EdPsy Progressive Portfolio Lesson Three

Judicial Branch

Name: Christine Gootee EDEL 350 Section #001 Email Address: cegootee@bsu.edu
Due Date: March 23, 2009 Teach Date: March 30, 2009
Practicum Teacher: Mrs. Coelho Grade Level: Fifth Grade
Lesson Topic: 3 Branches of Government Subject area: Social Studies
Circle one: Whole Group or Small Group

INTASC Principle(s):
The professional educator: plans instruction based upon knowledge of subject matter, students, the community, and curriculum goals ( INTASC 7).
IN State Standard(s): 5.2 Students will identify main components and characteristics of the United States government. They will identify and explain key ideas in government from the colonial and founding periods that continue to shape civic and political life.

IN State Indicator(s): 5.2.7 Functions of Government: Describe the three branches of the United States government, their functions and their relationships.

Lesson Objective(s): The students will be able to describe what the Judicial branch of the government does.
Materials/Media List:

Student used:
- Notebooks
- Pencil
- Judicial Branch Book


Teacher used
- Power Point on New Information
- Computer for Motivation




Motivation: To begin the lesson I would like the students to see the Schoolhouse Rock Video. I think that this will give the students a little information and get them excited about the lesson.

Goal for Learner: “Today we will be learning about a system checks and balances and the Judicial Branch of the Government.”

Procedures:
o New Information- Power point (student chose to read each point)
• There are 3 branches of government. The reason that there are three branches is so there is not a one and only power.
• The three branches have a checks and balances system. This is so that they can all work together and check on what the other branches is doing.
• The Judicial Branch of the government is the Supreme Court which is made up of 9 Justices.
• There is one Chief Justice.
• There is no specific qualifications for the Justices, but all of them have been trained in law most pursued legal and political careers before serving on the Court
• Does any one know what the Supreme Court does?
o They are special judges who interpret the laws according to the constitution.
o They only hear cases that relate to the Constitution
o Settle the arguments between states.
o . Questions, Cues, Advance Organizers

• They are the highest court in the country.
• There are lower courts that hear cases that pertain to the Constitution.
• These are federal courts, and the Constitution did not create them.
• Congress thought that they were necessary and established them using power granted by the Constitution.
• Congress and the Courts balance each other.
• Congress makes laws, but the courts interpret them. The Supreme Court decides if a law fits the meaning of the Constitution.
• This is called Judicial Review, it allows the court to over-rule federal and state laws when they conflict with the interpretation of the Constitution .
• There are many disagreements in the US about federal rules and laws.
• The Constitution has special plans to solve these issues.
• That is why there is a Judicial Branch in the Government.
• Members of the Judicial Branch of Government are not elected by the people, they are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate.
• Article Three in the Constitution is where the Judicial Branch of Government was found.
• Judges can only be removed by impeachment by the House of Representatives.
• There is no fixed term.
• They serve until death, retirement, or conviction (impeachment)

• Guided Practice
o Students will be grouped.
o There will be 3 students in place as lawyers for the given Bill
o There will be 3 others that do not want the Bill.
o Nine students will be the Supreme Court.
o The remaining students will be representatives from the lower courts. They will be there to follow the bill to see what the verdict is.
o The Bill states that Congress is considering a bill that will make criticism of the President on the Internet illegal. The Bill has been approved by the Congress and the President. Now the Supreme Court must be ready to hear the arguments in favor and against the bill. The Supreme Court will vote on the Bill, majority wins. -Cooperative Learning
o While the two groups of Lawyers are coming up with their points and arguments the other students will be walking through some Jigsaw group settings.
o I will divide the students in the Supreme Court into four groups of four.
o There will be 4 tables where there will be information more in-depth information on a specific feature of the Judicial Branch. One student from each group will go to each table and learn about what is on the table. They will have 3 minutes at the table, and then they will be asked to return to their group.
o While in their group each person will share what he/she learned. They will have 6 minutes to do that.
o Then we will all get together and continue on with the bill and voting process.

• Check for Understanding
• Teacher will ask:
• What are some of the Roles of The Supreme Court?
• How long can Judges serve?
• How do they become Judges?
• If Congress makes the laws, what do the courts do?

• Practice/Application
o Students will now have an understanding about the Judicial Branch of the Government.
o They no complete a Judicial Branch Workbook.
o The questions will be about what they had learned in the lesson and some similar prompts about bills. They will have to determine if they are bills that should be passed or not.
• Questions that will be in the book-
• The ______________ Branch of the federal government interprets and reviews the laws of the nation.
• The __________________ is the highest court in the U.S.A.
• There are members in the Supreme Court.
• What year did the Supreme Court first meet?
• Would a bill about how students have to go to school until 5pm pass? Why or why not.
• What is one bill that you would like to pass to make the world a better place?

• Closure
o Teacher will ask students why the three branches are needed.
o What is the most important role of the Supreme Court?
o What does the Judicial Branch mainly do?
o Questions, Cues, Advance Organizers

Evaluation of Student Learning: (Evaluation of the assessment that should match objective with criteria for assessment included in a rubric.)




3 2 1 0
Judicial Book Completed with no flaws, perfect understanding of concepts. Completed with 1-2 flaws, strong understanding of concepts. Completed with 3-4 flaws, weak understanding of concepts. Completed 5-6 flaws, no understanding of concepts.




Lesson Extension: Have the students learn about the other two branches of government.
Then we could all work together as the three branches and see how a law is made
Annotated Bibliography:
• Informational:

http://www.trumanlibrary.org/whistlestop/teacher_lessons/3branches/1.htm
o The website above gave a great description as to what the judicial branch of government does. It gave great examples and had some helpful ideas for me to use in my lesson

http://www.whitehouse.gov/our_government/judicial_branch/
This is the official site that has information about the Judicial Branch. This gave alittle more in depth about how the judges are selected and how long their term is. This gave me some ideas for my new information. I actually learned some information that I did not know.

INSTRUCTIONAL-
http://www.cyberlearning-world.com/lessons/oct6usg.htm
-This is the site that I found the idea to have the students work to pass a bill. It had a bunch of great ideas when teaching all three branches.
http://edsitement.neh.gov/view_lesson_plan.asp?id=222
This had a few ideas that I adapted for my lesson.
























9 Justices
The number of Supreme Court Justices has changed over the years.
Initially, the Court was made up of six Justices who had been
appointed by George Washington. Thefirst time they met was
February 1, 1790. The number of Justices has been as high
as 10. President Franklin D. Roosevelt tried to raise the number to
15 at one point, but the number has been nine since 1869. Since our
government was established, more than one hundred justices have
served on the Court, and until recently, all were men. Sandra Day
O’Connor was the first woman named to the Supreme Court. She
was appointed in 1981. Ruth Bader Ginsburg was seated in 1993 as
the secondwoman. This is a list of the current Justices.


Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr.
Justice John Paul Stevens
Justice Antonin Scalia
Justice Anthony Kennedy
Justice David H. Souter
Justice Clarence Thomas
Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Justice Stephen G. Breyer
Justice Samuel Alito














Supreme Court Building

The Supreme Court did not have a home until 1935. This was the 146th year of its existence. Initially, the Court met in the Merchants Exchange Building in New York City. When the National Capital moved to Philadelphia in 1790, the Court moved with it, establishing Chambers first in the State House (Independence Hall) and later in the City Hall. When the Federal Government moved, in 1800, to the permanent Capital, Washington, the District of Columbia, the Court again moved with it. Congress lent the Court space in the new Capitol Building. Finally in 1929, Chief Justice William Howard Taft, who had been President of the United States from 1909 to 1913, persuaded Congress to end this arrangement and authorize the construction of a permanent home for the Court. Architect Cass Gilbert was charged by Chief Justice Taft to design “a building of dignity and importance suitable for its use as the permanent home of the Supreme Court of the United States.”

















The Judicial Process

Article III of the Constitution of the United States guarantees that every person accused of wrongdoing has the right to a fair trial before a judge and jury.
The Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Amendments to the Constitution provide additional protections for those accused of a crime. These include:
-A guarantee that no person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property without the due process of law
-Protection against being tried for the same crime twice ("double jeopardy")
-The right to a speedy trial by an impartial jury
-The right to cross-examine witnesses, and to call witnesses to support their case
-The right to legal representation
-The right to avoid self-incrimination
-Protection from excessive bail, excessive fines, and cruel and unusual punishments









State Judicial Branch


State judicial branches are usually led by the state supreme court, which hears appeals from lower-level state courts. Court structures and judicial appointments/elections are determined either by legislation or the state constitution. The Supreme Court focuses on correcting errors made in lower courts and therefore holds no trials. Rulings made in state supreme courts are normally binding; however, when questions are raised regarding consistency with the U.S. Constitution, matters may be appealed directly to the United States Supreme Court.