There are 540 rooms and 850 doorways in the main Capitol building!

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STANDARDS

Common Core: RH.6-8.1, RH.6-8.2, RH.6-8.3, RH.6-8.4, RH.6-8.5, WHST.6-8.2, WHST.6-8.9, RI.6-8.1, RI.6-8.3, RI.6-8.5, RI.6-8.7, RI.6-8.10, SL.6-8.1, SL.6-8.2

NCSS: Individuals, Groups, and Institutions • Power, Authority, and Governance • Civic Ideals and Practices

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JS EXPLAINS

A Day in the Life of . . .

A Member of Congress

Ever wished that you were in charge and could make our country’s rules? Trust us: It’s not as easy as you might think! Just ask a member of Congress, which writes the nation’s laws. Read on to find out what a day as a United States lawmaker might be like.

September 2, 2019
By Tricia Culligan

8:00 A.M.

Welcome to Work! 

You’re a representative from Pennsylvania. Like all 535 members of the U.S. Congress, you work in Washington, D.C. Congress has two chambers, the Senate and the House of Representatives (which you belong to). Both meet in the U.S. Capitol. Together, they form the legislative branch of the government.

8:30 A.M.

Prepare for Debate

Your key responsibility: to write, debate, and pass proposals for new laws, called bills. Earlier this year, you wrote a climate change bill inspired by a middle school class from your district who asked you to take action to help save the planet. After months of meetings and revisions, your bill is ready to be voted on by the House. But first, representatives will be debating your bill, so you prepare your arguments. 

9:00 A.M.

Coffee With a Bill Supporter

To get psyched for the debate, you meet with a fellow representative from Pennsylvania. Believe it or not, there are 18 of you! That’s because states with large populations, like yours, get more reps in the 435-member House. Each state gets two senators, for a total of 100. Overall, this ensures both large and small states are fairly represented.

10:00 A.M.

Debate!

It’s finally time for the House to hear and debate your bill. A majority of representatives agree with your proposal, and before you know it, it’s time to vote.

10:45 A.M.

House Vote

For a bill to pass, a majority of members in both chambers of Congress must approve it. You vote yea (yes) for this one, obviously. A large majority of other House members do too. Your climate change bill passes in the House!

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The House uses an electronic voting system (above), but the Senate takes an old-school approach. Each senator actually says “yea” or “nay.”

11:00 A.M.

Text a Senator

Your bill’s next step is a Senate vote. But that could be months away. You text a friend in the Senate to say it’s headed her way. If a majority of senators approve the bill, it’ll go to the president to approve or veto (reject). Only if a bill is passed by Congress and approved by the president does it become law. This system was set up in the Constitution to balance power among the three branches of government—the legislative branch, the executive branch, and the judicial branch.

12:00 P.M.

Lunchtime!

You’ve got to eat, but you also have work to do too—so you wolf down a sandwich at the James Madison Memorial Building. It’s home to the Library of Congress, the largest library in the world. You head there next to do some research on NASA, the U.S. space agency, for your next meeting.

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The Capitol campus is like a little city, with its own post office and banks. It even has a private subway system.

1:00 P.M.

Committee Meeting

The House has 20 different committees that consider bills and oversee programs and agencies, such as the FBI and NASA. You’re on the Appropriations Committee, which helps determine what the government should spend money on. Today, you discuss how much to put toward sending astronauts to the moon. 

3:00 P.M.

Reelection Prep

You and your campaign manager brainstorm a new campaign hashtag for your reelection. House members are elected to two-year terms, so your next election is always right around the corner. (Senators serve six-year terms.) Holding frequent elections is a way to encourage members of Congress to listen to the people they represent.

5:00 P.M.

Meet With Students

asiseeit/E+/Getty Images

You invited the students who inspired your climate change bill to travel to D.C. for the vote—and now is your chance to meet them. You’re thrilled to tell them the bill passed in the House! This is why you always wanted to work in Congress: to serve as the voice of Americans, teens included.

JS Explains
U.S. News
Government and Politics
executive branch

(n) the branch of government responsible for enforcing laws. In the United States, the president, vice president, and the Cabinet make up the executive branch.


The executive branch is led by the U.S. president and includes agencies such as the departments of Defense, Justice, Education, and Agriculture.
Senate

(n) one of the two chambers of the U.S. Congress; its 100 members serve six-year terms
 

According to the U.S. Constitution, each state elects two people to the Senate.
judicial branch

(n) the branch of government responsible for dealing with all legal cases involving the government


The national courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court, make up the judicial branch of the federal government.
district

(n) an area represented by an elected official


She was elected to represent our state’s eighth congressional district.
House of Representatives

(n) one of the two chambers of the U.S. Congress; its 435 members serve two-year terms
 

According to the U.S. Constitution, the number of officials who represent each state in the House of Representatives is based on population.
bills

 (n) proposed laws


The spending bill was sent to the president for his signature after Congress voted to approve it.
legislative branch

(n) the branch of government having the duty and power of making laws. In the United States, Congress is the legislative branch.


Article I of the U.S. Constitution, which focuses on the legislative branch, spells out the powers and responsibilities of Congress.
Constitution

(n) in the United States, the official document that states the powers and duties of the government and guarantees certain rights to the people. (In general, a constitution is a set of laws by which a country, state, or organization is governed.)


The powers and responsibilities of the president of the United States are spelled out in Article II of the U.S. Constitution.
U.S. Congress

(n) the lawmaking body of the U.S. government, composed of the Senate and the House of Representatives


Members of the U.S. Congress debated whether to pass a law that would set new food-safety regulations.
climate change

(n) a long-term change in Earth’s climate, including an increase in the average global temperature, rising sea levels, and more extreme weather events


Most scientists agree that burning fossil fuels contributes to climate change.

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