Female imprisonment is on the rise in the United States, surpassing global rates. Why is this? Consider the historical context of women in prison, and discover the unique challenges faced by women as they navigate life within correctional facilities primarily designed for men.
Defining Justice
This 60-minute activity requires students to actively interpret Lady Justice, a symbolic statue designed to encapsulate the American criminal justice system and then define Justice using a Frayer model.
Intro Activities for Discussions on Incarceration
This 75-minute activity explores the historical through lines between the 13th Amendment, incarceration, and prison labor including a case study analysis. Students will explore the ethics of incarceration, reflecting on rehabilitation, labor practices, prisoner wage and benefits, and workplace safety.
Bell Ringer: Harry Burn & the 19th Amendment
Author Misty Heggeness highlighted the significance of Harry Burn as it relates to the 19th Amendment.
Bell Ringer: The Constitution of the United States Vignette
This 1950s classroom film depicts the problems that led to the drafting of the U.S. Constitution, such as Shay’s Rebellion and confusing state currencies, and then dramatizes some of the major events of the 1787 Constitutional Convention.
Formation of State Constitutions
This lesson plan opens with reflective question that asks students to reflect the development of laws in the United States. Students then watch, analyze, and respond to an introductory video clip that details the goals of the writers of the first state constitutions. Next, students view for videos that provide historical background information, including uncertainty during the revolutionary era, what the colonists agreed upon, and how citizenship and society were viewed in the wake of the Enlightenment. Students then are assigned to study either Virginia’s, Pennsylvania’s, or Massachusetts’ first state constitution. After viewing the video clip for their assigned constitution, students then choose another first state constitution of choice and prepare a presentation comparing the two. The lesson concludes with a reflective video clip before students respond to a summative writing prompt.
First Amendment Quizzes
The First Amendment Academy is a hub for quick, engaging quizzes from Freedom Forum, which also provides educational resources through NewseumED. The quizzes test middle school and high school students’ knowledge with real-world scenarios, interactive activities and thought-provoking questions that make learning these five fundamental freedoms fun, fast and relevant.
Civic Online Reasoning for the Science Classroom
Scientific misinformation abounds online. Improve students’ ability to evaluate scientific information on the internet with these curricular materials. These lessons and tasks can be used in a variety of subject areas, but we’ve compiled this group of materials specifically for science educators because they present students with science-related sources.
Civic Online Reasoning for the History Classroom
Historical misinformation abounds online. Improve students’ ability to evaluate historical information on the internet with these curricular materials. These lessons and tasks can be used in a variety of subject areas, but we’ve compiled this group of materials specifically for history educators because they present students with history-related sources.
Civic Online Reasoning for the Civics Classroom
Information of civic importance abounds online. Improve students’ ability to evaluate civic information on the internet with these curricular materials. These lessons and tasks can be used in a variety of subject areas, but we’ve compiled this group of materials specifically for civics educators because they present students with civics-related sources.