Civics & Government · 11th Grade

Active learning ideas

The Vice Presidency

Active learning works well for the Vice Presidency because the office’s evolution from ceremonial role to governing partner invites students to grapple with real decisions, documents, and debates. Memorizing constitutional clauses or historical dates alone won’t capture how informal relationships shape power, making role-play, timelines, and document analysis ideal for building both content knowledge and critical thinking.

• Common Core State Standards
• C3: D2.Civ.7.9-12
• C3: D2.His.16.9-12

• 20–45 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 4 activities

Activity 01

• Role Play
• 45 min · Small Groups

Role Play: VP Selection Committee

Students are assigned roles as campaign strategists for a hypothetical presidential candidate. Each group receives a candidate profile and must select a VP from among four options with different strengths and weaknesses (geographic balance, policy expertise, demographic representation, governing experience). Groups present and defend their selection to the class with strategic reasoning.

Explain the constitutional duties and modern roles of the Vice President.

Facilitation Tip

In the Role Play: VP Selection Committee, assign roles that require students to justify their choices using both constitutional rules and political strategy.

What to look for

Present students with a short biography of a historical Vice President (e.g., Hubert Humphrey, Al Gore). Ask them to identify two specific policy areas or initiatives they influenced and explain how their role differed from the constitutional duties.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Social Awareness
• Self-Awareness

Activity 02

• Think-Pair-Share
• 40 min · Whole Class

Timeline Activity: The Evolving Vice Presidency

Students build a collaborative timeline of major VP milestones from Adams through the current administration, identifying the key decisions, relationships, and historical events that changed the office. They annotate each entry with 'constitutional,' 'statutory,' or 'conventional' to classify the source of each change.

Analyze how the Vice Presidency has evolved over time.

Facilitation Tip

For the Timeline Activity: The Evolving Vice Presidency, have students pair primary sources with a one-sentence explanation of how each event expanded or limited the VP’s role.

What to look for

Pose the question: 'Has the Vice Presidency become too powerful?' Facilitate a debate where students use historical examples and constitutional text to support their arguments about the appropriate scope of the VP's influence.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Awareness
• Relationship Skills

Activity 03

• Think-Pair-Share
• 35 min · Pairs

Document Analysis: VP Tie-Breaking Votes

Students research two significant Senate tie-breaking votes by the Vice President (the 2017 DeVos confirmation, the 2021 COVID relief legislation) and analyze the policy stakes, the partisan context, and what each vote reveals about the VP's constitutional role. Each pair prepares a brief explanation for the class.

Evaluate the significance of the Vice President's role in contemporary politics.

Facilitation Tip

During Document Analysis: VP Tie-Breaking Votes, ask students to count how often the VP actually presides versus how often they simply wait for a tie.

What to look for

Ask students to write down the most significant change in the Vice Presidency since the mid-20th century and one reason why this change is important for the functioning of the executive branch.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Awareness
• Relationship Skills

Activity 04

• Think-Pair-Share
• 20 min · Pairs

Think-Pair-Share: Does the VP Have Real Power?

Students read short profiles of two Vice Presidents from different eras (Garret Hobart and Dick Cheney) and discuss with a partner what changed and why. The class then identifies the structural, political, and personal factors that determine how much influence a VP actually has in any given administration.

Explain the constitutional duties and modern roles of the Vice President.

Facilitation Tip

In the Think-Pair-Share: Does the VP Have Real Power?, provide a sentence stem like 'The VP’s influence depends on…' to structure responses.

What to look for

Present students with a short biography of a historical Vice President (e.g., Hubert Humphrey, Al Gore). Ask them to identify two specific policy areas or initiatives they influenced and explain how their role differed from the constitutional duties.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Awareness
• Relationship Skills

A few notes on teaching this unit

Experienced teachers approach the Vice Presidency by balancing constitutional text with political reality. Avoid presenting the office as a static hierarchy; instead, emphasize that power flows from relationships and historical moments. Use primary documents to show how practices evolve, and encourage students to question whether growth in the role strengthens or weakens democratic accountability. Research suggests that framing the VP as a case study in informal power helps students grasp the difference between formal authority and actual influence.

Successful learning looks like students explaining how the Vice Presidency’s functions have changed over time, citing specific examples from activities. They should distinguish between constitutional duties and modern roles, and assess how personal relationships and historical context influence power. Clear, evidence-based discussions and clear written responses show understanding.

---

Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During the Timeline Activity: The Evolving Vice Presidency, watch for students assuming the VP routinely presides over Senate sessions. Redirect them by asking them to note how many entries in the timeline actually describe the VP actively running the Senate.

  During Document Analysis: VP Tie-Breaking Votes, clarify that the VP’s constitutional role is narrow by having students tally how often they cast tie-breaking votes versus preside. Use the Senate’s official records to show that active VP involvement is rare and usually brief.

• During the Think-Pair-Share: Does the VP Have Real Power?, watch for students assuming the Vice Presidency is always the second most powerful office in government.

  During the Timeline Activity: The Evolving Vice Presidency, have students compare the influence of different VPs by ranking their policy impact using the timeline entries. Ask them to explain why some VPs were more influential than others despite similar constitutional roles.

• During the Role Play: VP Selection Committee, watch for students selecting a running mate from the same home state without considering the 12th Amendment constraint.

  During the Role Play: VP Selection Committee, require students to explain how their choice complies with the 12th Amendment by verifying that the VP is from a different state than the presidential candidate. Provide the constitutional text as a reference during the activity.

---

Methods used in this brief

• Role Play
• Think-Pair-Share