Ben's Guide for U.S. Government for Kids

Details

Activity Description

Ben's Guide to U. S. Government for Kids is a service of the U.S. Government Printing Office that provides electronic access to information about U.S. history and government. This site is organized by levles and ages: Apprentice 4-8, Journeyman 9-13,  Master14+.

 

This site is particularly useful in teaching the basics of U.S. Government as needed in the new 2014 GED test. Assign each topic to a student or student pair. Have them read about the topic and write about the topic and present what they learned to the class.

Preparation

1. Preview the site and links. The icon at the top of the page just to the right of the search field it a link to information for Teachers and Parents This includes Learning Adventures, downloadable Inforgraphics on the Branches of Governent and How Laws are Implement, U.S. Government Web sites for Kids, U.S. Government Web sites for Educators
2. Make summary assignments.
3. Print the Example Document titled "U.S. Government" (above) or send it to students via their e-mail or use a common online site such as Dropbox or Google Drive.

How-To

1. Discuss/brainstorm government topics with the class.
2. Use this Web site as in-class reading or use it as a resource for students to learn more about topics such as branches of government, how laws are made, national vs. state government, election process, citizenship, or symbols of government.
3. Assign summary writing—model, write, edit, revise, write on computer, share/publish. You can use the Example Document for student assignment
4. Under the section "How Laws Are Made: The Language of the Law" there are links to two glossaries, one for the US Senate and one for the Congress, which can be used for vocabulary assignments.

Teacher Tips

The material at ages 9-13 is a more accessible reading level for ABE students.

More Ways

1. Under Games you will find that Branch-O-Mania has a game for each branch of the government.
2. The About Ben and GPO (link at the top of page) has a nice summary of Benjamin Franklin's accomplishments at a 4th-5th grade reading level. There are additional linked Resources including Ken Burns' four hour documentary, shorter PBS documentaries, and a Wikipedia entry about the Library Company of Philadelphia started by Ben Franklin
3. Assign the Historical Documents section to read as a class and discuss.
4. There is a section on Citizenship that could be used for Citizenship classes. You will find it under the U.S. icon in the upper right corner of the page header.

Program Areas

• ABE: Adult Basic Education

Levels

• Intermediate
• High

Documents

• US_Government.docx - U.S. Government

Subjects

• Reading
  • Government
• Writing
  • Report Writing

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