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    The Three Branches of the U.S. Government

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    Subject: Civics; Social Studies

    Lesson Length: 40 - 45 mins

    Topic: How the U.S. Government Works

    Grade Level: 5

    Standards / Framework:

    Brief Description: Students will learn about the three branches of the U.S. government and be able to differentiate between them.

    Know Before You Start: This lesson works well as an introduction to the three branches of government. The lesson on “Checks and Balances” serves as a great companion to this activity. Terms to know: constitution and democracy.

    Hook:

    • Begin a discussion by asking: “Who is in charge of the United States government?”

    • Use this discussion as a springboard to introduce the three branches of government and why the nation’s founders decided on this method of governing. 

    • Read and discuss the sample comic.

      • Which branch of government is represented in the comic?

      • What are the duties of this branch of government?

    Activity:

    • Have students select one of the three branches of government.
    • Using the sample comic as a guide, have students demonstrate their knowledge of that branch in a two-panel comic.
    • The comic should include:
      • Which branch they selected.
      • Who leads this branch.
      • What the job of this branch of government is.

    Closure:

    • Use the "Jigsaw" method to group students.
    • Have students present their comics to the group to teach other group members about their branch of government.

    Differentiation:

    • Allow students to use the speech-to-text feature.
    • Allow students to work in pairs or groups as needed.
    • Allow students to use the voiceover feature to read their comics aloud.

    Resources:

    • Comic to print or display

    Suggested Content Packs:

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    Related Ideas

    Checks and Balances

    Students will learn how each branch of government plays a role in making sure another branch does not become too powerful using a system of checks and balances.