Most Americans are unaware about when and where Fourth Amendment rights are at issue. This lesson will allow students to examine the text and interpretations of the Fourth Amendment to describe key terms and ideas like searches, seizures, and privacy, as well as define some of the key debates about where the Fourth Amendment is headed in an age of technology.
Presidential Elections
The purpose of this lesson is to have students learn about each presidential election and presidential terms. Students will understand how various events in history shaped campaigns. Why elections were won and lost. What accomplishments and disappointments each president experienced. Each election and presidential term served had its own mark on history. The presentation to the class is the order of the elections starting with Washington’s first election and proceeding forward. The lesson plan was created to engage students in the election process and create interest in the coming presidential election.
Constituting America’s 90 Day Study of The Intrigue of Presidential Elections and Their Constitutional Impact is a resource guide for students. This study supplies many of the important facts and figures of each presidential campaign. There are also intriguing facts, stories, and information about the person, campaign, time in office and after the presidency.
Media Literacy: Making Sense of the 24/7 News Cycle
A free press is essential to the success of a democracy. As the media has evolved over time to include radio, television, internet and now smart phones and social media apps, the ability in “being capable to read them” needs examining. This lesson guides students through analysis of social media posts, the definition of terms relevant to the media, and provides tools for identifying quality sources for examination of current political issues. This lesson accompanies the Talking Turkey: Taking the ‘Dis’ Out of Civil Discourse program as well as YLI and American Evolution’s First Freedom Wall. Free registration is required to access the lesson plan.
Search Me
The lesson begins with students lined up in the front of the room. They are presented with a series of searches/seizures. If they believe the search/seizure was lawful, they step forward; if they believe it to be unlawful, they step backward. Next, students break into four groups. Each group is responsible for focusing on searches/seizures in a specific setting: at school, at home, in cars, or in public. The groups reconvene and present their ideas and findings to the rest of the class.
Constitutional Index – Amendment 20 Terms of Office Clause
The Constitutional Index breaks down the U.S. Constitution by Section, Amendment, and Clause and contains broader topics and themes. These are used to cross-reference Library resources in an effort to annotate constitutional history.
Lesson Plan: Choice Board – Researching Your U.S. Senators
This lesson provides students with the opportunity to explore their members of the U.S. Senate and how they represent their constituents as a fundamental part of civic literacy.
The Fundamentals of News
Students learn why news matters and how to distinguish between the different media-related terms they might hear being thrown around.
Our Constitution
The Our Constitution book, written by Donald A. Ritchie and JusticeLearning.org, takes an in-depth look at the Constitution, annotated with detailed explanations of its terms and contents. Included are texts of primary source materials, sidebar material on each article and amendment, profiles of Supreme Court cases, and timelines. The complete book or individual chapters can be downloaded.
The Preamble to the Constitution: A Close Reading Lesson
In this lesson, students will practice close reading and analysis of the words of the Preamble and related historic documents that illuminate the meaning of the terms and how they reflect the ideas of the framers of the Constitution about the foundation and historical aims of government.
Congress.gov
Congress.gov is the official source for federal legislative information. It provides access to information on legislation moving through Congress and the procedures used to move legislation through Congress, the activities of congressional committees, profiles of members of Congress and a glossary of terms used in the legislative process.