Entry #1

1. Brief Description- I utilized the analytical graphic organizer entitled “Main Ideas” at the start of each new unit for my government class.

2. Details: I basically put a simplified version of the entire government, including federal, state, and local. One of the “topics” would be “National Government”. The three subtopics would be the three branches (Legislative, Executive, and Judicial), and the details would be the specific parts of each branch (Senate and House for Legislative, President, Cabinet, and Federal Bureaucracy for Executive, and The Supreme Court, Courts of Appeals, and District Courts for Judicial). Like I said before, I use the map at the beginning of each unit, and also come back to it throughout the unit. I also use different colors for the different branches just to help differentiate.

3. Reflection: I find that this graphic organizer helps students to “group” facts that we learn in their minds, which makes for easier retrieval later. Also, it acts as a map, allowing students to refresh their memories on where we have been, what we’re on now, and where we are going content-wise in the class. So for example, a student could be confused when we go from one day talking about filibusters and conference committees to people in dressed in robes giving their “opinions” on cases about “so-and so versus this-and-that”. It could be confusing. But, with the use of the government main ideas chart, they realize that “ok, we are moving from one branch of the national government, Legislative/Congress, to another branch of the national government, Judicial/Supreme Court”. I have the feeling that it will especially come in handy when I start talking about state and local governments, so when I start throwing out terms like “Governor” and “Sales Tax”, they can just look at the chart and see that underneath the main topic of “National Government” is the main topic “State government”, and realize that we have different levels of government just like we have different branches. It should also help them see parallels between the branches of each level of gov’t (governor is to president as general assembly is to congress).