Follow that Bill - Tour
Tour Information
Available from September to April
"Follow that Bill" is a curriculum based, on-site, interactive tour which examines the specific steps needed for a bill to become a law in Canada's Parliament. Specially designed for Grades 4 to 6 (Cycles 2 and 3 in Quebec), this tour is an excellent complement to a unit on federal governance, its practices and procedures. Your students will:
- Choose a bill and introduce it;
- Play the role(s) of Senators and Members of Parliament;
- Debate, amend and learn how to pass a Bill through each of the three levels of Parliament;
- Discuss laws that affect their everyday lives;
- Explore the differences between the Senate and House of Commons.
Senate Chamber
Tour Overview:
- Theme: How a Bill becomes a law
- Grade Level(s): 4 to 6
- Curriculum Links: Canadian Institutions
and Procedures; Functions; People in Parliament; Confederation
and early history
- Length of Tour: 20-45 minutes
- Excluding security clearance
- Varies depending on Parliamentary activity
- Cost: Free
House of
Commons Chamber
Why should I take my students on this tour?
- It is a student centred, grade appropriate tour.
- It is linked directly to Canadian provincial and territorial curricula.
- It uses role play and interactivity as learning techniques, allowing your students to ‘become’ Senators and MP’s.
- It provides students with the opportunity to transform what they have learned in the classroom into practice, live in the Centre Block of Canada's Parliament!
What will my students learn on this tour?
Following the tour, your students will be able:
- To demonstrate the ability to understand and explain the work of Senators and Members of Parliament in the Chambers;
- To describe the various steps involved in making federal laws;
- To describe the roles of key players in Canada's Parliament;
- To demonstrate knowledge of key historical terms/events in the Canadian Parliament;
- To identify and describe the role of Parliament on the lives of Canadians and Canada as a whole.
What do teachers who have taken the tour think?
"The tour was very effective in allowing the students to participate in order to understand how bills become laws."
"It was a great way to solidify concepts explored in class in a real world setting."
"Children love hands-on learning and will remember the experience for a long time."
