OpenStax American Government 3e

Good morning! I do an in-class activity for every chapter that I cover, and I would be happy to share them all with you.  Some of the best ones:

1) we cover civil rights the week before their first test, so I start the lecture by giving them a "quiz", but it's actually a section of the 1965 Alabama literacy test.  They work on it for about 5 minutes, and right as I notice them starting to panic, I break them into groups and tell them that it is not an actual quiz I wrote, but rather, one of the most egregious examples of voter disenfranchisement.  I also have each group pick out the easiest and the hardest question from their section, which prompts good discussion.  

2) for the presidency, I supplement with two Freakonomics podcasts - How Much Does the Presidency Really Matter and Has the US Presidency Become a Dictatorship?.  Having students listen to both helps them see and understand conflicting views on the presidency.  

3) Also, for each branch of government, I start off the discussion by handing out a copy of the corresponding Article of the Constitution.  I break them into groups and have them summarize their section into today's language for their classmates.  I also have them pick out where the enumerated powers are and where any implied powers orgininate from.  

I hope these are helpful!  

Andrea, if you could email me at michael.panosh@gotoltc.edu and share I would really appreciate it.  I absolutely need to supplement my current instruction with more hands-on activities.  I have a class this semester that is so quiet, they barely respond and I need all the help I can get!

Thanks to those that have helped.  I am struggling this semester with a group that simply does not want to participate.  If anyone can email me at michael.panosh@gotoltc.edu with activities I would appreciate it.  It helps so much!