Name:_________________________________

Name:__________________________________ Date:________________

Congress Letter

For this project, you must write a letter to a national, state, or local legislative leader that concerns you (you need to get an envelope and put a stamp on it as well). In your letter, you should think of something that you want your legislative leader to do. For example, you may want to ask them to:

Provide more aid
Send peacekeeping troops
Put more diplomatic pressure on the government
Put sanctions on the country
Vote for a bill

Please write a congressional member about issues going on in one of the following countries or come up with something on your own. If you do something on your own, please get your teacher to approve it first.

Tibet Uganda Congo

Chechnya Darfur Burma

Sri Lanka

To find your national representatives and get their address, go to:

1.) http://www.contactingthecongress.org/

2.) Click on a representative to see what they look like, to get their address, and to find out information about them

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You can also choose to write on a bill that would affect the homeless. To search for a bill, do the following:

1.) Type Thomas Congress in a Google search engine

2.) Then type the subject of the bill on the Thomas search engine

Two bills in Congress that are of interest might be:

Homeless Children and Youth Act of 2011

Homes for Heroes Act of 2011

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Here are some tips on how to make your Congress letter a good one:

Decide on a clear purpose and present an argument.

Use a clear organization, with each paragraph expressing a new point.

Keep sentences and paragraphs fairly short. Aim for no more than one page. Make it short, but powerful. It should probably total about 3-5 paragraphs.

Use a moderate, respectful, and formal tone. Don't rant and rave. No matter how strongly you feel about an issue, stay calm and polite.

Do not support the opposing argument in your letter. For example, do not say “Although there are many good arguments for allowing abortions to continue, there are also many for banning abortions.” Instead say “The reasons for banning abortions far outweigh the arguments for allowing them to continue to take place.”

Make sure your letter is neatly typed, in proper business format, and free from errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation. See my website or the example handed out in class for further details on the proper format of a block business letter.

Sign your letter and provide your home address.

Do not cut and paste parts of the bill in your letter without citing or quoting the bill.

Double-check the name and title of the person you're writing. Be sure you have the current and complete address.

End by thanking the representative.

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Congress Letter Rubric

Content – Does the writer demonstrate that they are familiar with the subject? Score:_____/40

Have they explained what they are talking about well and is it in detail?

Is the letter clear?

Validity of the letter – Is the letter written for an important reason? Score:_____/10

Action to be taken – Does the writer ask the recipient to take a valid action? Score:_____/10

Language – Is the letter formal and written in a respectful manner? Score:_____/10

Is the letter one page or less?

Spelling/Grammar – Are there no spelling/grammar mistakes? Score:_____/15

Format – Did the writer use the correct business letter format? Score:_____/15

TOTAL:______/100

Congress Letter Rubric

Content – Does the writer demonstrate that they are familiar with the subject? Score:_____/40

Have they explained what they are talking about well and is it in detail?

Is the letter clear?