Students examine the historical background of Supreme Court decisions and the basic principles behind legislation. As part of the lesson, students discover legal concepts and terms and write sentences using the vocabulary they have...

What led the United States to acquire territory? What were some of the effects of those acquisitions? Learners explore the questions using the 2014 essay from the New York Regents exam. Other items include practice multiple choice...

What happened in the Supreme Court case of McCulloch v. Maryland? The resource teaches the specifics of the case with a video and provided discussion questions covering issues such as precedent and the Supreme Court as an equal branch of...

Students explore the role of President of the United States. In this executive branch lesson, students play an online game that requires them to consider the needs of Americans as they act as president.

All of the details of American history fall into place with a clever crossword puzzle. Nearly 100 clues prompt middle and high schoolers to fit the correct answers to topics including the American Revolution, the Civil War, and...

Zounds! Image an American president closing all ports and prohibiting exports. As part of an exercise designed to strengthen primary source comprehension skills, readers examine Thomas Jefferson's 1808 message to Congress urging such an...

The process of nominating and confirming federal judges can sound like a lot of bureaucratic hoops, but a resource breaks down the steps of the Supreme Court nominations in a simpler manner. Learners participate in four activities that...

Students examine presidential powers. In this checks and balances activity, students identify the constitutional and informal restraints of the president and consider the reasons for the limitations.

Ratifying the Constitution was no simple task. Using primary sources, such as classic writings from the Federalists and Anti-Federalists, young scholars examine the arguments for and against the Constitution. They then decide: Would they...

Reinforce U.S. Constitution facts with a crossword puzzle. Scholars show what they know by completing the 53 prompts. 

Fourth graders explore the human and animal connection along with the idea that death is a part of the life cycle. They read "Where the Red Fern Grows." Students examine the feelings and emotions surrounding death and they discover the...