrate the principle of checks and balances and separation of powers within American government?
Literacy:
Legislative Branch, Lesson: “How does the legislative process and legislative oversight illustrate the principle of checks and balances and separation of powers within American government?”
Legislative Branch, Lesson: “How do senators and congressmen get selected?”
Outcomes:
Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of primary and secondary sources, connecting insights gained from specific details to an understanding of the text as a whole.
Determine the central ideas or information of a primary or secondary source; provide an accurate summary that makes clear the relationships among the key details and ideas.
Evaluate various explanations for actions or events and determine which explanation best accords with textual evidence, acknowledging where the text leaves matters uncertain.
Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including analyzing how an author uses and refines the meaning of a key term over the course of a text (e.g., how Madison defines faction in Federalist No. 10).
Evaluate authors’ differing points of view on the same historical event or issue by assessing the authors’ claims, reasoning, and evidence.
Integrate and evaluate multiple sources of information presented in diverse formats and media (e.g., visually, quantitatively, as well as in words) in order to address a question or solve a problem.
Integrate information from diverse sources, both primary and secondary, into a coherent understanding of an idea or event, noting discrepancies among sources.
Content: Executive Branch
Inquiry: How has the role of the presidency expanded? What are the factors that seem to help presidents win election? How does the president interact with the other branches of government, and how has that changed over time?
Executive Branch, Lesson: “What are Executive Orders? How do they differ from laws passed by Congress?”
Content: Judiciary Branch
Inquiry: How are Supreme Court justices selected? Why do they have unlimited terms? Is an unelected Supreme Court really democratic?
Judicial Branch, Source Set (Citizens United): “What do the terms liberty and equality mean and how do they relate to each other? Are corporations individuals with the same rights as live citizens?”
Judicial Branch (California), Source Set: “What kind of courts do we have in California?”
Select a proposed amendment that students believe will make the Constitution more just and contact an individual or organization promoting that amendment to see how the students can participate. Students study how individual citizens can inform, gain access to, and influence the legislative policy-making process.
Students conduct research, evaluate resources, and balance predicted outcomes and consequences to create position papers on proposed legislation, present oral arguments in favor of or in opposition to specific federal legislation, write letters or e-mails stating and supporting positions on pending legislation, engage in a simulated congressional hearing or session, or design campaigns for virtual candidates for office.
Triads study the executive branch by constructing a multimedia museum exhibit on presidential powers, each group have a different president to research. Students provide oral presentations about their research at a special open house for parents and school leaders, which are recorded for inclusion as an online museum exhibit.
Students can examine controversies over the selection and confirmation of Supreme Court justices and federal judges and the nature of an independent judiciary through structured classroom discussions and deliberations.