Topic 2: Political Institutions in Germany

Lesson 3
Step #1: Gathering Information

Strategy: Computer Research

Activities

Make copies of Handout #14 (The Political Parties) and distribute them to the students.

Divide the class into six groups and assign each a political label:

Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union (http://www.cdu.de)
Social Democratic Party of Germany (http://www.spd.de)
Free Democratic Party (http://www.fdp.de)
Alliance 90 / The Greens (http://www.gruene.de)
The Left Party / Die Linke (http://www.linksfraktion.de)

Have each group review the handout to learn basic information about their political party and then go online to do further research. Use the above websites as a starting point for your research.

When was the party founded?
How many members does it have?
What does it stand for?

Would you belong to this party? Why or why not?

Have the students use the chart below to record their information:

Printable Student View

When was the party founded? How many members does it have? What does it stand for Would you belong to this party? Why or why not?

Have each group use the information on their chart to create a political poster that depicts what their party stands for. Have them show it through pictures and dialogue. Have them use their poster to talk to the class about their German party affiliation.

Use Transparency #18 (Political Parties in the German Bundestag) to summarize the lesson. Use the previous research questions as you review each political party.