Introduction

Enduring Knowledge: Congress is elected to represent and make laws for the people.

Study the political cartoon below. Who is the man and where is he going in such a hurry? What point is the cartoonist trying to make? Our elected representatives in the Legislative Branch are accountable to "We the people" or the voters. Roll over the highlighted areas on the image to learn more about the political cartoon.

Open Political Cartoon in a new window | Political Cartoon text version

This 1921 political cartoon is titled "It's Not Going to be Such a Restful Month at That!" (U.S. Senate Collection Center for Legislative Archives).


Lesson Objectives

Following successful completion of this lesson, students will be able to:

  • explain the role/duty of Congress in our government.
  • describe the powers of Congress.
  • evaluate the role of Congress in our system of checks and balances.

The above objectives correspond with the Alabama Course of Study: Government objective(s): 11.

This lesson incorporates the following Literacy Standards: R1, R2, R4, R7, R10, W2, W4, W10.

 

    Next Page