Review one of the most memorable cases in the history of the United States. After reading To Kill A Mockingbird, young scholars read and select court transcripts and other primary source material from the Scottsboro Boys Trial of 1933....

Your class members will take on the roles of jury members in this exciting simulation. After reading a detailed script and reviewing pieces of evidence, they will determine whether Honda violated copyright and copied James Bond.

Is it illegal to lie about military service? Discuss the ways the First Amendment affects the Stolen Valor Act with a lesson that focuses on the Supreme Court case U.S. v. Alvarez. As high schoolers learn more about the history of the...

What is the role of the judge in a trial? What schooling is required to be a judge? How much do judges typically earn? Class members research the job descriptions, education required, and salaries of law-related occupations including...

So many people fought for Civil Rights in the United States. Read about the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and discuss what the act guarantees. Then pass out a slew of magazines and encourage them to observe how often minorities appear in...

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...

"Is school-sponsored prayer in public schools unconstitutional?" That is the question teams debate as they consider the arguments presented to the Supreme Court in Engel v. Vitale. The attorneys study the provided talking points and...

Create your own classroom court. After studying courtroom proceedings, with a focus on the concept of a trial by a jury of your peers, pupils create a set of classroom rules and develop a procedure for solving conflicts. They then are...

Students role play a court with lawyers, a judge, jury, and more. In this classroom court lesson plan, students review rules of the law in the judicial system.

Does the Westboro Baptist Church have the protection of the Constitution when protesting military funerals? High schoolers examine the 2011 Supreme Court case of Snyder v. Phelps before comparing the situation to a fictional...

Objection! Scholars participate in a mock trial to gain an understanding the ins and outs of court procedures. Using the Jessie Jones v. Palm City court case, they role play each specific part of the trial, learning how courts operate...

Students research and discuss court cases in preparation for Moot Court. Student attorneys research precedents involving their cases, while student justices research political ideology of Supreme Court Justices. Student attorneys then...

Students read and analyze two functional documents. They predict outcomes using prior knowledge and documents. Students draw conclusions about how court cases are appealed. They list the parts of a court case.

Which right does the Constitution weigh more heavily: the sanctity of the American flag as a symbol of national unity, or the right to burn the flag in protest? The 1989 Supreme Court case of Texas v. Johnson explores a...

Objection! Scholars research the rules and regulations of trial law. Using a trial game simulation, class attorneys choose whether to object to questioning during various trial scenarios. Once objecting, they must also choose the...

All rise! Scholars put their skills to the test in a mock trial. Using evidence, photographs, and testimony, they role play the trial in the classroom. Rules of law—and the court room—come to life as the class becomes a place of law! 

From start to finish, here is a fantastic resource that uses engaging activities and an interactive virtual game to teach about major US Supreme Court cases. Your class members will distinguish the primary arguments made in such cases as...

Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, considered by many to be a seminal piece of American literature, contains many complex literary themes that carry through United States history. Use a series of discussion questions and classroom...

Have you ever argued for the sake of argument? Scholars dig into what makes a compelling argument. They learn to create evidence-based arguments using a teacher-led model. Once finished, they use an evidence-based checklist to guide...

Young scholars rewrite a traditional fairy tale to represent the viewpoint of the villain. They participate in a mock trial of that villain in which all regular court participants (judge, jury, defendant, witnesses, plaintiff, etc) play...

Students compare three justice systems currently in place in the United States: the civilian criminal justice system, the military criminal justice system (courts-martial) and the secret wartime tribunals that President Bush has proposed...

Students analyze the United States' current appellate process, with a critical eye focused on possible inequities within the system. They then write letters to a Manhattan district attorney giving their recommendations on how he should...

Kidnapper or kindly old woman? Kids stage the trial of Mary Witch and must decide if Mary kidnapped Hansel and Gretel or in fact was trying to save them. A script and complete directions are included in the 17-page packet.

A woman accuses her husband of multiple instances of domestic violence in the mock trial case, Karmia Kahn v. Keith Kahn