Unit 3: The Legislative Branch Inquiry Organizer

Guiding Questions: How does the structure of government influence the process of lawmaking and reflect the will of the people? 

Objectives: 

• Students will analyze the purpose and role of the legislature in the Constitution. 
• Students will explain the principle of consent of the governed and its relationship to representation. 
• Students will explain how the Senate and the House of Representatives are different in the way they represent people and how these differences affect the way they make decisions. 
• Students will explore the distinct constitutional responsibilities of the House and the Senate and how these differences affect the decisions representatives make. 
• Students will analyze key Supreme Court cases, including Baker v. Carr (1962) and Shaw v. Reno (1993), that have shaped redistricting and representation in Congress. 
• Students will analyze the purpose of bicameralism and how it might help with consensus building. 
• Students will explain the process and importance of consensus building in self-governance. 

Unit Introduction	Resources  Video introduction Launch Activity: Voting and Representation
What does it mean to be represented in government?	Resources  Video: The Nature of Representation Lesson: Gerrymandering, Representation, and Consent of the Governed  Lesson: The Challenges of Representation  Activity: Delegate or Trustee  Supplemental Resources Excerpts from Baron de Montesquieu’s The Spirit of the Laws (1748) Federalist #10
How do the enumerated and implied powers of Congress allow Congress to represent the will of the people in the lawmaking process?	Resources Essay: Congress: Enumerated & Implied Powers Primary Source: Article I, U.S. Constitution, 1787 Activity: Article I and Enumerated and Implied Powers Lesson Plan: How am I Represented? Supplemental Resources Lesson Plan: The Commerce Clause and the Expanding Powers of Congress Lesson Plan: The Constitutional Powers of Congress
How do the responsibilities of the House and Senate affect  the overall legislative process?	Resources  Video: How does the House of Representatives Work? Video: How does the Senate Work? Primary Source: Federalist #55 Primary Source: Federalist #62 Lesson Plan: Who is Your Representative?
How does Congress build consensus in making laws?	Resources Essay: Building Consensus in Congress    Video: Forging Consensus: Rules, Procedures, and Committees in the House and Senate  Activity: Congressional Consensus Building  Graphic Organizer: Consensus Building Case Studies  Supplemental Resources Infographic of the Process of Legislating  Organization Chart for a Congressional Office
How do the legislative powers of Congress act as a check and balance with the other branches?	Resources Essay: Checks and Balances Case Studies    Graphic Organizer: Checks and Balances Supplemental Resources  Primary Source: Philosophical Influences on the Founders  Lesson Plan: Woodrow Wilson and the Treaty of Versailles
Additional Resources	Congress and the Constitution
Assessments	Multiple Choice Questions   Version 1  AP  Version 2  non-AP  AP-style Free Response Question