Structure of Congress Webquest for High School
A scavenger-hunt style webquest for 9th graders that walks students through the membership numbers, qualifications, and terms of members of the House and Senate in the 119th Congress. Students use official sites (clerk.house.gov and senate.gov) and provided data tables to answer fill-in-the-blank questions, building research and civic literacy skills, with a key-terms glossary (apportionment, delegate, resident commissioner) to support reading.
“create a webquest on the number of members, qualification, and terms of members of congress”
Teacher Guide & Tips
- Use as a 45 to 60 minute lab or station activity after a introductory lesson on bicameralism, or as homework following a unit on the legislative branch.
- Discussion question: Why do you think the Founders gave House members two-year terms and Senators six-year terms, and how might those differences shape how each chamber responds to public opinion?
- Scaffold for struggling readers: Pre-teach the key terms glossary together and pair students so one can navigate the websites while the other records answers in the data tables.
- Extension for advanced students: Ask them to compare the qualification requirements for Representatives, Senators, and the President, and explain why the Constitution sets age and citizenship rules as it does.
- Estimated time: 45 to 60 minutes, depending on how familiar students are with navigating official government websites.
What is Diffit?
Teachers use Diffit to get quality materials for their unique classrooms. Adjust difficulty, add scaffolds, or change the topic to get started.
Try Diffit for free“create a webquest on the number of members, qualification, and terms of members of congress”
Teacher Guide & Tips
- Use as a 45 to 60 minute lab or station activity after a introductory lesson on bicameralism, or as homework following a unit on the legislative branch.
- Discussion question: Why do you think the Founders gave House members two-year terms and Senators six-year terms, and how might those differences shape how each chamber responds to public opinion?
- Scaffold for struggling readers: Pre-teach the key terms glossary together and pair students so one can navigate the websites while the other records answers in the data tables.
- Extension for advanced students: Ask them to compare the qualification requirements for Representatives, Senators, and the President, and explain why the Constitution sets age and citizenship rules as it does.
- Estimated time: 45 to 60 minutes, depending on how familiar students are with navigating official government websites.
Structure of Congress Webquest for High School
A scavenger-hunt style webquest for 9th graders that walks students through the membership numbers, qualifications, and terms of members of the House and Senate in the 119th Congress. Students use official sites (clerk.house.gov and senate.gov) and provided data tables to answer fill-in-the-blank questions, building research and civic literacy skills, with a key-terms glossary (apportionment, delegate, resident commissioner) to support reading.
What is Diffit?
Teachers use Diffit to get quality materials for their unique classrooms. Adjust difficulty, add scaffolds, or change the topic to get started.
Try Diffit for free