"Advertising has no impact on whether people buy something." "Looting is morally permissible during national disasters and emergencies." "Gay teenagers should be allowed to take dates to the prom." Considering a class debate? Check out...

Language learners use the debate format to practice formulating, expressing, and defending their ideas. Working in teams, class members develop resolutions, use opinion indicators to express their opinions and reasons, and prepare...

Here's a resource that provides debaters with the background information and worksheets they will need when planning a policy debate. Templates and sentence frames, as well as a rationale for using debates in the classroom, are...

Introduce learners to the debate format with an activity that uses the National Park Service's controversial Channel Islands restoration program as a topic. Class members learn how to generate provocative debate questions, how to prepare...

Strongly agree? Agree? Disagree? Or strongly disagree? Here's a 4 Corner Debate format that requires class members to collaborate and build an argument to support their stance on a controversial issue.

Prepare your classes for election year debates with a series of activities that model how to watch televised debates and how to evaluate the moderators as well as the debaters.

Behind every successful debate is a list of clearly stated criteria. Let your debaters know exactly how their performance will be evaluated with this packet that details the content, preparation, structure, and grading policy that will...

The beauty in this resource is the lengthy list of highly charged, controversial-issue research topics. Categories include issues of race, politics, law, environment, education, athletics, gender, and technology. After selecting a topic,...

Class members choose a current social, political, environmental, or economic problem presented in Tyson Miller's Dream of a Nation: Inspiring Ideas for a Better America, research this problem and a variety of suggested solutions, before...

Nineteen states legally permit school officials to physically punish children. Scholars learn more about the topic as they use the website to prepare for a class debate or discussion. Pupils read background information and discover the...

How do you affirm and negate a statement of value? What is refutation? Interested in debate? Introduce your class to the format of the Lincoln Douglas debate with 14 lessons, designed to be used in order, so that debaters learn the logic...

A must-have resource for classes that engage in debate, this packet contains 20 detailed plans for debate games and activities. Everything from how to select evidence to support a position, to structuring a debate on which candy bar is...

President John F. Kennedy bought 1,200 Cuban cigars the night before he enacted the Cuban trade embargo in 1962. Should the United States maintain the embargo? Using the website, pupils explore the topic to prepare for a class debate or...

Should the United States continue the practice of using drone strikes abroad? Readers explore the top pro and con arguments in preparation for a debate or discussion about the topic. They read about the history of drone strikes, view a...

Was nonviolent resistance the best means of securing civil rights for black Americans in the 1960s? In this highly engaging and informative lesson, your young historians will closely analyze several key documents from the civil rights...

Some conversations are easy and enjoyable, while others are horrific! To begin a lesson on communicating constructively, class members list examples of conversations that are easy, average, and those that are difficult and identify what...

Whole-heartedly agree! I sort of agree. Disagree! Class members indicate their stance on a controversial statement by participating in a Barometer activity.

Rising sea levels, strong storms, melting ice ... who or what is to blame? Scholars browse the website in preparation for a class discussion or debate about whether human activity is causing climate change. They gain a balanced...

If you knew that you were likely to develop Alzheimer's disease in your future, how would it affect your life in the meantime? This and other similar thought-provoking questions are discussed in a lesson plan about the availability of...

Many of the issues facing 21st Century learners are challenging and even discussing these issues can be a challenge. So how do teachers prepare learners for these difficult conversations? How do instructors create a safe classroom where...

Considering including Tatyana Kleyn's Immigration: The Ultimate Teen Guide as part of your course? Check out this curriculum guide designed for use with her book. The activities help learners understand the complexity of the...

Unauthorized immigration is a complex and hotly debated topic. Class members read an article that examines the issues that motivate unauthorized immigration. Teams then assume the role of special interest groups and present their...

After viewing the documentary The Last Roundup, a documentary about the transitioning of Santa Rosa from a privately own island to a National Park, class members debate the takings clause of the Fifth Amendment that permits the...

Archaeologists have discovered a cache of Native American relics. They want to preserve these relics by removing them from the rapidly eroding site to a lab where they can be studied. Native American traditions demand that the items...