Debating for Land

Having a debate doesn't mean you're fighting. Introduce middle schoolers to debate with a resource which distinguishes between an quarrel and a debate, describes the debate process and format, and presents some possible debate topics.

After watching clips of presidential candidates during debates and speeches, and researching the candidate's position on important issues, young researchers conduct a role-play debate in which they act as one of the candidates.

Here's a resource that provides debaters with the background information and worksheets they will need when planning a policy debate. Templates and sentence frames, as well as a rationale for using debates in the classroom, are included...

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 legislation,...

How the Kansas-Nebraska Act created Bleeding Kansas is complicated—until scholars research and examine documents from the time. After completing activities that include mapping, photo, document analysis, and discussion, learners...

Behind every successful debate is a list of clearly stated criteria. Let your debaters know exactly how their performance will be evaluated with this packet that details the content, preparation, structure, and grading policy that will...

Why was the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 so important? The reading in the resource discusses how the act affected Southerners, Northerners, and the slaves themselves. Scholars complete the reading as a form of direct instruction while...

Why did Stephen Douglas support the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854? Why did Abraham Lincoln oppose it? Young historians examine how the Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 affected the political balance between free and slave states and explore how...

From the time of its publication, Uncle Tom's Cabin has been controversial. To better understand the debate, class members first examine a broadside decrying the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, and then two newspaper reviews of the novel...

Arranged in facing concentric circles, half the class discusses an issue. The other half of the class takes notes which are then used to fuel a class discussion and to prepare editorial opinions on the topic at hand. So much emphasis is...