The Legislative Branch, Day 5 - Class Recap

The United States Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. This is where the House of Representatives and Senate meets to debate legislation. Photo taken in 2011.

Hi everyone,

Test day today in class! I hope that everyone studied and did well. Judging by the amount of "when is the retake?" questions that were asked, this was possibly not the case. Here's what happened today in class:

Learning Targets Addressed:
Knowledge LT 1: I can demonstrate an understanding of the interplay between citizens and their governments.
Knowledge LT 3: I can demonstrate an understanding of how individuals and non-governmental institutions interact with each other and the government in shaping politics.

Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different levels of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "Thriller" by Michael Jackson. Selected for today because it's a classic song to play on Halloween. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 10/30/14:
News Brief – Jazmin
Legislative Branch Test
Washington's Gridlock
The Presidency

Homework: Read the blog. Have a great, safe weekend. Next news brief: Timothy.

News Brief: Jazmin was absent from class today, so we did not have student presented news brief. I did talk about this current event article and show a bit of the video, which I think is appalling: CNN.com - What 10 hours of street harassment in NYC looks like. We need to promote a culture of respect, wherever we are. Catcalling anyone is unacceptable. Just thought it was worth highlighting. Timothy has the next news brief (Jazmin should also have hers ready to go).

Legislative Branch Test: Pretty much exactly as I described it on the blog for last class, right? I will have these graded and back to you as soon as I can. It will probably be this weekend! We will go over the results next class.

Washington's Gridlock: I think this is an important story to learn about, with why many people are very frustrated with the United States government, in that not much of consequence seems to get done. Here is the reading we did in class (pick of the questions sheet in class if you missed it):

Google Drive - New York Times Upfront: Washington's Gridlock

As part of the article, I talked about redistricting and gerrymandering contributing to inaction in Congress. Here's an interesting article about the most gerrymandered congressional districts in America. 

We also talked about the filibuster as a tactic to stall debate. Most of the times now, people don't have to stand and talk - as long as they have enough support (40+ votes, which is almost guaranteed for both sides in the Senate), they can just threaten it and possible legislation won't be voted on. Here's an example of a funny filibuster that I showed part of in class (from Parks and Recreation):

We stopped at the end of the article (which we mostly read aloud using the "popcorn" method). Next class, we will move on to the Executive Branch! Have a great weekend!