Article
BBC

Bbc: Oscar Pistorious: I Did Not Pick on Reeva Steenkamp

For Students 9th - 10th
Read the latest news in the trial of Oscar Pistorious, the athlete accused of murdering his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.
Lesson Plan
iCivics

I Civics: In Re Gault (1967)

For Teachers 9th - 10th
This mini-instructional activity covers the basics of the Supreme Court's decision that said juvenile offenders have a right to due process. Students learn about 14th Amendment due process, fairness, and the specific rights afforded...
Lesson Plan
iCivics

I Civics: Sources of Law

For Teachers 9th - 10th
This lesson teaches students about the sources, types, and unique systems of law that exist in the United States. They learn about sources of law from the Constitution to local ordinances and also compare and contrast civil and criminal...
Unit Plan
Syracuse University

Syracuse University: Youth Due Process Gerald Gault

For Teachers 9th - 10th
This site contains a description of the juvenile justice system, background on the case involving Gerald Gault, and learning exercises for teachers to use in class.
Interactive
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Un(re)solved: Frontline: Interactive

For Students 9th - 10th
Un(re)solved tells the stories of lives cut short and examines a federal effort to investigate more than 150 cold cases that date back to the civil rights era. Learn about and speak the names of the many people whose lives were lost...
Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Whose Streets?: Lesson Plan Clips

For Teachers 9th - 10th
This activity provides a framework for critical analysis of current and historic race relations in America through the lens of the 2014 shooting of Michael Brown, Jr., a young unarmed black man, by white police officer Darren Wilson in...
Article
BBC

Bbc Newsround: Cameras Allowed to Film in Court of Appeal

For Students 1st - 5th
Article reports that cameras are going to be allowed in one of the highest courts in England and Wales. Includes information about the history leading up to the decision.
Unit Plan
CommonLit

Common Lit: Book Pairings: "Holes" by Louis Sacher

For Students 5th - 8th
Stanley Yelnats is sent to a juvenile correctional camp for boys where each day he is forced to dig holes into a dry lake bed. Selected (8) reading passages (grades 5-8) to pair with the novel "Holes" by Louis Sacher. [Free account...
Unit Plan
National Archives (UK)

National Archives Learning Curve: Crime and Punishment: Punishment Before 1450

For Students 9th - 10th
What were the purposes of punishments given by courts in the Middle Ages? This question is reviewed in this Learning Curve challenge. Students are given primary evidence and two case studies - Medieval punishments and Capital punishments...
Handout
CommonLit

Common Lit: Text Sets: Modern Democracy in America

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This is a collection of 19 Grade-Leveled texts (6-12) on the topic Modern Democracy in America. How does democracy function in modern-day America? Learn how a bill becomes a law, the role of American presidents, and much more in this...
Unit Plan
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Now: Do Now: Should Teens Who Commit Serious Crimes Be Sentenced as Adults?

For Students 9th - 10th
Click on Watch on YouTube to watch the FRONTLINE film "Stickup Kid." Then Do Now activity, students engage in a conversation around teen sentencing and discuss the question: Should teens under 18 be tried and sentenced as children or...
Article
A&E Television

History.com: How Al Capone Spent His Time in Alcatraz

For Students 9th - 10th
Public Enemy #1 was transferred to the now-infamous island prison a few weeks after it opened. To Americans of the 1920s and '30s, he was the notorious gangster Scarface Al, Public Enemy No. 1. But when he arrived at Alcatraz in late...
Article
BBC

Bbc: Week of 11 25 13: Steubenville Officials Charged With Blocking Rape Inquiry

For Students 9th - 10th
Nearly a year after the two rapists in the high-profile Steubenville, Ohio rape case were sentenced, a grand jury has stated that four adults within the school system worked to cover up their crimes. Learn how the state intends to pursue...
Handout
Other

Nuremburg Online: Mediaeval Dungeons

For Students 9th - 10th
This site on the Mediaeval Dungeons of Nuremberg provides information on its history, the system of justice, the prison and torture chamber, and the procedures for execution.
Activity
Thomson Reuters

Find Law: Jurisdiction of Federal Courts

For Students 9th - 10th
This site describes the jurisdiction of the Federal Court system. The site breaks the court's jurisdiction into three main areas of institutional conflict: Federal Restraint of State Courts by Injunctions, Habeas Corpus: Scope of the...
Unit Plan
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Boston Public Schools Capstone Project

For Students Pre-K - 1st
The (Boston Public Schools) Capstone Project is an opportunity for students to engage in rigorous project-based learning. It is an opportunity for our students to develop skills to be life, career, and college-ready in a culturally...
Website
Open Door Team

Open Door Web Site: White Man's Burden

For Students 9th - 10th
Describes the results of colonization, focusing on the lack of economic profit and more on the civil/social motivations and results. Also contains Rudyard Kipling's commentary on colonization as expressed in his poem "White Man's Burden."
Article
Siteseen

Siteseen: American Historama: Alcatraz

For Students 9th - 10th
This article provides facts about the Alcatraz Prison history, its famous prisoners, life in the prison, and the attempted escapes from Alcatraz.
Handout
US Department of Justice

U.s. Drug Enforcement Administration: Benzodiazepines [Pdf]

For Students 9th - 10th
Learn about the effects of drugs in the benzodiazepine family, names of the drugs and their intended uses, and how the drugs are abused by adolescents.
Activity
Scholastic

Scholastic: John Doe in a u.s. Court

For Teachers 9th - 10th
This site from Scholastic provides a well-written essay describes the federal court system and its jurisdiction including the '7 steps in justice.'
Website
CNN

Cnn: Opinion: Kids Should Never Be Tried as Adults

For Students 9th - 10th
In this editorial, the author outlines the case for why minors who commit crimes should not be tried as adults. Includes examples, including that of a 9 year old tried in the adult justice system.
Handout
Travel Document Systems

Tds: Thailand: Government

For Students 9th - 10th
Thailand is a constitutional monarchy , but the king has little power. Find out how the government works in this current article based on information from the U.S. State Dept. Background Notes.
Lesson Plan
Teachers.net

Teachers.net: Bring Your Character in a Bag Animal Farm

For Teachers 7th - 9th
The main objective is for students to be able to interpret a chosen character from the novel Animal Farm. Students will then have an opportunity to represent that character in original symbolic form and present it orally to the class.
Handout
Travel Document Systems

Tds: Sudan: Government

For Students 9th - 10th
This is a very current look at the government of Sudan, the attempt at reconciliation between north and south, and the on-going problems in Darfur. Information is from the U.S. State Dept. Background Notes.