Twelfth graders examine the procedures and protections involved in processing an accused person through the criminal justice system. They view a Powerpoint presentation, conduct research, and write a paper describing a crime they have...

Why doesn't the Supreme Court hear testimony from witnesses? How do they complete an entire proceeding in less than two hours? A helpful lesson guides scholars of criminology through these and other questions by explaining how appeals...

Students create a solution to a social justice problem within their community. In this urban planning lesson, students read To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee and A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest Gaines. Students then complete a research...

How can one court acquit someone of a crime, while another convicts the person of the same one? It's all because of the differences between civil and criminal trials. An informative resource provides scholars in the field of criminology...

Whether out of choice or necessity, people want to know what will happen on a typical day in court. A helpful lesson walks scholars in the field of criminology through the trial process from opening statements to the final verdict. 

Students review the Youth Criminal Justice Act and examine the consequences for young people who commit crimes. They investigate the rehabilitation and reintegration processes associated with the act.

Students examine and compare/contrast the steps of criminal and civil cases. They define key vocabulary terms, develop an outline of a criminal and civil trial, and analyze the differences in standards of proof in legal cases.

A courtroom can be a scary place for the uninitiated. Get familiar with the process using a helpful overview of the activities that take place prior to both civil and criminal cases.  The lesson explains the differences between...

Students examine the Supreme Court and the confirmation process. They simulate a confirmation hearing with students role-playing as nominees and others as members of the Judiciary Committee. Students compose short essays outlining the...

The deaths of Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and Tamir Rice, and the protests that followed the 2014 shootings, are the focus of a current-events activity that asks class members to brainstorm and research possible strategies to address the...

Courtrooms are complicated. In addition to the many rules, there are a number of people whose jobs are not very clear to the casual courtroom observer. With the resource, individuals identify some of these roles and review more...

Students explore how the structure of the state and federal judicial systems affect them. They select an appropriate media and create a presentation on the structure of the judicial system, the criminal judicial system and a guide to the...

Americans love to learn about their rights, especially those that protect them from the government's power to invade their privacy. Young people are especially engaged by this topic. An informative lesson explores four Supreme Court...

Why study landmark Supreme court cases? A helpful lesson offers a brief but valuable argument for the importance of these cases in the field of criminology. It introduces scholars to some key terms necessary for studying court cases and...

What's the right way to teach young historians about the Bill of Rights? Many an instructor has asked this question when pondering lesson plans over the US Constitution. The Constitution and Rights is a nifty resource that provides a...

Eleventh graders explore the redistricting process.  In this American Government lesson, 11th graders examine the electoral map.  Students write an essay posing an argument for the redistricting process. 

Learners create a series of drawings to show the process of how the Supreme Court does its work. The drawings may be in strip cartoon form or a series of separate illustrations.

Twelfth graders prepare themselves for a mock moot court. In groups, they are presented with an overview of each activity and research appellate cases related to the topic given to them. They identify regions of the country that have...

Students explore policies concerning affirmative action. After reading affirmative action handouts, students use the internet and other resources to research information about affirmative action laws, court cases, and arguments. They...

Ninth graders consider how the Bill of Rights impacts the lawmaking process in the United States. In this Bill of Rights lesson plan, 9th graders discuss the amendments and their limitations. Students research the role of the Legislative...

Students investigate the importance of judicial independence and how it is exercised while conducting research to gather information using different resources. The teacher discusses the importance of Law Day. They also read the handout...

High schoolers examine the reasons why juveniles commit crimes. As a class, they watch movies showing juveniles committing crims and discuss the impact on societies. They take a field trip to adult and juvenile courts and compare their...

Students debate both positions on the controversial topic of racial profiling with support for each and then develop a consensus position on how racial profiling as a law enforcement tool should be used.