SAN ANTONIO – Editor’s note: This story was published through a partnership between KSAT and noun, an educational platform designed to provide engaging content online for students and teachers.
Hi kids! In case you didn’t know, 2022 is an important election year with all 435 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives, or Congress, and a third of the U.S. Senate both up for grabs. In Texas, voters will also elect statewide leaders like governor.
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For candidates to make it to the November election ballot, they first have to be selected to represent their party (Republican or Democrat) by voters in an upcoming March 1 primary election.
In this week’s KSAT Kids edition of “Kids Wanna Know,” elementary students learn about what it’s like to be a state senator by interviewing California’s Bill Dodd. The state senator shares why he chose to run for election, what he is most proud of and how he works to serve the people he represents in his district.
Senator Dodd goes on to share what is expected of him, his roles and responsibilities and the type of education needed to become a State Senator. Watch the videos to find out more.
You can watch the extended interview shorts for even more from the interview:
Fast Facts
- Texas has state 31 Senators, representing 31 different geographic areas, and 2 U.S. Senators (all states have 2 U.S. Senators)
- State senators serve four-year terms, while U.S. Senators serve six-year terms
- State senators are a part of the State legislature, U.S. Senators are part of Congress
- A Senator’s primary job is to draft and approve changes to the law and vote on the budget, or how the government uses tax money to provide services
Student Worksheet
Noun enables students to explore their school subjects and interests using 20-minute live online interviews with subject-matter guests. Find more information here.
Interested in bringing noun to your school or classroom and take part in an interview? You can do so by clicking here. The animated class interviews will be shown online and in our free KSAT Kids newsletter and may also be seen in future newscasts!