CITIZEN
ADVOCACY CENTER
WHO REPRESENTS
YOU IN GOVERNMENT?
LESSON PLAN
AND
Subjects:
Duration:
1-2
sessions
Description:
Goals:
ISBE
Standards:
·
14A: Understand and explain basic principles of
the United States government.
·
14B: Understand the structures and functions of
the political systems of Illinois, the United States and other nations.
·
14D: Understand the roles and influences of
individuals and interest groups in the political systems of Illinois, the
United States and other nations.
2. Language Arts
·
1B: Apply reading strategies to improve
understanding and fluency.
·
1C: Comprehend a broad range of reading
materials.
·
3A:
Use correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, capitalization and structure.
·
3B: Compose well-organized and coherent writing
for specific purposes and audiences.
·
3C: Communicate ideas in writing to accomplish a
variety of purposes.
·
4A: Listen effectively in formal and informal
situation.
·
4B: Speak effectively using language appropriate
to the situation and audience.
·
5A: Locate, organize, and use information from
various sources to answer questions, solve problems and communicate ideas.
1.
Explain
who represents the students at each level of government;
2.
Understand
the basic roles and differences between each level of government.
Materials:
In
explaining all the different levels, have the students follow along with the
chart handout. Ask students what they
think each level is for before revealing the answers.
The
levels of government are layered like an onion or a gobstopper. Each level has a different purpose.
1. Executive
a.
President: George W. Bush (R) (2000-2004)
b.
Vice
President: Dick Cheney (R) (also Senate
President)
c.
Non-elected officials: The president’s
cabinet including the secretaries that head up the various administrative
departments.
2. Congress
a.
Senate
1.
100
Members – two from each state
2.
Six
year terms
3.
IL
Senators – Dick Durbin (D) & Peter Fitzgerald (R)
b.
House
of Representatives
1.
Number
of representatives is determined by the population of the state. The population is recounted in a census
every 10 years.
2.
There
are 435 total representatives currently in the House. House members have two year terms.
3.
A
state is divided into local population districts. Each district has a Congressional representative. DuPage County is in districts 6, 13, and 14
in Illinois.
3. Judicial
– Non-elected
a.
U.S.
Supreme Court – nine justices nominated by the President and confirmed by a 2/3
majority of the Senate.
c.
Federal
Appellate and District Courts – appointed by the President and confirmed by 2/3
of the Senate.
d.
Federal
judges serve a life term
1. Executive
a.
Governor: Rob Blagojevich (D) (4 year term)
b.
Lieutenant
Governor: Pat Quinn (D)
c.
Secretary
of State: Jesse White (D)
d.
Attorney
General: Lisa Madigan (D)
2. State Legislature – General Assembly of Illinois
a.
Senate
– 59 members
b.
There
are 5 Senators from DuPage County
c.
House
– 118 members
d.
There
are 12 House members from DuPage County
3. Judiciary - elected
A.
Circuit
Judges – 21 circuits in Illinois.
B.
DuPage
County is home of the 18th judicial circuit court. Illinois is divided into 21 different judicial
circuits.
C. County Level: deals with specific issues like water and sewage, health
services, regional planning.
1. 102 Counties in Illinois
2. DuPage County is divided into 6
districts with 18 county representatives in the
state legislature.
Elmhurst is in district 2. Reps
are elected every 4 years.
3. Other county level officials include the sheriff,
clerk, treasurer, state attorney, clerk of the court, auditor, assessor
(assesses property values), coroner.
D. Township Level: provides general assistance,
does tax assessment, maintains local roads.
1.
Smaller than the county, there are 85 townships in Illinois and 9 in
DuPage.
2.
The purpose of the township level is to maintain roads and assess local
property taxes.
These taxes help to fund public services like schools and road repair.
E.
Municipal Level: deals with local laws (ordinances) related to building
codes, liquor control, zoning, and regulating nuisances like noise
1. Townships are divided into Municipalities. Municipalities are cities, towns, and
villages.
2.
There are 36 municipalities in DuPage
1. Even smaller districts are created for specific
purposes like the school district, park district, library district, police
district, etc.
Goal: Identify which level of
government is most appropriate to address students’ day-to-day problems and
issues.
Activity: Brainstorm a list of issues that are
facing students, their friends, and their families today. Then decide which level of government is
most appropriate to deal with that issue.
For example, you wouldn’t go to a federal representative for assistance
in putting a stop sign at the end of your block, just as you would not go to
your mayor to protest a war.
Want
to build a skate park – City or village
Property
taxes – Township
Need
a stop sign at end of street – City or village
School
Funding – State legislature
Possibility
of a draft – US Congress
Issues
dealing with war – US Congress
Need
for recycling – City or village
Goal: Identify who represents
students in their state and local governments.
Activity: Either as
an assignment or in-class, have students find out who is representing them at
the state and local level. Resources
are found in the library and online. (see handout). A good way to do this activity would be to divide the students up
into Federal, State, County, Township, and Municipality groups, or a assign a
couple of levels to each group. Each
group is then responsible for finding the necessary information and then all
groups should exchange the information with one another in a larger setting.
Resources:
About DuPage Government
Resource Guide
Legislative Directory
DuPage County Election
Commission
Phone books (for elected
officials in municipalities)
State Board of Elections
www.state.il.us (State of IL website)
©Copyright
2003 Citizen Advocacy Center. All
rights reserved. No part of this lesson
plan may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior, written
permission of the Citizen Advocacy Center.