My+Senator+and+Me+Reinforcing+Activity

__**Objective:**__ Students will be able to explain why it is important to be an informed citizen by doing research on state senators.

__**Materials:**__ Class Computers Construction Paper Pens/Pencil Markers/Colored Pencils/Crayons Book //My Senator and Me: A Dog's Eye View of Washington DC//

__**Procedures:**__ 1. Read //My Senator and Me: A Dog’s Eye View of Washington, D.C.//

2. Students will be placed in groups of two or three.

3. Each group will research a senator and make a poster by answering the following questions: Who is the Senator you are researching? How long has your Senator been serving? What was the education of your Senator? What schools did your Senator attend? What Committee Assignments does he/she have? What Political Party does the Senator belong to? What was/is their occupation besides being a Senator? What issues does the Senator Support? Does the Senator have any negative ads? Two student designed questions.

4. Do a poster walk so that the students can read about all of the different senators. While they are walking around the room have students write down common themes about the senators (education level, occupation, etc). What do you notice about the Senators? Are the representative of the American people?

5. How does knowing who the various senators are help us become informed citizens? Discuss how it is important for students to be informed citizens and how they can use this information to help them make informed decisions.