SUBJECTS

Civics, American Government, U.S. History, Geography

 GRADE LEVEL

9-12

Students will become aware of certain characteristics of the membership (i.e., ethnicity, age, gender, and political party affiliation) of Congress and determine if Congress is representative of the public as a whole. Students will gain an understanding of the sociopolitical and sociological nature of Congress, an important aspect of "representation" and related to the unit What Every Student Should Know About Congress.

 LESSON PLAN

Class 1

Divide students into groups of three to research congressional representation. Students will access the web sites of their U.S. representative and two senators and write a resume for each to include personal and political background as well as committee assignments and other pertinent information. Students will read What Every Student Should Know About Congress.

Class 2

Student groups will research the ethnicity (white, black, other), gender, age, and political party affiliation of their Congress members and of the Congress members of two contiguous states. Students will determine the demographic characteristics of the general population of those states using the U.S. Census Bureau Web site. Each group will create a pie chart comparing and contrasting the characteristics of the Congress members with the general population of the areas they represent. Students can also visit the Profile of Congress to compare the total membership to the nation at large.

Class 3

Using the pie charts, students will compare and contrast the various characteristics of representation among the three states using bar graphs. In class discussion, students will compare and contrast the different states, making inferences about representation in Congress.

Class 4

Groups will formulate a plan of action to urge under-represented groups to run for congressional office. Groups will develop a two-minute television advertisement to encourage voters to support these candidates. Students will show their videos in class.

Class 5

After reflecting on the unit, students will write individual editorials expressing an opinion about whether Congress members should reflect the social and political makeup of the areas they represent. They could also decide if they want their Congress member has to be of the same social group they are in order to represent them.

 RESOURCES

 Students require access to the Internet to do research, primarily on CongressLink.

 Profile of Congress

 What Every Student Should Know About Congress

 U.S. Senate

 U.S. House

 U.S. Census Bureau

 CREDIT

Alene Bynum
Russelville High School
P.O. Box 1660
Russelville, AR 72811 (501) 968-3151

Jennifer Mantlo
Warren East High School
6867 Louisville Road
Bowling Green, KY 42101