Overview: The Medicine Creek Treaty of 1854 is still alive today. In this video, we follow WA State Teacher of the Year ’22 Jerad Koepp (Wukchumni) as he visits the traditional lands of the Nisqually people in search of the treaty tree. As he explores the history, Jerad also learns from Nisqually and other Native American leaders about the language, history, and importance of the Medicine Creek Treaty. Help your students reflect and answer questions for classroom discussion or summative assessment with this 15 min documentary and Viewer’s Guides linked in Teacher’s Resources.
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Overview: During the 2025 session, Legislative Pages (students ages 14-16) had the opportunity to interview legislators from both the Majority party and the Minority party about issues of interest. In this lesson, students will learn about where the Majority Party, currently the Democrats, and the Minority Party, currently the Republicans, stand on three important policies addressed by the House Education Committee. Essential Questions: Senate Housing Committee The Senate Housing Committee considers issues relating to:
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The Washington State Supreme Court is the highest court in the state. It provides the final interpretation of state law. Learn from Washington Supreme Court Chief Justice, Debra Stephens, as she explains how the court works, the importance of judicial precedents, and the other critical roles the Supreme Court plays in Washington. Essential Questions: Objectives:
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How much do you know about the juvenile justice system in Washington State? The juvenile courts are a division of the Superior Courts, and they focus solely on juvenile issues. The courts address both civil and criminal cases; the civil cases are primarily truancy, child welfare, and family services. When judges are dealing with juvenile offender cases, there is a concerted focus on rehabilitation, recognizing that youth’s brain development is still occurring and there needs to be a different form of sentencing happening than in adult court. Hear Thurston County judge, Indu Thomas, explain her work as a Superior Court judge in the juvenile division. Essential Questions: Objectives:
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The Constitution is the highest law in the state, and no law can go against the Constitution. One of the jobs the Supreme Court is tasked with is deciding whether specific laws that are brought before them are Constitutional or not. Hear from Chief Justice Debra Stephens as she explains when the State Supreme Court has the final say on the interpretation of laws and what role the Legislature has when a law is deemed to be unconstitutional. Essential Questions: Objectives:
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Learn about how a biennium works as you get ready for the 2026 session. The upcoming session is the short session, just 60 days, and legislators will have many issues to address, from the budgetary shortfall to pressing priorities from both political parties. Tune in to Teach with TVW each week to see how legislators are working to solve Washington’s most important problems. Essential Questions: Objectives:
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In a democracy like ours, civic engagement is imperative. There are numerous ways to make your voice heard by the government: voting, protesting, petitioning, boycotting, or writing to your legislators. But there is another way that many people may not know about or may find too intimidating: testifying at a public hearing for a pending piece of legislation. In this 7 minute video, Ms. Paulson talks to lobbyist Melissa Gombosky and Representative Andrew Barkis about the importance of testifying at a public hearing, as well as tips for what to do with your time at the microphone. Essential Questions: Objectives:
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Having your bill heard in committee is one of the first hurdles that your bill must make on its way to becoming law. Understanding the power that the Chair of the Committee wields will help you clear this hurdle. Chairs set the agenda for the committees, which means that they decide which bills will get a public hearing and which bills will be put up for a vote. With thousands of bills vying to make their way to becoming a law and only so much time, the Chair must choose bills that are “fully cooked” and ready to become laws. In this week’s episode, hear from Chair of the Senate Law and Justice Committee, Senator Manka Dhingra, and how she works with all members of the Washington State Legislature to pass legislation that betters the lives of Washingtonians. Essential Questions: Objectives:
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When many people think of “the government”, they think of legislators giving long winded speeches on the floor of the House and the Senate. However, most of the work done during the Legislative Session is done in committees. Committees are the place where bills are researched, discussed, debated, and voted upon. Committees are where the public has the chance to have their voices heard, and committees allow legislators to focus on a specific topic so that the nuances of a proposed law are clear. In this 4 minute episode of Capitol Classroom+, you will experience the anatomy of the committee room, so that when you watch a committee hearing on TVW, you know the ins and outs. Essential Questions: Objectives:
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The first week of the legislative session, especially after an election year, is filled with many ceremonial elements. In addition to the agenda setting speeches given by the Speaker of the House Laurie Jenkins, President of the Senate Lt. Governor Denny Heck, and Governor Bob Ferguson, legislative work started. Legislators began meeting in their committees, hearing bills. With over 40 committees meeting between the House and the Senate, there was a lot for Legislators to do! And with 1 out of every 5 members of the Legislature being new this year, the Capitol Campus was filled with many people smiling and looking for the most direct way out of the Legislative building. Essential Questions: Objectives:
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