This ‘Tournament of Presidents’ activity gives students an opportunity to evaluate the presidents using a "bracket style" competition. Students will examine individual leadership characteristics that are key to the success of the chief executive. Students will utilize C-SPAN Presidential resources with special emphasis on the C-SPAN's 2021 Historians Survey of President Leadership.

Video collection of Park rangers discussing the events of the Battles of Lexington and Concord. The unit includes student activities.

Responding to questions from Senator Jon Ossoff (D-GA), Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson discusses the 4th Amendment's provisions for privacy and for unreasonable searches and seizures during her confirmation hearing to be a Supreme Court justice.

What is “fake news,” how does it affect our trust in media, and our perception of issues relevant to our daily lives? While fake news is not a new phenomenon, recent events have heightened awareness of the prevalence of questionable media sources, leaving consumers to evaluate the veracity of information that is presented. The deluge of information available in print, televised, and online media sources, including sites such as Twitter and Facebook, has also increased the level of critical analysis media consumers must use to evaluate those sources. This deliberation will analyze the effect of fake news on traditional media outlets, the reasons and incentives for purveyors of “fake news,” and provide students with resources to strengthen their media literacy skills.

In the wake of recent acts of gun violence in America, both citizens and politicians continue the debate over gun control in the United States. Legislation addressing issues like background checks, concealed carry permits and bump stocks have been suggested to address this issue. This deliberation will allow students to explore the roots of gun control in the United States while also exploring varying viewpoints on how to address the problem of gun violence in the future.

The principle of checks and balances prevents one branch of government from becoming too powerful. Examples of checks and balances include vetoing of bill, ratifying treating, judicial review and others. This lesson provides video clips with examples and explanations of checks and balances.

Who should be responsible for determining the content and materials that are included in school curricula? The House Oversight and Reform Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Civil Liberties held hearings to discuss this issue. In this lesson, students will hear testimony from elected officials, people in the education community as well as a trailblazer in the Civil Rights Movement as they offer their perspectives on issues that should be addressed in educational settings as well as student access to materials such as books. The extension activity provides additional viewpoints from parents and students who testified during the hearing as well. Students will engage in activities to deliberate responses to this question.

The U.S. Constitution established the two bodies that comprise the U.S. Congress: The House of Representatives and the Senate. With candidates competing for seats in each chamber every election cycle, this lesson provides students with the opportunity to explore their members in the House of Representatives and how they represent their constituents as a fundamental part of civic literacy.

C-SPAN's Constitution Clips makes the U.S. Constitution come alive by providing teachers and students with video clips from C-SPAN's Video Library of the Constitution in action. Click on any text link or image link to view video clips correlating to their respective section of the U.S. Constitution

The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) stated, "Equality of Rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any state on account of sex." This proposed amendment was passed by Congress in 1972 but failed to be ratified by three-fourth of the states. This lesson provides an overview of the proposed amendment, arguments for and against ratification and possible future steps toward ratification. Students will explore different arguments surrounding the ERA and determine if the ERA should be added in the Constitution. This lesson can be used in a traditional or flipped classroom.

Following World War II, the international community declared ‘never again’ would we allow atrocities targeted against a group of people. They worked together to define genocide and agreed to intervene and stop any future such atrocities. In this lesson students research a case study and discuss with other groups which events qualify as genocide and decide what the appropriate international response should be.

The methods in which candidates, political parties and interest groups promote their positions and policies have evolved since the first television campaign ads aired. In this lesson, students will view videos of historical presidential campaign advertisements and analyze the features found within each to determine the overall effectiveness.

Brookings Institution Governance Studies Senior Fellow Molly Reynolds talked about the Electoral Count Act of 1887, the current law for how electoral votes get counted after a presidential election. She explains reform efforts and the role of the vice president of the U.S. in the electoral count.

After wearing black armbands to school in protest of the Vietnam War, three students -- two of them siblings -- were suspended by the Des Moines Independent Community School District for disrupting learning. The parents of the children sued the school for violating the children's right to free speech. The landmark Supreme Court Case Tinker v. Des Moines determined it was a First Amendment violation for public schools to punish students for expressing themselves in certain circumstances. This lesson uses expert analysis, perspectives from the Tinkers, oral arguments, and archival video to explore the case and the legacy of the ruling.

The executive branch was created by Article II of the U.S. Constitution and is headed by the President of the United States. The Constitution granted the president many powers, including to execute the laws of the country. However, much of the language of Article II is vague, and therefore the powers of the president have evolved over time. In this lesson, students will learn about the powers of the president and how they have grown and been used throughout our history.

This bell ringer explores ranked choice voting and how it can be used as a tool to reduce political polarization.

Using this resource, students will view short C-SPAN video clips exploring the background and different arguments surrounding the question over the current voting age. This deliberation has students learn about the history of lowering the voting age and explore the question: Should the voting age be lowered to 16?