A series of 85 articles written anonymously by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay. Originally published in New York newspapers, the papers were designed to convince New Yorkers to ratify the Constitution. Today, the Federalist Papers help clarify what the Constitution’s authors intended.
Constitutional Convention
This article focuses on George Washington’s role in the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia from May 14 to September 17. Delegates were gathering to correct the various problems that had arisen while the newly-independent nation was operating under the Articles of Confederation, but Washington had to be persuaded to even attend.
Documents of Freedom: History, Government, and Economics Through Primary Sources
This complete online textbook covers American history, government, and economic concepts. Resources include readings for students, activity directions for teachers, and handouts that are downloadable and printable for classroom use. Content is geared toward students in grades 8-12. All materials are aligned with Common Core and individual state standards.
Voices of History
Voices of History is a collection of eight Bill of Rights Institute curriculum resources including Being An American, Preserving the Bill of Rights, Founders and the Constitution, Supreme Court DBQs, Liberty and Security in Modern Times, Religious Liberty: An American Experiment, and Heroes and Villains. Teachers will have free access to each resources’ lessons plans and handouts.
Presidents Day Lesson Plans & Resources
Presidents Day was originally established in 1885 as “Washington’s Birthday” to celebrate President George Washington’s birthday on February 22. In 1971, the federal government renamed the holiday Presidents Day in order to honor all U.S. presidents, past and present. Share My Lesson has curated a collection of free lesson plans, educational resources and classroom materials on the accomplishments of U.S. presidents, first ladies, and the role and responsibilities of the president in government and in a democracy.
Rights of Farm Workers: Labor Leaders César Chávez and Dolores Huerta
March 31 is César Chávez Day and April 10 is Dolores Huerta Day. Use these K-12 lesson plans and resources to celebrate the life and legacy of these civil rights and labor activists. Topics span their co-founding of the United Farm Workers union, their use of nonviolent protests to fight for the rights of laborers and includes other change-makers like Lucas Benitez and Librada Paz.
Climate Change Lesson Plans & Resources
This curated collection serves as a great resource for educators to find a wide-range of relevant K-12 lessons on climate change, celebrating Earth Day or supporting young people as they continue to lead the conversation around the climate change crisis. What is weather? How does it impact people and the planet? Are there things we do that can address climate change?
Constitutional Index – Amendment 18 Concurrent Enforcement 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.