Students research current events in relation to the United States military. In this current event lesson, students find out what is going on in the war and use what they find to explain and debate their stance on current events.

Students research the history of immigration, particularly from the perspective of Mexicans and Mexican Americans. In this Mexican American labor activity, students research questions from the perspective of an assigned group. Students...

Students debate the pros and cons of police searching the trash of suspected drug dealers. Students collect background information, and students interview city officials and garbage collectors. Students develop a strategic plan for...

Students analyze corporal punishment, debating the pros and cons. Students investigate, collecting background information and interviewing school community members. If students disagree with the district's policy, students develop a...

Pupils review the results of the November 2006 mid-term election. Using their text, they read the history of the balance of power and examine recent news articles. They present their findings to the class and may even hold a debate.

Students examine the protest by Gallaudet University students concerning the hiring of a new school president. They investigate laws related to protests and present their findings to the class in a multimedia show, oral report, or debate.

Group members role play state legislators, supporters of and opponents to the The DREAM Act (Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors). After listening to the arguments put forth for and against the immigration...

Should schools be permitted to punish young scholars for off-campus cyberbullying? After reading a passage that details statistics about cyberbullying and Supreme Court rulings about schools' ability to limit student speech,...

Students discuss the issue of putting seat belts on school buses to increase safety. Using the internet, they research the school bus safety record for their district. In groups, they interview school administrator's and debate the pros...

Students discuss how the various acts used to force Native Americans from their home. Using the Internet, they compare and contrast the policies toward the Native Americans by presidents through Jackson. They evaluate the impact of...

Young scholars examine the presence of the United States in the world. In this global issues lesson, students read "The U.S. Role in a Changing World," and debate the role of the U.S. at the current juncture in history.  

Pupils examine the event of the Great Flood of 1993. Using the internet, they research the economic, social and ecological changes that impacted the area. They conduct a town meeting in which they debate the positives and negatives of...

How would you feel if someone plagiarized your work? After class members turn in an assigned newspaper article, you rewrite the piece using elements of their writing. Then you claim you will be selling the story and that you will profit...

Young scholars research the First Amendment and what it says about the right to peaceably assemble as well as read in particular about those who were arrested or removed from an area for being disruptive during a protest on the War in...

Research water use in California, environmental protection laws, and the proposition to raise Shasta Dam by 200 feet. Researchers use their findings to build an argument which will be presented at a mock decision panel. Groups then...

Students use roll playing to discuss the merits of tearing down these dams so that the Elwha River can run free. The activity is presented in the form of a council meeting to encourage students to try to build consensus in finding...

Students use an outdated budget to examine what the county spends its money on for its citizens. Using county information, they describe how the Board of Supervisors make budget decisions and how it can shape public policy. They also...

Middle schoolers brainstorm a list of items that should be a priority for the government to help its citizens. Using an out of date budget, they identify individual line items and the conflicts involved in making a budget work. They...

Learners 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...

Eighth graders analyze and identify the importance of our forests and how to manage them properly.  For this tree lesson students read forestry material and come up with different alternatives to the identified problems. 

On April 4, 1967 Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his speech "Beyond Vietnam." The controversy that followed is the focus of a three-lesson unit that asks class members to consider the political and social implications of King's...

Students examine the wars the United States was involved in between 1898 and 1945. In groups, they determine the causes and effects of each war and how each war changed the way the United States handled their foreign affairs. As a class,...

Students identify problems and potential improvements for U.S. public school education. They research and debate the pros and cons of the "No Child Left Behind Act".