Idaho Social Studies 9-12.GOV.32
The Standard
Identify leadership positions of the legislative branch, including majority and minority leaders, the president pro tempore, the role of the Vice president, and the Speaker of the House.
Idaho Content Standards: K-12 Social Studies · Function And Structure of the U.S. Political System
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students match leadership titles to the House, Senate, or both chambers and describe each job. They explain who presides, who leads each party, and who can break a Senate tie.
What Mastery Looks Like
- A student identifies the Speaker as a House leader and the president pro tempore and vice president as Senate presiding officers. They identify majority and minority leaders in both chambers and explain that the vice president can break a Senate tie.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may put the Speaker in charge of both chambers or call the vice president a House leader. Some think the president pro tempore breaks Senate ties, or that party leaders exist in only one chamber.
How to Assess It
- Exit ticket: Write who can preside over the Senate when the vice president is absent, who breaks a Senate tie, and who presides over the House. Then name both party leader titles.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Hand out leadership role cards and stage a House session and a tied Senate vote; students stand by their chamber and act out their jobs.
Ask students to write two sentences explaining why the vice president can break a Senate tie but not a House tie.
Give pairs title and job cards; have them match each leader to a chamber and role, then check against an answer key.
Open the House and Senate leadership webpages; students find current officeholders and label each leader's chamber and job on a chart.
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