Register
Play & Learn
Teach
Register
Home > Resource Library > Congress in a Flash!
Lesson Plan
The Legislative Branch
Available in Spanish

Congress in a Flash!

6-8
One class period
Sign up to save to your favorites

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to...

  • Explain the structure and powers of the legislative branch of the U.S. federal government.
  • Describe the legislative process in the U.S. Congress.
  • Identify the legislative branch's role in the system of checks and balances/separation of powers.
  • Analyze a primary source (excerpts of Article I).
Sign up to assign Sign up to access

Overview

Need to teach the legislative branch in a hurry? This lesson is designed to cover the basics in a single class period. Students learn what Congress is, what the Constitution says about the legislative branch, and how a bill becomes law. They analyze some actual language from the Constitution, compare the House and the Senate, and simulate the lawmaking process by reconciling two versions of the same fictional bill.

iCivics en español! Student and class materials for this lesson are available in Spanish.

Access engaging resources with an iCivics account!

Create your free iCivics account and discover standards aligned lessons and games that meet all of your instructional needs. Our nonpartisan classroom resources engage students with complex concepts in ways they can understand and relate to.

Tags

Pedagogy Tags
EL/ML
Spanish
Tech Options
No Tech Required
Web browser
Integrations
Kami
Nearpod
PDF
Kahoot
State standards icon

View state standards alignment

Search State Standards

Use the Scope & Sequence to help you plan your iCivics classroom experience!

Whether you enjoy finding opportunities within a well-structured sequence of resources or prefer looking around for pieces and bits that can be jigsawed together, our Scope & Sequence documents are a perfect reference point for planning. Scope & Sequence documents are available for elementary, middle, and high school classrooms and list all of our resources in one place.

View the Scope & Sequence