Storybook County Lessons · Lesson 8
Lobbyists and Youth Advocates
The Leave Behind
Storybook County Lessons · Lesson 8
Lobbyists and Youth Advocates
The Leave Behind
Grades 9 to 12, adaptable for younger students · Four 30-minute sessions
Teacher note. Handouts: 1. Interest Group Cards; 2. Sponsor Interview Sheet; 3. Leave Behind Template; 4. Advocacy Ethics Rules; 5. Vote Tracker. You need the class bill book or the Sample Bills from the Committee Hearing lesson. Pairs well with the Committee Hearing or Floor Debate lesson, since lobbyists need bills to work on.
The story
The story problem
Storybook County's interest groups have discovered the bill book. The Three Pigs Homebuilders Guild loves the building code bill. The Straw and Stick Suppliers Association does not. The Woodland Residents Association, which counts the Big Bad Wolf as a dues-paying member, has opinions on all of it.
Teacher note. At the conference, lobbyists and Youth Advocates represent an interest, track bills, interview sponsors, write a leave behind and meet legislators face to face, as the Youth Advocate Program does on its State Advocacy Day.
You will be able to
- Identify an interest group's stake in a bill and state its position in one sentence.
- Interview a bill sponsor and record the answers accurately.
- Write a one-page leave behind.
- Present both a pro and a con position fairly.
- Explain the ethics rules that separate advocacy from manipulation.
Roles
- Principal Lobbyist: leads meetings
- Researcher: reads bills, interviews sponsors
- Writer: produces the leave behind
- Legislators: represent a district and get lobbied
- Sponsors: answer interviews about their bills
Teacher note. Lobbying teams of 3 each draw an Interest Group Card and get one or two bills. Legislators get a short district card so they have reasons to agree or disagree. If bills are from earlier lessons their authors are sponsors; otherwise you play the sponsor. Assign one team a position they personally disagree with: lobbyists represent clients.
Session 1 · 30 min
Who Wants What
- Hook5 min
- Ethics first10 min
- Stake analysis10 min
- Legislator prep5 min
Hook
The Big Bad Wolf has hired a lobbyist. What is that lobbyist's job?
Teacher note. Draw out that the job is to represent the Wolf's interest to the people who make the rules, within the rules.
Advocacy ethics rules
- Say who you represent before you say anything else.
- Tell the truth. If you do not know, say so and find out.
- Quote sponsors and legislators accurately or not at all.
- State the other side fairly before you answer it.
- Respect the legislator's time: arrive on time, leave on time.
- Never offer anything of value for a vote, not even a cookie from the Gingerbread House.
- Never pressure, threaten or embarrass a legislator.
- The Gazette test: act as if everything you say will be printed.
Teacher note. Supporting Document 4. Ethics First step, 10 minutes. At the conference, Youth Advocates learn from real registered lobbyists, and disclosure is the first rule.
The Gazette test
Would you be comfortable if the Storybook Gazette printed exactly what you said and did?
Interest groups
- Three Pigs Homebuilders Guild
- Straw and Stick Suppliers Association
- Woodland Residents Association
- Nursery Rhyme Village Taxpayers League
- Egg Producers Cooperative
- Beanstalk Hollow Growers
- Riverbank Motorists Club
- Porridge Producers Cooperative
Teacher note. Supporting Document 1 has each group's position. Example: the Straw and Stick Suppliers oppose material bans but would accept a roofing-only rule phased in over two building seasons. The Riverbank Motorists Club's president is Mr. Toad.
Stake analysis
Write your group's position on each bill in one sentence. Then list two things your group would accept as a compromise.
- "The Straw and Stick Suppliers Association opposes Bill A because it bans our product from walls."
Legislator prep
Legislators: read your district card. Write one question you will ask any lobbyist who visits.
Session 2 · 30 min
Research and the Sponsor Interview
- Why interview5 min
- Interviews15 min
- Build the case10 min
Why interview
The best leave behind quotes the sponsor accurately, for or against.
Lobbyists who misquote lose access.
Teacher note. 5 minutes.
Sponsor interview questions
- What problem does this bill solve?
- What does Section 2 actually require?
- Who pays, and how much?
- What is the strongest argument against your bill, in your own words?
- What would you be willing to change?
- Exact quote I may use
Teacher note. Supporting Document 2.
Interviews
Researchers: interview the sponsors of your bills. Record answers exactly.
Teacher note. Sponsors rotate among teams every five minutes.
Build the case
List three reasons for your position. Find one piece of story evidence for each.
- The straw house fell
- The brick house did not
- The wolf has never been fined under the current Section 7
Session 3 · 30 min
The Leave Behind
- Template5 min
- Write20 min
- Peer check5 min
The leave behind rule
A legislator should understand the ask in ten seconds and the reasons in sixty.
Teacher note. Walk through the one-page template first. 5 minutes.
Supporting Document 3
Leave behind template
[Interest Group Name] represented by [student names]
Bill: [number and title]. Our position: Support / Oppose / Support with amendment
The ask: Please vote [yes/no] on Bill __ when it reaches the floor.
Three reasons: 1. [Reason] Evidence: [story event]. 2. ... 3. ...
What the other side says, and our response: [Fair one-sentence statement of the opposing view.] [Two-sentence answer.]
What the sponsor told us: "[exact quote]"
Contact: [names, district, how to reach the team]
Write
- Writer: draft the leave behind
- Principal Lobbyist: prepare a two-minute verbal pitch
- Researcher: write the counterargument section
Teacher note. The counterargument section must state the other side fairly before answering it.
Peer check
- Is who you represent stated at the top?
- Could you prove every claim from the story?
- Is the ask a specific vote?
Teacher note. Teams swap leave behinds and check.
Session 4 · 30 min
Lobby Day
- Meetings20 min
- Pro and con presentation5 min
- Wrap-up5 min
A four-minute meeting
- Introduce yourselves and your client
- Make the ask
- Give the three reasons
- Hand over the leave behind
- Answer the legislator's question
- Thank them and leave on time
Meetings
Rotate through four-minute meetings. Record each response on your Vote Tracker: yes, no, leaning or undecided.
Teacher note. Legislators sit at stations. Vote Tracker is Supporting Document 5.
Pro and con
Which side was more persuasive? Which was more honest? The answers do not have to match.
Teacher note. Two teams on opposite sides of the same bill present to the class, two minutes each. The class votes by placard.
Wrap-up
What moved legislators, evidence or relationships? Did anyone cross an ethics line?
Teacher note. Teams first tally their trackers and predict the floor vote.
How advocacy is scored
- Position and stake analysis: 15
- Sponsor interview: 15
- Leave behind: 30
- Lobby meetings: 25
- Ethics: 15
Teacher note. Ethics: no misstatements, client disclosed in every meeting, no promises or pressure. Support: a completed sample leave behind for the Three Pigs Homebuilders Guild, and two meetings per team. Challenge: give one team two clients with conflicting interests and require them to disclose the conflict and decline one, or add a Press Corps reporter who may quote anything said.
Advocacy is a skill with rules
Represent your client. Tell the truth. Leave on time.
Eyes up here
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