EGP 335.

535 Lesson Plan

Dr. Leaman, Spring 2017

Lesson Plan Details: The 3 Branches of State Government ,lesson 9 , Danielle Conti
Expected duration: 40 minutes
Social Sciences
Concepts:
The 3 branches of state government, the jobs and who does them
Compare and contrast state and federal government
Vocabulary:
Executive, legislature, judiciary, lieutenant, attorney, secretary, bicameral
Skills:
Reading comprehension, compare and contrast

Integration of Learning Outcomes/Objectives

Students will define the 3 branches of state government, the jobs, and who performs
them.
Students will compare and contrast the 3 branches of government on both the state and
federal.

Standards PA Civics, History, Economics, Geography &

NCSS Themes I - X with subthemes
Include PA standards:
Standard - 5.3.4.A: Identify the roles of the three branches of government.
Standard - 5.3.4.C: Identify the services performed by local and state governments.
Standard - 5.3.4.D: Identify positions of authority at the local and state, and national level.
Include NCSS Themes and Sub-Themes
NCSS.1.6.b ...help students to explain the purpose of
government and how its powers are acquired, used, and justified;

Anticipatory Set
I have some questions for you guys before we get started with our lesson today.
First I want to know if anyone remembers which branch of the government helps us create and
pass new laws?
Anticipated answer
The legislative branch
Great job that is correct the legislative branch helps create and pass new laws concerning new
issues brought up by the executive branch,
And who are some important people in the executive branch?
Anticipated answer
The President, the Vice President, and the Cabinet
Awesome job! Could someone remind me what the Supreme Court does and what branch of
government it falls under?
Anticipated answer:
Judicial branch, and the Supreme Court is the highest court in the United States, they make final
decision on major court cases.
Wow you guys really know your branches of federal government, today we are going to learn all
about the state government.
 Procedures
Objectives to taught
Students will define the 3 branches of state government, the jobs, and who performs them.
Students will compare and contrast the 3 branches of government on both the state and federal.
Today we are going to focus on what makes up state government and how it's the same and
different from federal government.
Under the Tenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, all powers not granted to the federal
government are reserved for the states and the people, this means that the state has all the powers
that the federal government doesn't have.
Some things that are the same for state and federal government is the structure, they both have 3
branches of government executive, legislative, and judicial.
With that being said the branches of government have the same jobs just on a state level for
example the legislative branch in the federal government helps create and pass new laws, the state
legislation does the same thing but instead of matters being brought up from the White House
they come from the governor and the executive branch together they create and pass new state
laws.
Today we are going to read an article on the state government together then when we finish you
will have some time to fill out this worksheet about the 3 branches of government. So s we're
reading together take notes, highlight or even circle thinks that you think define each branch of
government. Focus on the job of that branch and who helps get each job done.
Pass out article
Teach will start reading then call on the next student to read
Recap each paragraph and prompt students to answer questions such as what job the branch does
and who helps get the job done.
Now that we read and understand our article I'm going to pass out s worksheet, on this worksheet
I would like you to independently use your notes from the article and define each branch,
remember to include positions and jobs.
Whole group discussion: so who would like to share what they filled out for the first branch the
executives branch. Prompt discussion about the positions in the branch and the jobs they do.
Anticipated answers: has the governor Lieutenant General, attorney general, Secretary of State.
Who would like to share what they wrote for the legislative branch, what are some of the jobs,
whose does them?
Anticipated answer: makes up laws, handles budgets, taxes. Each state has two houses
And lastly I need someone to share what they put for the Judicial branch.
Anticipated answer: two court systems p, Supreme Court, lower court
Excellent, as we can see the 3 branches of government are similar in both the federal and state
government. Something that is the same is both judicial branches have a Supreme Court
But they also have differences, like the federal government has a House of Representatives and a
senate where the states just have a two house system.
Next what I would like you to do is in pairs fill out a venn diagram for both systems of
government. Things that are the same go in the middle and differences go on there own side. I'll
give you about 10 minutes then we will share out.
Everyone should complete their own venn diagram and remember to put your name on it because
it will be collected and graded!
Have students share what they listed as similarities and differences promote discussion between
peers at this time about both systems of government.
Great work everyone I can tell everyone was working hard today, to finish up our lesson today we
are going to do a small activity in pairs.
Set students up in pairs pass out card sets
You and your partner must look at the words and match the branch of government to the people
who work under that branch and the responsibilities.
 You may use your worksheet to help you if you get stuck
Allow time for student to work.
Whole group discussion on how they matched up the words.
Review people and jobs
Why is it important for each branch of government to have their own jobs?

Differentiation
Students who seem to not be getting the concepts (noted from formative assessment) will be
paired up with students who seem to be grasping the concepts for support.

Closure
Final thoughts for our lesson on state government today, the state government has all the power
that the federal government doesn't have, also our state government is structured versus similar to
our federal government with some exceptions. Each branch has its own job that together creates
our state government.
The last thing I would like everyone to do is write me a paragraph, how many sentences is s
paragraph again?
Anticipated answers
5-7 sentences
Oh that's right so I would like you to write 5-7 sentence on the jobs of the state government and
who does them! You can also compare them to the federal government too!
You are going to hand this in so make sure your name is on it, let's make sure it's your best work!

Formative/Summative Assessment of Students (P-12)

Objectives to be assessed
Students will define the 3 branches of state government, the jobs, and who performs them.
Students will compare and contrast the 3 branches of government on both the state and federal.
Formative assessment
Formative assessment will be conducted during whole group discussion in between activities and
listening in on group work.
Teacher will look and listen for
Understanding the structure of the state government.
Understanding the jobs each branch of state government does.
Understanding the positions held in each branch of government
Understanding the similarities and differences between federal and state government.
Teacher will keep a check list through google forms
Google Forms
Summative assessment
Closing paragraphs will be collected and checked for correctness
Paragraphs should include
All 3 branches of government
Jobs of each branch
People who help complete those jobs
Venn diagrams will be collected and checked for correctness
Venn diagram should include
Ways in which federal and state government are the same
Ways in which the federal and state government are different
Both assessments will be done with a check list through google forms
Google Forms
 Materials/Equipment
Student Materials
Article on state government
3 branches Worksheet
Venn diagram worksheet
Cards for activity
Teacher note sheet with references
Notes
Worksheet and Readings included at the bottom of link.

Technology
Smartboard
highlight and take notes on the article in front of the class, modeling note taking as we read.
Doc cam
allows teacher to project worksheets and articles on the board during discussion.

Reflection on Planning
When I started writing this lesson it was very difficult for me, I had all the information on state
government but it was challenging to find an engaging way to teach it.
I realized that state and federal government are structured the same way so I decided to go with a
compare and contrast, the student have already had a thorough lesson in federal government so
some of it would feel review to them so I wanted to add another element to it.
From there I found a fun quick activity for federal government that I adapted to state government.
After that it became easy to put the parts of the lesson together.
I have always felt less strong in the differentiation portion of a lesson especially because it's fake
students and it's hard to come up with what the problem is before solving it for fake children. I
definitely feel that my differentiation could be stronger but I was having difficulty with what the
students might be struggling with.
I don't have many concerns for implementing this lesson, it's towards the end of the unit and the
students will have strong background information on the topic from previous lessons.

Lesson Plan Element Point Value

40 points total

Lesson Plan Details 2

Integration of Learning Outcomes/Objectives 3

Standards PA Civics, History, Economics, Geography & NCSS 3

Theme/subtheme

Anticipatory Set 2

Procedures 6

Differentiation 2

Closure 2
Formative/Summative Assessment of Students (P-12) 3

Materials/Equipment , Citation of Sources 2

Technology

Reflection on Planning

Teacher Content Notes 10

Global Current Event 5