Module 13-Federal Government-Social Studies 4A - Course Guide

Module Overview:

In this module students will identify the purposes and principles of the American Federal Government. They will identify the roles of the three branches of federal government, key roles of federal elected officials, 3 Patriotic holidays and their significance and explain flag, pledge, and national anthem etiquette.

Module Materials:

Lesson #	Lesson Title	Material(s)
1	Purpose and Principles	building blocks (preferably plastic) sticky notes dry erase markers or markers pen or pencil
2	Three Branches of Federal Government	pen or pencil;
3	Elected Federal Officials	pen or pencil;
4	Patriotic Behaviors	audio recording software (computer, phone, tablet, etc.) pen or pencil
5	Patriotic Holidays	pen or pencil;

Module Objectives:

Lesson #	Lesson Title	Objective(s)
1	Purpose and Principles	Identify the purposes and principles of the American federal government.
2	Three Branches of Federal Government	Identify the roles of the three branches of federal government.
3	Elected Federal Officials	Identify key roles of federal elected officials.
4	Patriotic Behaviors	Explain flag, pledge, and national anthem etiquette.
5	Patriotic Holidays	Identify three patriotic holidays and their significance.

Module Key Words:

Key Words	Vocabulary Words
principle sovereignty federalism legislative executive judicial official elected political affiliation patriotic etiquette anthem holiday significance veteran	principle sovereignty federalism legislative branch executive branch judicial branch official elected political affiliation patriotic etiquette anthem holiday significance veteran

Module Assignments:

Lesson #	Lesson Title	Page #	Assignment Title
1	Purpose and Principles	5	Building Time
2	Three Branches of Federal Government	7	Three Branches of Government Activity
3	Elected Federal Officials	6	U.S. Government Job Openings
3	Elected Federal Officials	8	Who’s Who?
4	Patriotic Behaviors	6	Record the Rules
5	Patriotic Holidays	6	Holiday Invitations

Learning Coach Notes:

None

Module Guiding Questions:

When a student starts a lesson ask them questions to check for prior knowledge and understanding and to review concepts being taught. At the end of the lesson ask the questions again to see if their answer changes.

Lesson Title	Question
Purpose and Principles	What is the purpose of government? What principles is our government built on?
Three Branches of Federal Government	What is the purpose of the 3 branches of government? What is the function of the legislative branch? What is the function of the executive branch? What is the function of the judicial branch?
Elected Federal Officials	What does it mean to be an elected official? What types of elected officials are there?
Patriotic Behaviors	What do the stars, stripes, and colors on the American Flag represent? What is the meaning of the Pledge of Allegiance? What is the story behind the Star-Spangled Banner?
Patriotic Holidays	What is a patriotic holiday?

Module Video Questions:

When a student watches a video take time to ask them questions about what they watched. Suggested questions for the videos in this module are listed here. Suggestion: Have the student watch the entire video first all the way through. Then have them watch the video a second time, as they watch it pause the video and ask the questions.

Lesson Title	Video	Question
Purpose and Principles	Government Building Blocks	What is Separation of Powers? Which branch of government makes the laws? Which branch of government enforces the laws? Which branch of government interprets the laws? What do checks and balances mean? What does equality mean? What is Popular Sovereignty? What is a limited government? What document limits our government? What is Federalism?
Patriotic Holidays	Patriotic Holidays	Who was Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Why do we celebrate him? Why do we celebrate President’s Day? Why do we celebrate Memorial Day? Why do we celebrate Flag Day? Why is the 4th of July important? What is Constitution Day? What is another name for Constitution Day? What happens on Election Day? Why do we celebrate Veterans Day? What patriotic holiday is celebrated in December?

Module Suggested Read Aloud Books:

Take time to read to your student or have them read aloud to you. Read a different book each day. While reading the book point out concepts being taught. You may purchase these books or find them at your local library. Suggested things to discuss while reading the book:

What is the main idea?
What are three things new you learned?
How does this book relate to what you are learning about?

#	Book	Author	Lexile Level
1	How the U.S. Government Works	Syl Sobel J.D.	830L
2	U.S. Government: What You Need to Know	Melissa Ann Ferguson	590L
3	What Are the Branches of Government?	Jennifer Boothroyd	480L
4	How Does The US Government Work?	Universal Politics
5	I'm Your Flag So Please Treat Me Right	Julia Cook
6	Why Are There Stripes on the American Flag?	Martha E. H. Rustad	570L
7	Paulo's Pledge to the American Flag	Janet Konecni
8	The Pledge of Allegiance	Scholastic Inc
9	I Pledge Allegiance	Pat Mora	AD580L
10	The Pledge of Allegiance	Norman Pearl
11	The Star-Spangled Banner	Peter Spier	590L

Module Outing:

Take some time to apply what your student is learning to the real world. Suggested outings are below.

#	Outing
1	Contact a U.S. Senator or Congressman from your state and see if they would be willing to meet with your student to talk about how the Federal Government works.