Organization of the Executive Branch and the Cabinet Government Superheroes

Engage

We will begin by using a graphic organizer that will be on the board.
o The class will be told to imagine that the three branches of government are superheroes and we will add to the graphic organizer some of their strengths and attributes on the board together.(This will be a small assessment)
o  “As you can see I already gave each superhero a name-- Lester Barnes (legislative branch) Ernie Badaboom (Executive branch) and Jessica Blubber (judicial branch).”
o “Let’s begin with Lester. What kind of things is he in charge of? Remember to think about the attributes of the actual branch…”
o Continue this with the other two branches…
o  Tell students that “today we will be looking at the Executive Branch a little more closely and we will be learning about a division of the branch that is called the Cabinet. “For the next couple of days we will be focusing specifically on our superhero that represents the Executive Branch. Our goal is to be able to research all the information that we can about the Cabinet and add it to our graphic organizer. We want to make one superhero per team and then show the class who are superhero is and what his/her strengths are through a visual presentation.”

 

Explore

Students will begin researching the cabinet and they will follow a six step guide.  Note:  the steps will unfold throughout Lesson Plan process.

Websites: Hotlist http://www.kn.att.com/wired/fil/pages/listcabinetst.html

Step 1: Break into teams
o Under their chairs students will have a piece of colored paper. All the students that have the same color will be in one team.

Step 2: Distribute jobs
o In this first meeting students will receive a paper with the steps to complete this project.
o Students will discuss and choose their jobs:
o Researcher (person that will research the information on the computer),
o Graphic organizer specialist (adding all new information into existing graphic organizer),
o Visual representation specialist (person that will put together the animoto project),
o  Graphic designer (this person will design the superhero character along with any additional graphics).

*All discussions should be made as a team from what information will be put into the graphic organizer to what color the superhero’s hair will be. If students feel like they are having difficulty completing their specific task they can ask other members of their group to help them at any time.

Explain

At this point members of the team will share their findings.
o Teams will answer questions relating to cabinet research.
o Instructor will provide a PowerPoint presentation with facts about the Executive Branch and the Cabinet.

Step 3: Research, Highlight and Add information
o Students will research information about the cabinet through a hotlist.
o They will then come together and meet as a table and highlight important facts.
o As a team they will answer questions regarding the research. (Students will find some answers on the designated websites but others in the presentation)
o Instructor will present PowerPoint about the Executive Branch and Cabinet
o Any unanswered questions will surely be answered through the PP.
o As a team they will decide what information will go into the graphic organizer.

Cabinet Research

1. Define: Cabinet

2. What are the four divisions of the Executive Branch?

3. How many cabinet departments are there?

4. Name the three most important cabinets?

 

5. What title is given to the head of a department?

6. Which president in 1789 created the cabinet? Why?

7. Give an example of an independent agency?

8. What does a government corporation provide?

9. What are the functions of a regulatory agency?

Elaborate

As a team students will make one Executive branch superhero and design it.
o Instructor will give an example of a government superhero converted into Animoto presentation.
o Each team will present their superhero through an Animoto presentation.
http://animoto.com/

Step 4: Design Superhero

o Each team will design their Executive Branch superhero.

Step 5: Animoto Experience

o Instructor will introduce Animoto
o Students will now begin to add all the information to Animoto
o http://animoto.com/ 

Step 6: Presentation Time
o Students will present their superhero

 

Evaluate

Students will be graded in these areas…(rubi star)
o Students will also assess themselves as a group.
           www.readwritethink.org/lesson_images/lesson374/group-assessment.pdf

The rubric follows:

CATEGORY	4	3	2	1
Originality	Product shows a large amount of original thought. Ideas are creative and inventive.	Product shows some original thought. Work shows new ideas and insights.	Uses other people's ideas (giving them credit), but there is little evidence of original thinking.	Uses other people's ideas, but does not give them credit.
Content	Covers topic in-depth with details and examples. Subject knowledge is excellent.	Includes essential knowledge about the topic. Subject knowledge appears to be good.	Includes essential information about the topic but there are 1-2 factual errors.	Content is minimal OR there are several factual errors.
Presentation	Well-rehearsed with smooth delivery that holds audience attention.	Rehearsed with fairly smooth delivery that holds audience attention most of the time.	Delivery not smooth, but able to maintain interest of the audience most of the time.	Delivery not smooth and audience attention often lost.
Attractiveness	Makes excellent use of font, color, graphics, effects, etc. to enhance the presentation.	Makes good use of font, color, graphics, effects, etc. to enhance to presentation.	Makes use of font, color, graphics, effects, etc. but occasionally these detract from the presentation content.	Use of font, color, graphics, effects etc. but these often distract from the presentation content.

Extend

Students can create their very own superhero comic book representing all three branches of government.
o Students can create a website representing the three branches of government through a superhero.