Twelfth graders brief Supreme Court cases about student rights that they have studied over the past year, and apply them to a contemporary situation.

Ninth graders simulate a U.S. Supreme Court hearing concerning a First Amendment case about school prayer by participating in a hearing.

High schoolers describe the ideas found in the core democratic values. In groups, they design and create a brochure explaining how the values relate to other ideas that Americans accept as a nation. They share what they know with with...

Students determine that the rules that we follow in America were written in the Constitution. They study a copy of the constitution and discuss how it compares and differentiates from the plan the class has written. They recite our...

Eighth graders demonstrate how South Carolina's Constitution has evolved through a research report. In groups, 8th graders conduct research and write a paper analyzing the historical and social influences that have been associated with...

Twelfth graders research how the constitution was formed and the reasons for its implementation. They form a class wide constitution that expresses the steps originally used while forming the original constitution. Students vote and...

Learners 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 examine the topic of race within the United States Constitution. Using case texts, they analyze how the documents deal with the issue of race. In groups, they explore the Court's definitions of citizen. They create a poster...

Students identify the principles of democracy when framing the United States Constitution. In groups, they analyze the differences that were settled before anyone signed the document. They role play their own activity in which they...

Learners explore the Constitution and The Bill of Rights including the process of the Convention throgh a variety of websites that examine the framers, venets leading up to and after the convention games and more.

Students explore an Internet site that introduces the Framers, court cases, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights and even games and quizzes.

Students examine multiple sources like america's founders, court cases, headilnes and more to learn about the Constitutional Convention of 1787

Take to the stage! Integrate both drama and civic skills by asking pupils to create and perform skills that demonstrate the importance of the amendments in the Bill of Rights. After reviewing the Preamble to the Constitution, learners...

Who has the power? Scholars investigate the creation of the three branches of government in the United States Constitution. They analyze just why the framers created the branches the way they did.

Ben Franklin was the only American to sign The Declaration of Independence, the Treaty of Alliance with France, the Treaty of Paris, and the US Constitution. An interesting resource explores his role in the latter by comparing the US...

Should democracies include hate speech as a protected right? Scholars analyze the rights found under the First Amendment to the Constitution through researching evidence. Freedom of expression becomes the focal point of the...

While this instructional activity includes several nice worksheets to identify and discuss the various limits on government (i.e. a constitution, the rule of law, separation of powers, consent of the governed, etc.), its main value lies...

Staging a debate is a great way to class members to think deeply about issues, especially those related to rights guaranteed by the US Constitution. The Supreme Court case, Cox V. New Hampshire, focuses on the First Amendment's...

Candace Fleming's award winning Ben Franklin's Almanac is the anchor text for a classroom guide that provides teachers with a cache of pre, during, and post-reading activities.

The Civil War made slavery illegal, but all ex-slaves were not totally free. Scholars visit eight different classroom stations to uncover life during the Reconstruction Era in America. Groups discover items such as Black Codes, 13th,...

Why is it so important to have a trial by jury in the American judicial system? This right is one of the hallmarks of American democracy, but it also comes with the responsibility of serving on a jury if called. Young legal scholars...

Students interpret historical evidence presented in primary and secondary resources. In this Bill of Rights lesson, students research 12 possible amendments that were considered for the Constitution in 1789....

Pupils examine the classification categories of rights including liberty, security, cultural, and group rights. They identify and analyze the various similarities and differences among five countries and their constitutions.