Constitutional Analysis

What is Congress and why is it there?

Read Article 1 of the US Constitution.

Summarise the role and purpose of
Congress in 4 bullet points.
*not a list of powers!
• Sets up a bicameral legislature
• President mentioned as a check on Congress
• Details how House and Senate to be set up
• Article 1 Section 8 – Interstate Commerce Clause (excuse to
interfere?) and ‘elastic clause’ (left open possibility to
legislate on important issues)
 Enquiry Question:
What is the structure and role of Congress?
 Learning Outcomes
• To explain the bicameral structure of Congress
• To analyse the roles of Congress
 The Importance of Congress
• When the USA broke away from the UK in 1776, the first system of
government consisted only of a legislature.
• The Articles of Confederation provided America with no executive or
judiciary because it was through that policies should be decided
collectively and then implemented by the 13 individual states.
• This was intended to ensure that no monarch-like figure could
emerge.
• This system of government proved inadequate to meet the
challenges facing the young country and was replaced by the current
system devised at the Philadelphia Convention in 1787.
• However, even in the revised system, there was an intention that
policy would be made collectively to avoid the emergence of a
monarch-like figure.
• Congress was therefore expected to be the most important and most
powerful branch of government.
 The Importance of Congress
The Legislative Branch
• General legislation was the responsibility of both
houses, with each having the ability to put
forward legislative proposals and with each
separately examining those proposals.
• The executive branch, not the legislative branch,
was expected to take the lead in foreign affairs.
• Apart from that, its only role was to implement
the decisions of Congress.
The US Congress is a bicameral legislature which includes
the House of Representatives and the Senate.

Questions
• Why is Congress bicameral?
Watch the video clip!
• What does bicameral mean?
• What are the Senate and House of Representatives are for?
• Outline a brief history of the institutions.
 Constitutional Analysis
Constitutional Requirements for
Membership of Congress
READ ARTICLE 1
• What constitutional requirements are there for a
Senator?
• What constitutional requirements are there for a
member of the House of Representatives?
• Why are these in place?
• Is there any reason (you can think of) why the
requirements may be different?
 House of Senate
Representatives
435 members 100 members
Elected for 2 year terms Elected for 6 year term
Elections of whole House Elections of 1/3 of Senate
every 2 years every 2 years

Need to be 25 years old + Need to be 30 years old +

Need to be a citizen of the US Need to be a citizen of the US
for 7 years + for 9 years +

Need to be a resident in the Need to be a resident in the

state for which they are state for which they are
standing standing
 Learning Outcomes
• To explain the bicameral structure of Congress
• To analyse the roles of Congress
What does Congress do?
Studying a diagram
YOUR TASK:
• Look at the diagram.
• You will be split into four groups.
• One person in each group will be
the reporter, a second will take
notes, and a third will write your
group's responses on each
worksheet.
• Work collaboratively to fill out
“Studying the Diagram
(Worksheet)” and prepare to
report their responses to the rest
of the class.
• Each group will then share their
responses.
 What does Congress do?
How does Congress fulfil its roles?
YOUR TASK:
• There will now be 20 game
pieces distributed to randomly
selected students.
• Work collaboratively as a whole
class to identify the best match
of each game piece to a location
on the perimeter of the
diagram.

Hint: The single letters printed on

each game piece will spell out a
three word phrase when all the
game pieces have been correctly
placed.
 What does Congress do?
Analysing Functions of Congress
YOUR TASK:
• Return to your original four
groups.
• You will be assigned one
quadrant of the filled-in
diagram your group.
• Use “Analysing the Diagram
(Worksheet)” to analyse
your assigned quadrant of
the board, and prepare to
report back your responses
to the class.
• Each reporter will share
their group's results.
 What does Congress do?
Analysing Primary Source Documents
YOUR TASK:
• Working in pairs, you will be given
one of 20 documents and the
corresponding miniature
• Complete “Analysing Primary
Source Documents (Worksheet)”
to analyse your document.
• Place the miniature version of the
document on the game piece
containing the action of Congress
that it most closely matches.
• You will then explain to the class
the placement of it on the
diagram.
 What does Congress do?
Analysing Primary Source Documents
YOUR TASK:
• Return to your original
four groups.
• Work collaboratively to
answer the questions
on “Reflection
Questions
(Worksheet)”
• Each group's reporter
will share their results
with the class.
 Learning Outcomes
• To explain the bicameral structure of Congress
• To analyse the roles of Congress
 There are 100 senators, 2 from each of the 50 states.
Use the post-its to work together as a class to identify all 50.
 Homework
Application Task:
N/A
Flipped Learning Preparation Task:
Functions and Structure of Power in Congress
(McKay p183-193)
Stretch & Challenge Task
The Role of Congress in American Society