Government Study Guide

-Below are the topics that we have or will go over in class before the test. The test will be Friday, November 18th.

The capital city of the United States of America is Washington, D.C. It was named after George Washington.

There are 3 Levels of Government. They are Local, State, and Federal.

Local

  • The Mayor is in charge at the Local Level. Michael Boehm is Lenexa’s Mayor. He meets at the City Hall in Lenexa.

State

  • The Governor is in charge at the State Level. Sam Brownback is the Governor of Kansas. He meets at the state capitol in Topeka, Kansas. The governor’s job is to be the leader of the state’s executive branch of government.

Federal

  • The President is in charge at the Federal Level. Barack Obama is the President of our country, The United States of America. He lives and works in the White House located in Washington, D.C. (our country’s capital).

People are elected into these offices by people voting. Voting happens during an election so that citizens can choose/elect their leaders.

The three branches of government are Executive, Legislative, and Judicial.

Executive

  • The president(Barack Obama) is in charge of this branch. Only the president and his family live in the white house.
  • This branch carries out the laws/sees that the laws are obeyed. The president of the United States is the head of the armed forces. The president gets to veto, turn down, any bills that are made by Congress.

Legislative

  • Congress is in charge of this branch. Congress is made up of two houses, the Senate and the House of Representatives.
  • The Senate has 100 members, two people from each state.
  • The House of Representatives has 435 members. The number of representatives for each state depends on its population.
  • This branch gets to make the laws.
  • Congress meets in the Capitol building.

Judicial

  • The Supreme Court is in charge of this branch.
  • It makes sure that the laws are fair and based on the Constitution. The judges of the Supreme Court are called justices.
  • The judicial branch meets in the Supreme Court building.
  • The capital of our country isWashington, D.C.
  • Who is the mayor of Lenexa? Michael Boehm
  • Who is the governor of Kansas? Sam Brownback
  • The governor’s job is to be the leader of a state’sExecutivebranch of government.
  • Who is the President of the United States? Barack Obama
  • During an election, citizens are able toelect/choosetheir leaders.
  • What are the judges on the Supreme Court called?justices

Vocabulary that you should be familiar with (fill in the blank section with a word bank or multiple choice):

  • ballot—a form used during elections
  • Bill of Rights—part of the Constitution that protects the rights and freedoms of Americans.
  • boycott—when people refuse to buy products from a certain business
  • candidate—a person who tries to get elected to do a job in government for a community
  • citizen—a person who has the right to live in a certain place
  • constitution—the document that sets up the basic rules of the United States government
  • demonstrations—a gathering of people to show shared feelings or opinions
  • elect--choose
  • election—a time set aside for voting
  • patriotism—a feeling of pride in one’s country
  • supreme court—the most important court in a country or state
  • volunteer—a person who agrees to do a task without being paid for it

Fill in the Blank Study Guide

Directions: Try to fill this out without looking at the other sheet. See what you already know. What you don’t know, keep studying.

  1. What is the capital of The United States? ______
  2. Why do people vote during an election? ______
  3. Who is the mayor of Lenexa?______
  4. Who is the governor of Kansas? ______
  5. What is the governor’s job? ______
  6. What are the 3 branches of government? What is the job and who is in charge of each branch of government?
  7. Branch- ______

In Charge-______

Job- ______

  1. Branch- ______

In Charge-______

Job- ______

  1. Branch- ______

In Charge-______

Job- ______

  1. Who can veto a bill? ______
  2. Who meets in the capital building? ______
  1. What two parts make up Congress?
  2. ______How many members are there? ______
  3. ______How many members are there? ______
  4. What are judges on the Supreme Court called? ______
  5. What are 4 of our basic rights as citizens?
  6. ______
  7. ______
  8. ______
  9. ______
  10. What are 3 responsibilities citizens have?
  11. ______
  12. ______
  13. ______
  14. ______
  15. Be able to tell what the Constitution is, what it does, what it is based on, and where it was written.