While Reconstruction laid the groundwork, many believe its revolutionary ideals weren't realized until the 1960s Civil Rights Movement. Using the 1965 Voting Rights Act, budding historians consider why it took more than 100 years to...

It's hard to believe that women had to argue for the right to vote a mere 100 years ago. Today, young historians can examine their case left behind in primary sources. Using a letter from a woman who claimed she should be able to vote...

Votes for women! The activity highlights the push for the Nineteenth Amendment giving women the right to vote. High school scholars learn how the Fifteenth Amendment giving African American men the right to vote helped to spark the...

Reconstruction amendments: a helping hand or another form of slavery? An inquisitive lesson compares the Reconstruction legislation that ended slavery, granted citizenship, and protected voting right for African American men. Scholars...

Votes for women! Young scholars use images to explore the suffrage movement and its impact on the United States. Historians work in groups or pairs to interpret the photograph, complete a worksheet, and discuss how their opinions of the...

The brutality of Bloody Sunday—when non-violent protesters who supported voting rights for African Americans were beaten by police—captured a nation. Young historians examine the letter of one horrified American to Congress to consider...

Learners explore the election process by researching politcal platforms, inviting candidates to speak, surveying registered voters, and running a mock election.

Get on those thinking caps, because your class is going to analyze a political cartoon related to the 2008 presidential elections. Included is a large image of the cartoon, background information, and three guiding questions which can be...

Guid your learners as they become informed members of our community. They'll consider each of the seven questions as they read the New York Times article "All Eye on Iowa." This article relates topics dealing with the 2012 presidential...

Tennessee was the pivotal state in ratifying women's suffrage in 1920, with its vote coming down to one man: Harry Burn, a 24-year old state representative who changed his nay to an aye on the advice of his mother. Learn...

The college that directly affects young citizens' lives is not the university they're applying to. Learn about the Electoral College in a town hall activity in which class members debate the merits of the current system versus electing a...

A class discussion opens a lesson on women suffragettes. Learners imagine they are preparing to protest for women's voting rights. Scholars create a colorful poster to hold up high when marching in front of the White House.

In part two of an election simulation, pupils practice actually casting their votes in a simulated polling place in order to prepare for this real-world democratic experience.

What does a polling place look like, and what do poll workers do? Learners take what they have learned about voting procedures and role-play as poll workers in a simulated election activity.

Continuing from a previous lesson plan on how to read and analyze proposed legislation on election ballots, your class members will now practice writing up their own proposals for a new school rule or local ordinance that will...

Though the movement for Women's Suffrage stretched over several decades and across two centuries, the final few years were the most difficult hurdle in many ways. Use a document-based question writing exercise to make inferences about...

What is the purpose of the Electoral College? Is it antiquated, or does it have a place in today's political climate? High schoolers view a series of video clips as they analyze the parts of the United States Constitution that address...

Empower teenagers to take political matters into their own hands! After completing an engaging warm-up activity, class members discuss both sides of the youth voting issue, learn about the connection between military history and the...

How did Elizabeth Cady Stanton use rhetoric to convince others of her views? Scholars begin reading "An Address by Elizabeth Cady Stanton," which argues that women should have voting rights. Pupils complete a Quick Write to analyze how...

Americans who backed the suffragist movement used posters to gain the support of others for their cause. Class members analyze the visual imagery and propaganda devices used in a variety of these posters. In addition, groups examine how...

Campaigns to gain voting rights for women during the 19th and 20th centuries took place on both the state and federal level. After examining primary sources that document both types of campaigns, class members debate the merits of the...

Because of the Electoral College, it is possible to win the popular vote in a US Presidential election and still lose the election. After researching the pros and cons of the Electoral College, class members engage in a structured debate...

Susan B. Anthony was willing to break the law to gain voting rights for women. Young historians investigate Anthony's willingness to go to jail to draw attention to the suffrage movement. They read and discuss primary source documents to...

Students study and examine how elections are conducted in Australia. In this representation lesson plan, students make comparisons regarding systems of voting. Students explore the three levels of government and discuss federal...