Subject Areas |
History and Social Studies
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U.S. History - Civics and U.S. Government |
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Time Required |
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Skills |
| primary document analysis
group collaboration
classification skills
interpretation of song lyrics |
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Additional Data |
| Date Created: 05/21/02 |
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Date Posted |
| 2/11/2002 |
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Special Features |
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Constitution Day
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Balancing Three Branches at Once: Our System of Checks and Balances
Introduction One of the most persistent and overarching complaints
the American colonists had about the rule of the British monarchy was the extent
of its power. One of the most persistent and overarching complaints about the
early government of the U.S. under the Articles of Confederation was the weakness
of the federal government. Attempting to form a more perfect union, the framers
of the Constitution designed a government that clearly assigned power to three
branches, while at the same time guaranteeing that the power of any branch could
be checked by another. Using primary source documents, your students can
see clear demonstrations of how one branch of our government can check another.
Learning Objectives After completing the lessons in this unit,
students will be able to: - Name the three branches of our government.
- Give
examples of how each branch can check the others.
Guiding Question: What
are some ways the three branches of our government check one another? Preparing
to Teach this Lesson - Review each lesson plan.
Download
and duplicate as necessary any documents you want to use. The central goal of
this lesson is to use archival material to exemplify the checks and balances built
into our system of government. Part I of this unit uses archival documents to
review the structure of our constitutional government and the problems it was
designed to surmount. Classes that have already covered the causes of the American
Revolution and the basics of the three branches of our government could begin
with Part II, which uses primary source material to demonstrate how one branch
of our government checks another. - Background Information for the Teacher:
As indicated by the long list of complaints in the Declaration of Independence,
the unlimited power of the British monarch was a focus of colonists' concerns
in 1776. In response to the abuses of the unchecked king, the fledging government
under the Articles of Confederation featured a very weak central government. In
the power vacuum that developed as a result, state legislatures (whose power had
been extended originally as a response to fears about a tyrannical king) began
to exert themselves. By 1787, the overreaching and abuses of the state legislatures
were causing increasing concern among the colonists. Your students may understand
more readily the complaints the colonists had against the king, it is important
that students don't get the impression that the only motive for the checks and
balances system was animosity toward George III. Suspicions about the potential
abuse of power extended to legislative as well as executive branches. Because
the potential for abuse is present in any branch of government, each needs sufficient
power to check the other. This is exactly the point James Madison makes in
Federalist Papers No. 48. He notes that "the legislative department is everywhere
extending the sphere of its activity, and drawing all power into its impetuous
vortex." The founders of the American states, he says, "seem never for a moment
to have turned their eyes from the danger to liberty from the overgrown and all-grasping
prerogative of an hereditary magistrate" and therefore overlooked "the danger
from legislative usurpations, which, by assembling all power in the same hands,
must lead to the same tyranny as is threatened by executive usurpations."
(NOTE: The entire text of the Federalist
Papers No. 48 is accessible through the EDSITEment resource The
Avalon Project at the Yale Law School.) - Obtain background information
about checks and balances from the following EDSITEment resources. An excellent
place to start is with the first of these sites, Project Vote Smart, where you
can find a basic explanation of the system, arranged in a coherent and straightforward
fashion. While the Avalon Project is a more sophisticated resource, giving you
access to annotated primary documents, the links it provides to Articles I, II,
III of the Constitution contain useful summaries of the various powers given to
each branch of government.
- An interactive teaching unit, Our
Three Branches of Government & Balance of Power, designed for grades 5-8,
is available on the EDSITEment resource Project Whistlestop, housed at The Truman
Library.
- The
Avalon Project at the Yale Law School has a feature entitled The
American Constitution - A Documentary Record that includes texts of many documents
relating to the development of the Constitution. An annotated
text of the Constitution is available through Congresslink.
The following sections of the U.S. Constitution are especially relevant:
Article
I Legislative Branch Section 1, 2, 3, 7, 8
Article II The Executive Branch
Section 1, 2, 3
Article III The Judicial Branch Section 1, 2 - Congresslink
also features 10 Things Every
Student Should Know About Congress
- This unit is one
of a series of complementary EDSITEment plans for intermediate-level students
about the foundations of our government. Consider adapting them for your class
in the following order:
- The
Digital Classroom, available through EDSITEment, offers a series of worksheets
for analyzing primary source documents, including written documents and photographs,
that you may wish to use or adapt to help students in reviewing the materials
presented in this unit.
Suggested Activities Part I:
Checked and Unbalanced Part II: Checking the Power of Government
Lesson
1 No More King Share with the class the lyrics for "No More
Kings" from "Schoolhouse Rock," created by American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
You can find the lyrics on the Internet; just do a search for "Schoolhouse Rock"
on a search engine such as google.com or yahoo.com. Encourage discussion
of the lyrics with questions such as: According to the lyrics, what problems did
the colonists have with British rule? What other problems are you aware of? How
did the colonists attempt to solve the problems? How was the government for the
new United States of America different from the British government? Lesson
2 The Colonies Complained Review some or all of the complaints
against Great Britain spelled out in the Declaration of Independence. A good place
to start is George
Washington's Copy of the Declaration of Independence, available through a
link from the EDSITEment-reviewed resource, American
Memory. This is the only surviving fragment of the broadside of the
Declaration of Independence printed by John Dunlap and sent on July 6, 1776, to
George Washington by John Hancock, President of the Continental Congress in Philadelphia.
General Washington had this Declaration read to his assembled troops on July 9
in New York, where they awaited the combined British fleet and army. Later that
night, American troops destroyed a bronze-lead statue of Great Britain's King
George III that stood at the foot of Broadway on the Bowling Green. The statue
was later molded into bullets for the American Army. Most of this page
consists of complaints directed to the king of England. What are some of the complaints?
Ask the students to keep these complaints in mind as they consider how the government
developed by the Founders attempted to avoid such problems. Lesson
3 Three Ring Government Share with the class the lyrics for
"Three-Ring Government," from "Schoolhouse Rock," created by American Broadcasting
Companies, Inc. Discuss the lyrics. What do they explain about the three
branches of our government? What are the three branches? What is the main responsibility
of each? Introduce or review the three branches of government and their
basic functions. A good source of information, designed for grades 3-5, is Ben's
Guide to U.S. Government for Kids, a link from the EDSITEment-reviewed website
Internet Public Library. A lesson
plan on the three branches of government, designed for grades 5-8, but with
material adaptable for lower grades, is available on the EDSITEment-reviewed website
The Truman Library. Particularly pertinent
is a summary
of the checks and balances in the system. Leave a summary of the three
branches on the chalkboard or bulletin board. Classes wishing to explore
more deeply the origins of our government can analyze a digital image of The
Virginia Plan, as amended, June 13, 1787, available through the EDSITEment-reviewed
resource The Digital Classroom.
The Virginia Plan was the first of a number of proposals offered to the Constitutional
Convention for the organization of the government. Here, it serves to demonstrate
that our federal system as it now stands developed as a result of thoughtful debate
and compromise; parts, but not all, of the Virginia Plan can be found in the Constitution.
Read the document to the class. What parts of the plan are different from our
government as it now stands? Which parts of the plan are similar to our government
as it now stands? How were the makers of the Virginia Plan (the document was composed
primarily by James Madison) planning to avoid the abuses of a monarchy? Part
II: Checking the Power of GovernmentLesson
4 Accounts of Checking and Balancing Background for the Teacher:
- Familiarize yourself with the documents listed below and decide which
you want to use with your class. Pick at least as many as the number of small
groups you form. Be ready to help students focus on the crucial elements of each
document as indicated.
- If desired, introduce/review important
terms with the class. Ben's Guide
to U.S. Government for Kids, a link from the EDSITEment-reviewed website Internet
Public Library, has a useful glossary for grades
3-5, as well as one for grades
6-8. These define such terms as: impeachment, veto, and separation of powers.
- Students may notice in the course of discussion that the judicial branch appears
the least affected by the system of checks and balances. Though not strictly part
of the system of checks and balances, an important built-in limitation of the
judicial branch is that it can only deal with cases brought before it. An unconstitutional
law might remain unchallenged for years or might never be challenged.
- Before the lesson, draw seven columns on the chalkboard, headed as follows:
(Executive branch checks the Legislative branch, Legislative checks
the Executive, Judicial checks the Legislative and so on…) Activity:Begin
the lesson by briefly reviewing the names and functions of the three branches
of our government. Tell the students they are going to look at some historic documents
(all available through EDSITEment resources) that demonstrate how one branch can
check another. Divide the class into small groups. Begin by distributing one
document to each group. The group will be responsible for describing that document
to the class. Before each document is described, distribute copies to the groups
(be sure to retain copies for yourself). Give the groups time to review these
archival materials to decide how each represents a check by one branch on the
power of another. In each case, students should ask themselves: "Which branch
of government is acting? Which other branch of government can't do what it wants?"
- FDR
Cartoon Archive: 1937—The Supreme Court, available via a link from The
New Deal Network
Make sure students realize that the FDR in the cartoon
(the policeman) was President at the time the cartoon was drawn. This document
shows that the President's actions can be blocked by the Supreme Court; it is
not necessary to understand the particulars of the situation. - President
Requests that Congress Declare War, available on The
Digital Classroom
The Congress can check the President by refusing to declare
war. One day after the attack on Pearl Harbor, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt
delivered his famous "Day of Infamy" speech to Congress. Why does the President
say, "I ask that the Congress declare that since the unprovoked and dastardly
attack by Japan on Sunday, December seventh, a state of war has existed between
the United States and the Japanese Empire"? One check on the President is that
Congress must approve a declaration of war. - Prosperity
and Thrift: The Coolidge Era and the Consumer Economy
Search in American
Memory for "McNary-Haugen Bill." Choose View this item and then move
down the page to select Page Images. Turn to the image of p. 286 of the Calvin
Coolidge Papers, 1923-28, the title page for the veto document. The President
can check Congress by vetoing a bill it has passed. - Images of the
veto message of President Franklin D. Roosevelt to the House of Representatives
returning H.R. 3687, "An act to provide revenue, and for other purposes" and a
House resolution stating that two-thirds of the House agreed to pass the act over
the President's veto.
Search
the Archival Research Catalog, available on the Digital
Classroom. Search for “H.R. 3687.” Click “Digital Copy Available.” Choose
page six. Congress can check the President by passing a law over a President’s
veto. - The Oregon Treaty of 1846
Search the Archival
Research Catalog, available on the Digital
Classroom, for “Oregon Treaty.” This treaty divided the Oregon country
between the U.S. and Canada at the 49th parallel. It granted to the United States
land that would later comprise the entire states of Oregon, Washington and Idaho,
as well as portions of Montana and Wyoming. Of particular interest is the second
paragraph of the right hand page. Why does the treaty say, "whereas the Senate
of the United States ... did advise and consent to the ratification of the said
treaty"? The Senate can check the President by refusing to ratify a treaty the
President has signed. - Image
of a ticket to the gallery during the impeachment of President Johnson, April
1, 1868, available on American Memory
Congress can check the President by using the impeachment powers to remove the
President from office. - Judgment,Brown v. Board of Education
Search the Archival
Research Catalog, available on the Digital
Classroom, for "Judgment" and "Brown." The courts can check the Legislative
branch by declaring a law unconstitutional. Focus on the words "admit to public
schools on a racially nondiscriminatory basis with all deliberate speed the parties
to this case. Segregation laws were overturned." - Message of President
Abraham Lincoln nominating Salmon P. Chase to be Chief Justice of the Supreme
Court of the United States
Search the Archival
Research Catalog, available on the Digital
Classroom, for "Lincoln” and “Chase.” The President nominates judges to federal
courts. Of course, once appointed, a judge can vote however s/he wants. In cases
of abuse by judges, the Legislative branch can check the Judicial as shown in
the next document. Read the following statements to the class, one
at a time: - I am the President; I can declare war on Lower Slobovia.
- I
am a Judge; I can make any decision I want.
- I am a Senator; I can help
write and pass any law I want.
- I am the President of the United States;
I can veto any law passed by Congress.
- I am the President of the United
States; I can do anything I want.
- I am the President of the United States;
I can make a treaty with Upper Slobovia.
- We're the Supreme Court; we'll
be ruling on every law for years.
After each statement is read, student
groups should select one document they believe exemplifies how the particular
action could be checked. They should also decide which category on the board best
characterizes this particular check on the system. When the groups have had enough
time, the teacher declares, "Show," at which time every group holds up the document
it chose. Ask the first group which document it chose and why. Put a
copy of the document under the appropriate column on the board. Ask if any other
group chose a different document. Ask why it was chosen. (Note: There is more
than one right answer for some of these situations. For example, certain actions
of the President could potentially be checked by either the legislative or judicial
branches.) Put a copy of the document in any additional appropriate column(s).
As you begin discussions of each subsequent document, start with a different
student group. Classes wishing to explore more deeply our system of checks
and balances can research relevant historical events and write about these events
in a "newspaper" of checks and balances. Each article should be written as if
the event just occurred. Students should employ journalistic style and include
a headline; byline; opening paragraph summarizing the who, what, when, where why
information of the event; documentary evidence (such as graphics); quotes from
participants; and so on. Historic events involving conflicts between branches
include: - The impeachment of President Andrew Johnson.
- The impeachment
of President Bill Clinton.
- The conflict over Franklin D. Roosevelt's attempt
to add six seats to the Supreme Court.
- The Alien and Sedition Acts.
- Supreme
Court cases such as Marbury vs. Madison (1803), the Dred Scott Decision
(1857) and McCulloch v. Maryland (1819).
- President Andrew Jackson's
conflict with Congress over the Second National Bank.
- The Watergate incident
during Richard Nixon's tenure in office.
(Documents about these events
are available online at the sites listed below under "EDSITEment
Websites.") If desired, conclude the activity with a simulation in
which the class works on a real-world problem using a system of checks and balances.
Here's one possibility. - Tell the students a certain amount of money ($10,
for example) is available to the class to use to purchase a special snack (or
for some other worthwhile purpose). Ask each student — without consulting others
— to write down how s/he would spend the money.
- Divide the class
into three groups (and appoint one or more students who will later mount a legal
challenge as described below). Group 1 controls the money (the executive branch);
Group 2 decides how the money will be spent (the legislative); Group 3 (judicial
— make sure this group has an odd number of members) will rule on any challenges.
Begin by having each group select a spokesperson in a closed session. From this
point on, when any group meets it is done in fishbowl style, with the rest of
the class surrounding the group members, but observing only.
- The
legislative branch meets to decide how to spend the money. Have supermarket ads
or circulars available for reference. The proposal is written down. Add a place
for signatures in case of approval and another place for a veto.
- Next
the executive branch meets. The group discusses whether to approve or veto the
proposal. If changes are desired, the group vetoes the entire proposal. Any recommendations
can be written down, but the executive branch itself cannot create a new proposal.
If necessary, the legislative group meets again to reshape the proposal or, in
case of a 2/3 majority, to override the veto.
- Once the legislative
branch creates a proposal that is approved by the executive branch, unveil a challenge
to it. For example, the challenge could be based on desiring some fresh fruit
to accompany the snack or on a food allergy. The judicial group hears the challenge
and rules on it. If the proposal is turned down, the legislative group should
meet once more to refine the proposal.
- Now ask students to read aloud
some of the snack suggestions they originally wrote down. In all likelihood, the
final proposal is different from most of the students' original ideas. Had this
been a monarchy with any one of those class members serving as the ruler, something
completely different would have resulted. Discuss the ways in which this activity
mirrored the three branches of government. Discuss the pros and cons of the system
used by the class and a system where one individual holds all the power.
- If possible, use the money as proposed by the class.
Extending
the Lesson
Selected EDSITEment Websites
American Memory Project
Library of CongressOther Resources Recommended
reading from Carol Hurst's Children's
Literature Page
Fritz, Jean. And Then What Happened, Paul Revere?Sandler,
Martin W. Library of Congress Book of Presidents. (Nonfiction. Grades 3+) Recommended
reading from theLearning Page of American Memory
Fritz, Jean. Shh! We're Writing the Constitution. Pictures by
Tomie dePaola. N.Y.: The Putnam & Grosset Group, 1987. Pascoe, Elaine.
First Facts about the Presidents. Woodbridge, Conn.: Blackbirch Press, 1996. Spies,
Karen Bornemann. Our Presidency. Brookfield, Conn.: Millbrook Press, 1994. Stein,
R. Conrad. The Great Depression. N.Y.: Children's Press, 1993 Recommended
reading from The New Deal Network
Blassingame, Wyatt. Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Times President. Garrard Pub.
Co., 1966. (Grades 2-5) Cavanah, Francis. Triumphant Adventure: The Story
of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Rand McNally, 1964. (Grades 5-8) Faber,
Doris. Franklin D. Roosevelt. Abelard Schuman, l975. (Grades 3-6) Other
Recommended reading Van Wie, Ann; Van Wie, Nancy; and Wing, Am. Travels
with MAX: How a Bill Becomes a Law" (Reading level: Ages 9-12)
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