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Grade 7 · Social studies · 35 minutes

Unit 2 · Viewpoints and Institutions · Lesson 2 of 2

Who Has Which Government Job?

Read a short constitutional excerpt alongside a civic explanation of divided responsibilities.

Mr. S Teaches · Original starter mini-lesson · MS7-SOC-04

Learning objective

Use a primary excerpt and explanatory account to distinguish legislative, executive and judicial roles.

Before you begin

  • Understand that a constitution establishes a governmental framework.

Gather your materials

  • Paper or notebook
  • Pencil and the passage, model directions or data printed in this lesson

Language to know

legislative
Relating to making laws.
executive
Relating to carrying out and administering laws.
judicial
Relating to interpreting law and resolving legal disputes.

Understand the concept

Primary excerpt, U.S. Constitution, Article I, Section 1: “All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress.” Original explanatory account: The U.S. constitutional framework assigns lawmaking to Congress, executive responsibilities to the President, and federal judicial power to courts. Branches also check one another in defined ways: a President can veto legislation, and Congress can override a veto with the required supermajorities. This is a selected historical civics model, not a complete account of every power or the details of current legal disputes.

Teach it step by step

  1. Read the primary excerpt and identify the institution named as receiving legislative powers.
  2. Read the explanation and make three role cards, distinguishing lawmaking, administration and legal interpretation.
  3. Trace a hypothetical bill, presidential veto and congressional override; explain why the process involves more than one branch.
  4. Write a claim about divided power using the excerpt and a separate claim supported only by the explanatory account.

Make the thinking visible

Worked example or model response

The excerpt directly supports “The Constitution assigns the stated legislative powers to Congress.” It does not by itself describe a presidential veto. The explanatory account supplies that process, so a careful reader names which source supports which claim.

Guided practice

Together sort these actions by the role emphasized: voting on a bill, administering a federal program and deciding a federal legal dispute.

Independent practice

Write four sentences explaining a hypothetical disagreement over a bill. Identify one statement supported by the primary excerpt, one by the explanation and one detail needing the fuller Constitution.

Quick assessment

Can a source’s short excerpt establish everything about a government institution?

Answer key & assessment criteria

Answers and teaching guidance

  1. Guided: Voting on a bill emphasizes legislative work; administering a program emphasizes executive work; deciding a legal dispute emphasizes judicial work. Real situations can involve interacting branches.
  2. Independent: Criteria include accurate roles, a plausible veto/override sequence, proper distinction of source support and a question about omitted details, such as voting thresholds.
  3. Quick check: No. Excerpts must be read in context; this clause does not list every power, limit or interaction.

Look for: Look for a claim that answers this lesson’s question, accurate use of the supplied evidence and an explanation of a limit or alternative. Ask the learner to point to the detail supporting each inference.

Make it work for your learner

More support

Color-code each institution and use arrows to trace the hypothetical bill.

Extension challenge

Read the linked full Constitution’s veto provision and annotate what the short explanation leaves out, citing the relevant article and section.

Selected contributions · Official sources

Standards connections

Subject-content alignment not yet verified

Supporting Common Core literacy connection

RH.6-8.1

Common Core · Grades 6–8

Use source details to support a historical interpretation.

Read the official standard ↗

The provided social studies passage/source is explicitly analyzed in the activity. This selected literacy practice does not establish subject-content alignment or complete coverage of the standard.

Source and mapping checked 2026-11-04. This mini-lesson contributes selected skills; it does not claim full attainment.

Background & original sources

Use these official records to place the lesson’s excerpt or paraphrase in context.