Travel back to 1787 as young scholars investigate the creation of the US Constitution. After first working in small groups to create sets of classroom rules, students go on to read a summary of the Constitution and watch a short video...

How do new amendments become part of the US Constitution? AP government students explore, analyze, and use the US Constitution to develop a deep understanding of the interworkings of law and government while practicing synthesis and...

Did you know that the United States Constitution was adopted after many state constitutions were already in place? Young scholars examine facts about the influence of states through an informative and interesting resource. Groups then...

Why did the Founders make it so challenging to amend the US Constitution? To gain an understanding of why the process is so difficult, class members engage in a Constitutional Convention simulation. Groups draft, propose, and debate...

Twelfth graders discuss the creation of the United States, the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution. Through a class debate, role-playing Federalists and Anti-federalists, they identify the reasons for and against ratification...

Why is it important for judges to operate independently of politics or other branches of government? Scholars ponder the question as they examine video clips, case studies, excerpts of the US Constitution, and an interactive computer...

Students take and defend positions on what conditions contribute to the establishment and maintenance of a constitutional government. They debate whether or not the government should have prosecuted Nixon over the Watergate scandal.

Students examine the law and the Miranda rights. They role play members of law enforcement and ones being arrested.

High schoolers learn about citizens who were actively involved in the civil rights movement, and the strategies they used to overcome the Jim Crow laws that were so prevalent in the 1960s. They investigate the voting amendments of the US...

First graders simulate the signing of the constitution. In this American history lesson plan, 1st graders take on the roll of newspaper reporters during 1787. Students must pretend to interview signers of the constitution and create a...

Seventh graders discover how a bill becomes a law in Utah. In groups, they decide on a law they would like to see enacted and discuss its chances of being passed by the legislative branch in Utah. They hold elections in which each...

Here is a wonderful way to introduce your learners to the Fifth Amendment of the Bill of Rights. There are 16 questions designed to generate thinking and discussion questions about the Fifth Amendment. This lesson plan is extremely...

High school student love discussing controversial issues like those brought up in this fourth amendment case study. They examine the 1928 Olmstead vs. U.S. prohibition court case, applying the fourth amendment to determine whether...

"I do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States..." Scholars investigate the nomination process of Supreme Court justices when assuming office. Through examination of primary and secondary...

Students go through the process of creating and passing a federal law. They select an environmental issue, research related policies for the issue, draft the bill, discuss it among committee members, bring it before the class and bring...

Research, role-playing, and reflection are the three “R’s” that form the basis of an examination of Cyberbullying. Although based on the Criminal Code of Canada, the included scenarios and case studies provide valuable resources for a...

Students demonstrate understanding of the issues related to the creation and ratification of the United States Constitution and the new Government it established.

High schoolers engage in the democratic process and to learn how a bill become a law. Then they write a bill they would like as law in their classroom. Students also form committees that will review the list of bills to determine if they...

In an online engaging and animated game, pupils role play as lawyers charged with protecting rights found in amendments to the United States Constitution. As they choose appropriate amendments to match the right that has...

Students discuss two computerized options to change the current U.S. government. In this Constitutional Convention lesson, students write a statement advocating for one of the choices and participate in a mock modern Constitutional...

Students work cooperatively in groups to present the specific needs of an assigned territory to a mock meeting of government officials in an attempt to amend an existing law.

Illegal immigration is an ever-changing source of consistent controversy. A reading passage about the rights of undocumented workers and illegal immigrants—and the lack thereof—guides high schoolers into a mock trial activity. Three...

Students analyze procedural justice by identifying unfair decisions by ruler in play, stating procedural guarantees that a Bill of Rights should include, and comparing their list of guarantees to those provided by the U.S. Constitution...

Students explore the three branches of government. In this government and U.S. history activity, students listen to a story about a boy who attempts to sponsor a bill to ban cartoons. Students interview three teachers who each represent...