Subjects: U.S. Government, U.S. History

Grade Level(s): 7-12

Time Frame: 90 minutes

Objectives [What the student should know and be able to do at the end of the lesson]:

1.0 Overall: In this lesson, students will determine the qualifications for Congress and create want ads for the positions of senator and congressman.

Bloom's Taxonomy: CongressLink lesson plans are built around Bloom's taxonomy. The purpose of the taxonomy is to provide a coherent format for lessons and to make it easier for teachers to design them according to CongressLink's standards.

2.0 Knowledge: Students will need to know the answers to the following two essential questions:

(1) What is the structure of Congress and what are the qualifications for congressional membership?
 
(2) How does congressional membership differ between the House and the Senate?  Why?

3.0 Understanding: Students will evaluate how the principles of government assist or impede the functioning of the government.

4.0 Application: Students will think creatively, critically, and strategically to make effective decisions, solve problems, and achieve goals.

5.0 Analysis: Students will read Article 1 of the United States Constitution. 

6.0 Synthesis: After students read Article 1 of the United States Constitution, they will complete the attached chart entitled Comparing the House and Senate.

7.0 Evaluation: Students will use the information they collected to complete the attached Comparing the House and Senate chart and write a want ad for a congressman and senator.

Procedure/Sequence

Day 1:

Estimated Time: 45 minutes

Instructional Strategies:

Warm-up/Anticipatory Set: 5 minutes

Ask students, “What do you think the qualifications for congressional membership should be?”  List student responses on the board.  Explain that the framers of the Constitution felt that there should be very specific qualifications for members of Congress (Article I) and that today they will be doing research to find out what these qualifications are.  Explain that the list they have on the board will probably have many changes and that as they read, they should be thinking about why the framers included the things they did.

Development: 35 minutes

Instruct students to read Article I of the United States Constitution.  As they read, they are to complete the attached Comparing the House and Senate chart.

After students have had sufficient time to complete the chart, ask them to share the information as you fill in the chart on the overhead or board.

Explain that students will be using the information that they collected to write a want ad for a congressman and senator.  Take a few minutes to review this information using the attached Comparing the House and Senate chart displayed on the overhead or board.

Ask students to list the elements included in a want ad.  As students respond, list their answers on the overhead or board.  The list should include: salary, skills, location, job requirements, and job benefits.
Place a copy of the grading requirements on the overhead or board and review with the students.  (See attached Scoring Tool – Want Ads)

Pass out one sheet of white paper and a ruler to each student.  Instruct students to fold the paper in half and explain that the top portion will be used to advertise for a senator and the bottom portion will be used to advertise for a congressman.

Before students begin their final copies, they are to complete a rough draft on notebook paper and have another student review for accuracy.  Once the review process is complete, students may begin to work on their final copies.

Closure: 5 minutes

Ask students to look at their original responses to the question, “What do you think qualifications for Congress should be?”  Ask students if they notice any differences and to explain why they think the framers included some of the qualifications that they did.

Homework

Students will complete their want ads.  

Possible Extension: Students will re-write Article I of the Constitution to change the qualifications for Congress.

Materials:

Article I of the United States Constitution
Chart: Comparing the House and Senate (one per student or have them copy the master outline)
Plain white paper (one sheet per student)
Rulers (one per student)
Overhead, chalkboard, whiteboard
Scoring Tool: Want Ads for Senator and Congressman

National Standards Addressed by Lesson [based on National Standards for Civics and Government, Center for Civic Education, 1994. Citation based on section, subsection, standard of the document]:

Purposes and uses of the Constitution (I C-2)
The American Idea of Constitutional Government (II A-1)

Evaluation/Assessment:

Formative Assessment: The formative assessment will be the Comparing the House and Senate chart.

Summative Assessment: The summative assessment will be the completed want ads for a senator and congressman.

Author(s):
Lisa Wertz
Thomas Stone High School
Waldorf, MD