Presidential Power — Formal vs. Informal Sources¶
Learning Objective¶
Students will classify (Bloom L2 — Understand) presidential powers as enumerated (constitutional) or informal (practice-based), and apply (Bloom L3 — Apply) this distinction to novel scenarios.
- Bloom Level: Apply (L3)
- Bloom Verb: Classify, Apply
- Library: p5.js
Specification¶
The full specification below is extracted from Chapter 5: "Chapter 5: The Presidency".
Type: MicroSim
**sim-id:** presidential-power-categorizer<br/>
**Library:** p5.js<br/>
**Status:** Specified
**Learning objective:** Students will *classify* (Bloom L2 — Understand) presidential powers as enumerated (constitutional) or informal (practice-based), and *apply* (Bloom L3 — Apply) this distinction to novel scenarios.
**Design:**
- Two drop zones at the top: "Enumerated (Constitutional)" and "Informal (Practice-Based)"
- A stack of draggable cards below, each naming one presidential power
- Student drags each card to the correct zone; card snaps in with a checkmark (correct) or shakes and returns (incorrect)
- After all cards sorted, a "Review" screen shows the correct categorization with a one-sentence explanation for each
**Power cards to include:**
- Veto legislation → Enumerated (Article II)
- Issue executive orders → Informal (practice)
- Commander in Chief → Enumerated (Article II)
- Negotiate executive agreements → Informal (accepted by courts)
- Grant pardons → Enumerated (Article II)
- Use signing statements → Informal (practice)
- Appoint federal judges → Enumerated (Article II, with Senate consent)
- Declare emergencies → Informal (statutory + practice)
- Make treaties → Enumerated (Article II, Senate must ratify)
- "Go public" — appeal directly to citizens to pressure Congress → Informal (mass media era)
- Receive ambassadors → Enumerated (Article II)
- Impound appropriated funds → Contested; curtailed by 1974 Impoundment Control Act
**Canvas:** 100% width × 500px; responsive.