Seeking Refuge: Then and Now

Posed here is an issue of land ownership and law from the year 1773. Learners can use what they know about the US Constitution, statehood, and Articles I, III, and IV to answer five questions regarding the scenario.

How many constitutional clauses does it take to create a bill? High schoolers find out with several activities and  selected clauses about the rule of law and the US Constitution. Various coinciding activities help to strengthen...

How do you determine what law enforcement agency has jurisdiction when a crime has been committed? That's the challenge facing class members in this role-play activity.

To understand the laws regarding marijuana use in the United States, you can go all the way back to the 1800's to learn about farming hemp, or you can go back to 2018 when California became the sixth state to legalize recreational...

Discuss the differences in dialogue and debate when considering a controversial topic. Your class can work in small groups to complete a guided discussion of this controversial topic and then participate in a simulation of the Scopes...

We hear a lot about the importance of the rule of law, but most people do not really know what those words mean. The lesson is a webpage that defines the rule of law, explains why it is important in a democratic society and provides...

The ratification process for the Fourteenth Amendment that granted citizenship to everyone male born in the United States was contentious. The video reenacts a portion of the 39th Congressional debates focusing on the ratification of the...

In 1863 life forever changed for African American slaves when the Emancipation Proclamation was announced. An interesting video clip shows two actors reading excerpts from the Emancipation Proclamation and a letter by a slave named Annie...

The Black Codes and Jim Crow Laws were rules that served the same purpose: to restrict the rights of African Americans. Young historians watch performers read Black Code laws from different states to explain how African Americans were...

With so many different types of law, it can be difficult for learners to discern which is which! Use a newspaper to give tangible examples of various types of law, including criminal, civil, consumer, family, local, state, federal and...