Texas State History - Grade 4 - Texas Government, Founding Documents & Three Branches - Week 21 Full Curriculum

Teach Grade 4 Texas government through a complete five-day week built around a 6-stop Dynamic History interactive map investigation with 24 guided auto-graded tasks. Students compare the jobs of declarations, constitutions, and rights protections; examine the Texas Constitution of 1876, the U.S. Constitution, and the Bill of Rights; identify the legislative, executive, and judicial branches; and explain how statewide rules reach real institutions and communities across Texas.

This Week 21 resource coordinates the interactive Dynamic History module with Standard and Accessible print alternatives, a Texas Capitol video evidence lesson, a founding-documents source-and-branches simulation, and complete Day 3, Day 4, and Day 5 assessments. Teachers can use the full five-day sequence or select individual components to fit their schedule.

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What students practice

• Founding-document purpose: distinguish declarations that explain major political decisions from constitutions that organize and limit government and rights provisions that protect freedoms.
• Texas Constitution: explain how the Texas Constitution of 1876 organizes state government and divides power among three branches.
• U.S. founding documents: compare the Declaration of Independence, Constitution, and Bill of Rights by purpose, principle, structure, and legal effect.
• Three branches: identify the basic functions of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches and connect each branch to real Texas government spaces.
• Primary-source analysis: use document excerpts, preserved records, maps, and government spaces as evidence for historical and civic claims.
• Statewide reach: explain why Texas laws, constitutional rules, and state standards apply beyond Austin to communities across the state.
• Civic reasoning: use a neutral fictional Texas State Park bill to practice legislative discussion, executive action, judicial review, rights reasoning, and civil discourse.

The five-day week

• Day 1: Dynamic History Stops 1-3 - the Texas Declaration of Independence, the Texas Constitution of 1876, and the U.S. Declaration of Independence.
• Day 2: Dynamic History Stops 4-6 - the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights, the three branches of Texas government, and the statewide reach of government rules.
• Day 3: Inside Texas Government: Texas Capitol Video Evidence Guide using selected segments of a Texas Capitol tour to study real legislative, judicial, executive, and archival spaces.
• Day 4: Freedom Documents in Action source-and-branches simulation using founding-document evidence and a neutral fictional Texas State Park Clean Water Bill.
• Day 5: discussion, review, and a complete standalone final assessment.

What's included

• Dynamic History interactive module access with 6 guided stops and 24 auto-graded tasks.
• Stop-scoped map evidence, founding-document images, historical records, Texas government locations, and Standard and Accessible reading paths.
• 18-page Standard and 23-page Accessible print-module companions with equivalent learning targets for classrooms that need a paper option.
• 41-page all-in-one Teacher Guide and Answer Key with week-at-a-glance planning, substitute-ready daily lesson plans, Days 1-2 Dynamic History guidance, differentiation, source guidance, and complete assessment keys.
• Four-page Day 3 Texas Capitol Video Evidence Guide with required viewing segments, evidence collection, branch analysis, and a final claim.
• Seven-page Day 4 Freedom Documents in Action packet with document-job sorting, source cards, branch role cards, a fictional state-park bill, legislative/executive/judicial decisions, rights analysis, and reflection.
• Day 3 assessment with 10 vocabulary terms, 10 short-answer questions, 5 challenge questions, and a 20-question multiple-choice quiz.
• Day 4 assessment with 10 vocabulary terms, 10 short-answer questions, 5 challenge questions, and a 20-question multiple-choice quiz.
• Day 5 final assessment with 10 vocabulary terms, 10 short-answer questions, 5 challenge questions, and a 25-question multiple-choice quiz.
• Complete model answers, direct answer keys, standards alignment, discussion guidance, and evidence-based response support inside the single weekly Teacher Guide.

Video note: The Day 3 program was filmed several years ago and names officeholders from its filming date. Student work intentionally focuses on the offices, branches, government functions, buildings, documents, and institutional evidence rather than memorizing the names of officeholders shown.

Built for flexible classrooms

Use the complete five-day sequence, shorten the week by selecting one assessment format, or use the Standard and Accessible print modules when devices are limited. Both reading paths teach the same assessed ideas, so students can work at different reading levels without being assigned different learning targets.

Assessment options

The Dynamic History module uses 24 guided, auto-graded formative tasks across Days 1-2. The Day 3 video assessment, Day 4 source-and-simulation assessment, and Day 5 final assessment remain separate so teachers can choose the mix of visual evidence, primary-source analysis, civic simulation, written response, challenge questions, and multiple choice that fits their classroom.

Best fit

Designed for Grade 4 Texas Social Studies and aligned to Week 21 learning targets for founding documents, the Texas Constitution of 1876, the U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights, three branches of government, rights and limits, primary-source evidence, civil discourse, and democratic decision making. This resource works well for whole-class instruction, partner work, small groups, independent practice, social studies centers, substitute plans, review, and blended print/digital classrooms.

Technology note: Dynamic History and the Day 3 Texas Capitol video require internet access. The Standard and Accessible print modules and the Day 4 source-and-branches packet provide substantial offline alternatives for the week.