A Test Case for Individual Rights

Did you know that lawmakers have proposed more than 5,000 bills to amend the US Constitution in Congress? Your class learns intriguing facts about the process of choosing amendments. A variety of activities including before and after...

When, if ever, is the government justified in restricting individual rights? When, if ever, should the "greater good" trump individual rights? To prepare to discuss this hot-button topic, class members examine primary source documents,...

What happens in a small Texas town when a father decides to challenge a school board decision about mandatory drug testing for junior and senior high-school students? P.O.V., the documentary series that airs on PBS, answers this question...

Injection, taking a pill, or inhaling are the three main ways to administer a drug. But how do these drugs affect the brain? Watch a video that explains how neurons use neurotransmitters to communicate to one another in the brain.

Animal testing: cruel and inhumane, or innovative and life-saving? Scholars explore the topic and form their own opinions with help from the highly informative website. Pupils read a comprehensive overview of the topic, including...

Did you know that the concept of standardized testing is over 2,000 years old? But what is the purpose of these tests? What do they supposedly measure? A short video investigates the history of standardized tests.

Learners examine the US Constitution, Bill of Rights, and Supreme Court cases in order to broaden their understanding of the US Judicial System. They research a variety of textual and Internet resources to create a tri-fold brochure,...

While the Constitutional Convention lay the foundation of the new government for the United States, the protections given under the Bill of Rights were controversial. Using documents, such as James Madison's and Thomas Jefferson's...

How did the Voting Rights Act affect the daily lives of American citizens? A document-based lesson developed by the Student Non-Violent Coordinating committee (SNCC) presents a case study of the impact of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 on...

The first ten Amendments of the U.S. Constitution are vital for young people to understand. Provide the foundation of the laws that govern our country with this junior high school instructional activity. Groups use the newspaper to...