Before "the record" means anything
Every week, Congress Classroom sends each group to one real thing the three it chose did: a bill introduced, reported out of committee, passed by a chamber, or signed into law. That is the record, the public, government-published account of what Congress did. Not a summary of it, not anyone's take on it. The thing itself, with a number attached so a student can look it up.
Say one group in a class chose Ted Cruz, Senator from Texas. Here is what Congress Classroom would show that group from the record read on October 26, 2026: of this week's twelve, the bill that got furthest.
S. 283 · Became law
This one went all the way: introduced, through committee, passed both chambers, signed. That's rare. About one bill in 40 becomes law at all.
That is the whole prep: one real bill, the stage it actually reached, and three questions built for that stage, not a worksheet invented for the occasion. A bill that only got introduced would get the introduced questions instead; one that became law would get those. Four templates, one real fact deciding which one a group sees. This example changes every Monday with the list.