Kentucky Power Play: Who Runs the Bluegrass?
Students build a Kentucky Power Map poster that shows how power moves among the governor, legislature, courts, county officials, and city council. They identify current Kentucky leaders and label which branch or level of government each serves. In pairs, students cite sections of the Kentucky Constitution to show how power is divided and checked. They add a short Learning Journal Log at the start and end to show what they knew, what changed, and where their understanding grew. Then they prepare a civic case study poster that compares state and local power using one real civic issue. A Kentucky legislator, county official, and city council member may join for a brief Q&A so students can compare how citizens reach state and local leaders. Students finish with a Power Map Showcase gallery walk, sharing posters with classmates, teachers, and invited community partners.
Steps
| # | What teachers do | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ask students to begin a Learning Journal Log by writing what they currently think about who holds power in Kentucky, how that power is checked, and how citizens can reach state and local leaders. | 5 min |
| 2 | Guide pairs in using current, reliable government information to identify Kentucky’s governor, selected legislators, relevant court leaders, county officials, and city council members and label each person’s branch or level of government. | 10 min |
| 3 | Provide teacher-obtained print or digital copies of the Kentucky Constitution and direct pairs to locate, record, and explain sections that establish or check the powers of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches. | 15 min |
| 4 | Facilitate a brief Q&A with a Kentucky legislator, county official, and local city council member, asking students to record each official’s responsibilities, limits, and ways citizens can contact or address that office. | 12 min |
| 5 | Support pairs as they create a Kentucky Power Map poster with labeled boxes for the governor, legislature, courts, county officials, and city council; arrows showing how authority, checks, decisions, or citizen input move among them; and constitutional citations beside relevant connections. | 20 min |
| 6 | Direct pairs to add a civic case study section about one real Kentucky issue that compares state and local authority, names the current leaders involved, explains where citizens could act, and marks one place where the pair’s understanding changed. | 13 min |
| 7 | Host a Power Map Showcase gallery walk in which pairs display their posters, explain one power relationship and one constitutional citation, and gather concise feedback from classmates, teachers, and invited community partners. | 10 min |
| 8 | Ask students to complete their Learning Journal Log by describing what changed in their understanding, citing one feature of their poster as evidence, and naming one effective way a citizen can reach power in Kentucky. | 5 min |
| Total | 90 mins |
Preparation
- Verify current officeholders using official Kentucky state, county, and city government sources. Prepare a reference list with each leader’s name, title, branch or level of government, and the date verified.
- Obtain selected sections of the current Kentucky Constitution that address executive, legislative, and judicial powers and checks among branches. Mark section numbers but leave students to identify and explain relevant evidence; provide print copies or accessible digital text.
- Prepare poster paper, markers, sticky notes, string or arrows, and labels for governor, legislature, courts, county officials, and city council. Display the compelling question and require each map to show roles, connections, checks on power, current leaders, and cited constitutional sections.
- Arrange a brief visit or video call with a Kentucky legislator, county official, and local city council member when available. Send the guests the activity focus in advance, set equal time limits, and prepare student questions about responsibilities, limits on authority, and how citizens contact each level; if guests are unavailable, obtain current public statements or official role descriptions for comparison.
- Set up Learning Journal Logs by having students divide one notebook page into two sections labeled Start and End. Under Start, students respond to “Who holds power in Kentucky, and how can citizens reach them?”; under End, they record what changed, evidence that changed it, and where their understanding grew.
- Post civic case study poster success criteria: compare state and local authority through one real civic issue, identify relevant current leaders, cite constitutional evidence where applicable, trace how citizens can reach decision-makers, and include a brief statement of learning growth. Select suitable local issues in advance, such as road funding, zoning, public safety, or park policy, and ensure students can investigate them without sharing private information.
- Create gallery-walk space for the Power Map Showcase and place two sticky-note stacks at each display for feedback labeled “Clear power connection” and “Question or suggestion.” Invite classmates, teachers, and community partners, and plan partner roles so every student presents, answers questions, and reviews peers’ work within the 90-minute lesson.
Teacher Notes
Before class, verify current officeholders on official Kentucky, county, and city websites; prepare poster paper, markers, and accessible excerpts of relevant Kentucky Constitution sections. Begin and end with a Learning Journal Log—a brief notebook entry responding to “What do I understand about power in Kentucky?” and “What changed, and what evidence changed it?” Have pairs create a labeled power map plus a civic case-study panel that names leaders, traces one issue across state and local government, and cites constitutional sections accurately. If community partners attend, follow school visitor procedures, provide student questions in advance, and limit the Q&A to 10 minutes; otherwise, use verified public statements or agency descriptions. Assess accurate roles, branches and levels, constitutional evidence, issue comparison, and documented growth, then reserve 10–15 minutes for the Power Map Showcase gallery walk with classmates, teachers, and invited partners.
Student Instructions
Begin with a Learning Journal Log: write what you currently think about who holds power in Kentucky and one question you have. With a partner, create a Kentucky Power Map poster that names current leaders and uses labeled arrows and cited Kentucky Constitution sections to show how power is divided and checked among the governor, legislature, courts, county officials, and city council. Add a civic case study about one real issue, comparing state and local authority; during the guest Q&A, ask a Kentucky legislator, county official, or city council member how citizens can reach the appropriate leader, or use teacher-provided responses if guests are unavailable. Finish your journal by describing what changed in your thinking and where your understanding grew, add that reflection to the poster, and present your work during the Power Map Showcase gallery walk for classmates, teachers, and community partners.
Success Criteria
- I can accurately identify current Kentucky leaders and label the branch or level of government in which each serves.
- I can create a clear Kentucky Power Map showing how power is divided and checked among the governor, legislature, courts, county officials, and city council.
- I can cite relevant sections of the Kentucky Constitution and explain how each citation supports a connection on my map.
- I can use a real civic issue to compare the roles and powers of state and local government on a civic case study poster.
- I can use Learning Journal Logs to identify what I knew at the start, what changed, and where my understanding grew.
- I can clearly present my poster during the Power Map Showcase and use evidence from the map, case study, or community-partner Q&A to answer questions.
Differentiation
- Provide a color key for the poster: one color each for state executive, legislative, judicial, county, and city power. Give pairs movable notes labeled “leader,” “constitutional power,” “check on power,” and “citizen access point” so they can test relationships before drawing arrows.
- Prepare a short set of teacher-selected Kentucky Constitution excerpts with verified section numbers. Chunk each excerpt into brief passages and add prompts: “Who receives power?”, “What can this person or body do?”, and “Who can limit or check that power?”
- Use a Learning Journal Log with three prompts: “At the start, I thought…,” “Evidence that changed or confirmed my thinking was…,” and “Now I understand….” Pause midway for pairs to check that their case study includes current leaders, state and local roles, constitutional evidence, and a clear growth statement.
- Preteach key terms with plain-language definitions and visuals: branch, level of government, jurisdiction, veto, separation of powers, checks and balances, county official, and city council. Let students label poster relationships first with arrows and short phrases before writing full explanations.
- Provide sentence frames such as “Section ___ gives ___ the power to ___,” “___ checks this power by ___,” “At the state level ___, while at the local level ___,” and “A citizen could contact ___ by ___.” Allow students to discuss ideas in a familiar language before presenting in English.
- Before the partner Q&A or a teacher-provided summary if guests cannot attend, let students rehearse one question with a peer. Offer question starters including “Who decides…?”, “What happens when state and local leaders disagree?”, and “How can a citizen reach your office about…?”
- Ask students to add one contested or shared-power connection to the map, explaining why responsibility for their civic issue may involve more than one office or level of government and supporting the explanation with an additional Kentucky Constitution section.
- Have students verify each current leader through an official Kentucky, county, or city government source and add a small source box listing the office, source title, and access date; they may also compare how citizens contact each office.
- During the Power Map Showcase, invite students to serve as civic analysts who leave evidence-based questions for peers, such as identifying a missing check, an unclear jurisdiction, or another realistic route citizens could use to reach a decision-maker.
- For students with IEP or 504 needs, reduce copying demands by providing printed leader names, office labels, and teacher-selected constitutional excerpts that can be arranged on the poster. Allow speech-to-text, typed labels, a scribe, or an oral explanation recorded or delivered to the teacher.
- Break the 90-minute task into visible checkpoints with a timer: identify leaders, arrange the power map, add constitutional evidence, complete the civic case comparison, write the ending journal entry, and prepare one showcase explanation. Provide brief teacher check-ins at each assigned checkpoint.
- Offer flexible participation during the guest Q&A and gallery walk: students may submit a question in writing, present one section with a partner, use cue cards, or share privately with the teacher. Provide preferential seating, movement breaks, enlarged text, or a low-distraction work area according to documented plans.