C-SPAN
Should Your State Modify Its Voter Registration Laws and Methods for Submitting a Ballot?
What is the balance between democracy and security? Using articles and videos that examine state voting procedures, learners explore the difficult question. After looking at voting regulations in their state and nationally, they consider...
Oakwood Publishing
Workshop 4: Constitutional Convention
How do new amendments become part of the US Constitution? AP government students explore, analyze, and use the US Constitution to develop a deep understanding of the interworkings of law and government while practicing synthesis and...
Curated OER
Architecture and Democracy
Fifth graders contrast and compare ancient Greece to the U.S.A. In this Greek History lesson, 5th graders investigate the buildings and designs of ancient Greece, as well as their democracy and government. Students answer...
Curated OER
Ancient Democracy
Students describe which segments of society were included in the original Athenian democracy. They compare and contrast early Greek democracy to democracy as it is exercised in the United States today.
Curated OER
What Is Government?
Young scholars investigate and describe the various levels of government. They develop a list of the services provided by each level of government, and identify the needs not being met by the government.
Curated OER
Fighting for Democracy, Fighting for Me
Young scholars explore what it means to be American. In this American identity lesson, students consider the contributions of Americans throughout history that have protected the promises of the U.S. Constitution.
Curated OER
Holiday Help for U.S. Sevicemen Overseas
Students research what is possible locally and online to provide support for U.S. troops overseas during the holidays. Students also discuss what they would need to do to collect money or other items or launch a writing project.
Curated OER
Stitching Truth Lesson One: What is Civil Society?
Ninth graders create a working definition of civil society. In this US History lesson, 9th graders create a list of terms that help make up the term civil society. Students examine the case study of life in Pinochet's Chile.
Curated OER
Hitler's Fatal Gamble
Students consider the differences between totalitarianism and democracy. In this comparative politics lesson, students will read a handout describing the major components that comprise totalitarianism and democracy, then they will...
Curated OER
Tiananmen Square
Learners identify and explain the Tiananmen Square incident of June 1989.
Studentsl compare what it is to be an American Citizen (Democracy) vs.
Chinese Citizen (Communism). Learners identify and define various vocabulary terms,...
Curated OER
The Rise of the City States in Greece
Sixth graders examine Ancient Greece and its development of democracy. In this Greek History lesson, 6th graders explore the rise of city-states in Greece and its overall effect on the development of democracy. The class continues with...
Curated OER
Piggy Tale Election
Second graders investigate democracy by reading The Three Little Pigs. In this government lesson, 2nd graders discover ways laws are changed or enacted by holding their own election in class. Students compare the Big Bad Wolf...
Curated OER
Rules and Responsibilities: Youth and the Process of Change
First graders analyze politics by participating in a class rules lesson. In this democracy lesson, 1st graders identify several class and school rules they dislike and conduct discussions to examine if they should be changed or not....
Curated OER
Constitutional Issues: Watergate and the Constitution
Students take and defend positions on what conditions contribute to the establishment and maintenance of a constitutional government. They debate whether or not the government should have prosecuted Nixon over the Watergate scandal.
Museum of Tolerance
Documents That Shape Society
The Bill of Rights is a foundational document of American democracy, much like the Nuremberg Laws were a foundational document of the Reichstag of Nazi Germany. But that's where their similarities end. Engage high schoolers in a...
Curated OER
The Importance of Inauguration Day
As Inauguration Day approaches, prepare your learners by researching the protocol of years past.
Facing History and Ourselves
The Audacity of a Vote: Susan B. Anthony’s Arrest
Susan B. Anthony's speech "Is It a Crime for Women to Vote?" takes center stage in a lesson that asks class members to consider how they might respond to what they consider an unjust law. Groups work through the speech paragraph by...
Brown University
Considering the Role of Values in Public Policy
Strong opinions come from deeply held values. Young citizens explore the values that are most important to them in a class discussion and activity. As they prioritize a list of values cards that include freedom,...
School Improvement in Maryland
Political Systems: Advantages and Disadvantages
Every political system has advantages and disadvantages. To gain an understanding of these differences, groups investigate the political system of another country—oligarchy, monarchy, dictatorship, parliamentary—and prepare a...
National Endowment for the Humanities
What Happens in the White House?
Young historians complete a unit of lessons on the functions of the White House. They conduct Internet research, develop a list of activities that take place at the White House, and create a chronological timeline of events at the White...
Facing History and Ourselves
Laws and the National Community
When it comes to the law, is justice always served? Teach scholars about how law sometimes enables prejudice of entire groups of people with a unit on World War II that includes a warm-up activity, analysis of primary sources,...
Curated OER
Discovering Democracy in Canada: Federal Perspectives
Tenth graders research one aspect of government. They teach their peers co-operatively about the key elements of Democracy in Canada at the Federal Level by giving group presentations.
Curated OER
Ensuring Democracy in Iraq
Students explore what democracy means and how it can be spread to Iraq. They create strategies to ensure elections are fair. Students discuss the importance of fair voting conditions and the features of a democracy.
PBS
Journalism in War Time: What Does the Public Need to Know?
A viewing of the documentary War Feels Like War, launches an exploration of the importance of accurate and comprehensive war reporting. Groups investigate various news agencies and assess the factors that influence their stories. A...