Executive Branch, Day 5 - Class Recap

The Washington Monument, in Washington, D.C. Named after our first President, George Washington! Photo taken in 2010.

Hi everyone,

I enjoyed playing the role of the President today and hearing all of the various different policy proposals for the federal government! Next class, we will finish up with the unit and take the Executive Branch test. Here's what happened today in class:

Learning Targets Addressed:
Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different branches of U.S. government.
Critical Thinking and Reasoning LT 3: I can apply understanding of ideas and concepts to a new context or problem.
Communication LT 5: I can communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing.
Research LT 5: I can effectively conduct and apply research.

Soundtrack: "If You're Out There" by John Legend. Selected for today because it was a song that President Obama used to campaign, and we are in the Executive Branch unit. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 4/26/17:
News Brief – Kento
Cabinet Simulation
Study Guide
Executive Review

Homework: 1) Read the blog. Congratulations for doing this!

2) Study for the executive branch test:

Review the key terms and readings on the Study Guide. For instance, The Presidency reading will help. Also, study the cabinet descriptions reading. You might want to download the pdf and then rotate the page (because it is in landscape format). Or, just turn your head, I guess)!

A test question you will see (thanks for checking the blog!) is: All of the following are duties of the President EXCEPT:

A) Receive Ambassadors. B) Judge the Supreme Court. C) Give a State of the Union Address. D) Ensure that laws are faithfully executed.

If you want to, guess in the comments and I will tell you if you are right!

Next news brief: Alyssa Q.

News Brief: Kento had the news brief today and selected an article about this story to talk about: NYTimes.com - North Korea Is Said to Detain Another U.S. Citizen. We discussed this story for a bit, including ongoing tensions in the Korean peninsula and what the United States might be trying to do.

Alyssa Q. was selected to do the next news brief.

We also checked in about the weekend and what everyone was up to, before moving on.

Cabinet Simulation: I really enjoyed listening to everyone talk about their departments, problems, and possible solutions! Although it appears many students did not have their packets or papers done (please turn them in to me as soon as possible), I was pleased to hear some knowledge and response to my questions as the President! Here are the questions students were answering as a part of this activity:

1) What is your department? What responsibilities does it have?
2) What is a problem your department is facing?
3) What are your possible solutions to the problem?
4) How much money will it cost?

Here are the notes that I took during the presentation. If a name is in bold, that was because the other partner either wasn't in class, or did not share at all.

Google Drive: Notes from 4/26/2017 Cabinet Meeting - Period 4

I realize this took a long time to do (almost all of class), so thank you for your patience and understanding that it is important each student have a voice in the process.

Please turn in your papers (if not written by hand) into Google Classroom. I would love your paper copies of the notes in the packet, as well. Thanks!

Study Guide/Executive Review: Here is the study guide for the test, which will be 30 multiple choice questions (for LT5), plus the political spectrum again.

Please make sure to ask me if you are at all confused about anything! Thank you so much for your hard work!