Our Government Our Election

Objective
To understand how governments are elected and laws are made, students will learn about the structure of Saskatchewan’s provincial government. The primarily focus is the elected members of the legislature, but the Lieutenant Governor and the judiciary are also examined.

Procedure
1. Use the overhead The Three Branches of Government to introduce governance in Saskatchewan.
KEY QUESTIONS

• What politicians can you name? (This is an opportunity to distinguish Canada’s three levels of government, as well as First Nations governments, as defined in Lesson 1.2)
• What do you know about these people and the work they do?

2. To build on understandings of government and politicians, read Saskatchewan’s Governance: An Overview.
KEY QUESTIONS

• Is it the job of elected representatives to consider issues for the people, or consider issues with the people?
• MLAs are often engaged with the community. Have you seen or read about an MLA at work in the community? If so, where and how?

3. To learn about a few past MLAs and MLA candidates in Saskatchewan, assign Politician Names and Places.

4. To broaden understandings of government’s functions and specific MLAs, assign Considering MLAs and Ministries. Teachers may wish to assign specific MLAs and ministries. NOTE: If this resource is being taught during an election, this assignment should be adapted by profiling candidates for public office.

FURTHER EXPLORATIONS
5. For a closer examination of the judiciary’s role in governance should check out Canada’s Legal System: An Introduction. For an explanation of how judges are required to stay above the political fray, check out Judges and the Rule of Law in lesson four of Democracy and the Rule of Law.

6. Class tours of the Saskatchewan’s Legislative Assembly are an excellent opportunity to better-understand provincial government. Learn more at www.legassembly.sk.ca/visitors

7. To understand similarities between Canada’s colonial governance and the colonial governance of Ireland, check out Reconsidering A Modest Proposal.