On Wednesday, February 6, Bow Lake Elementary School will hold its first legislative session. The school Legislature is modeled after the Washington State Legislature and the U.S. Congress and will run for two weeks. Carlyn Roedell's 5/6 Explorer Class is in charge of running the Legislature with such jobs as recorders, vote counters, reporters, photographers, and the ever-popular Sergeant at Arms.

Each class will elect two senators and one legislator per 15 kids to represent their class and to introduce their classmates' issues of concern. The student legislators will elect a Speaker of the House and a President Pro Tempore to lead their assemblies. Bills will be introduced, discussed, financing organized, voted on to pass or kill, and sent to "Governor" Garcia to veto or pass. Two staff members serve as a court system to be sure bills are legal. Last year at Valley View a bill was introduced to have school only four days a week and the justices had to nix that idea. The pencil machines installed at Bow Lake are an example of a bill that passed last year. Governor Garcia gave the legislators a budget in her State of the School Address, and the students passed their pencil machine bill with great support of both kids and adults.

The school legislature allows the students to experience government at work within the walls of their school and with issues that are important to them.