How Our Laws Are Made

A text-based guide to the workings of Congress and the Federal lawmaking process from the source of an idea for a legislative proposal through its publication as a statute. As the majority of laws originate in the House of Representatives, the publication focuses principally on that body. This guide enables readers to gain a greater understanding of the Federal legislative process and its role as one of the foundations of the United States of America’s representative system of government.

Grades 7-12, 5, 6
Legislative Branch/Congress
Books

Congress in a Flash! (Lesson Plan)

Need to teach the legislative branch in a hurry? This lesson is designed to cover the basics in a single class period. Students learn what Congress is, what the Constitution says about the legislative branch, and how a bill becomes law. They analyze some actual language from the Constitution, compare the House and the Senate, and simulate the lawmaking process by reconciling two versions of the same fictional bill. This lesson is one in a series entitled “The Legislative Branch.”

Grades 8, 6, 7
Legislative Branch/Congress
Lesson Plans

How a Bill Becomes a Law (poster)

This 8.5″ x 11″ poster maps the many steps in the U.S. Federal lawmaking process from the introduction of a bill by any Member of Congress through passage by the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate and approved by the President of the United States.

Grades 11, 12, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10
Legislative Branch/Congress
Timelines