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This lesson gives an article-by-article overview of the structure and function of the U.S. Constitution. Students learn about the duties and powers of the three branches, the amendment process, and the role of the Constitution as the supreme law of the land. (Note: Anatomy of the Constitution now includes content previously covered by the lesson Directions for Democracy.)
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Student Learning Objectives:
Students will be able to:
*Explain the structure, function, and powers of the U.S. government as established in the Constitution.
*Identify the roles of the three branches of government.
*Describe the constitutional amendment process.
*Interpret the intentions of the Preamble of the Constitution.

The U.S. Constitution grants the President the power to appoint people to a variety of government positions. These appointments require careful thought and consideration since the people can have a great impact on the lives of many Americans during that President’s term. Some appointments need even greater thought and consideration, and those are to the federal judicial system and more importantly, to the Supreme Court of the United States. Justices of the Supreme Court (and other federal courts) serve lifetime appointments. Their rulings as they interpret the Constitution, and other situations as outlined in Article III of the Constitution, can have far-reaching effects for generations. With this awesome power to appoint comes an equally awesome responsibility to make sure that the individuals are the best people for the job. In this lesson, students will examine the appointment of Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, who was also the first female Justice. Students will examine the process by which a President makes the selection and the steps that lead to that person being confirmed by the Senate (or not).

Students are given the background and facts of the Brown v. Board of Education case along with precedents. Their task is to sort through the arguments of the case and classify each as an argument for Brown or for the Board of Education.

This lesson looks at Bush v. Gore, the U.S. Supreme Court case that decided the 2000 election. First, students read about and discuss the Supreme Court case of Bush v. Gore. Then in small groups, students role play Supreme Court justices and apply Bush v. Gore to hypothetical election cases.

Students will gain an understanding of civil rights Supreme Court cases that helped to transform the move away from the oppression of minority groups and move towards equality for all. This project was developed as a part of the Creating Lessons Using Transformative Technology - Platteville Public Schools OER grant.

Constitution 101 is a 15 unit curriculum that provides students with a basic understanding of the Constitution’s text, history, structure, and caselaw. Using multiple primary source documents students will study the historical and philosophical foundations of America’s founding principles from a range of diverse voices The curriculum guides students to think like constitutional lawyers—cultivating the skills necessary to analyze all sides of constitutional questions. Each unit contains detailed materials for classroom teachers, as well as opportunities for guided discovery and practice and tools to check for understanding.

Democracy in America is a unique 15-part course for high school teachers to provide a deeper understanding of the principles and workings of American democracy. By combining compelling video stories of individuals interacting with American government, theoretical discussions of the meaning of democracy, and problem-solving, hands-on exercises, the course gives life to the workings of American democracy.

This lesson calls for students to take a stand on whether there should be drug testing in schools or not. Students stand along a spectrum – ranging from “test everyone” to “never test anyone” – to represent their position on the issue. As the class discusses and debates, students are encouraged to consider opposite views, and can move along the spectrum to reflect changed opinions. The lesson concludes with a conversation about the possible outcomes of the policies brought up during the session.

This First Amendment activity applies the landmark Supreme Court case Elonis v. U.S. to a teen conflict posted on Facebook.

The First Amendment’s right to free speech is one of our most important rights as citizens. But what does freedom of speech mean for students in public schools? How do you balance a school’s need for order with a student’s right to free expression? This film explores the evolution of student free speech rights through Supreme Court cases, from Tinker v. Des Moines to Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L., the case of the Snapchatting cheerleader.

In this activity and set or resources from the Newseum ED, students grapple with free speech-related conflicts and controversies using real-life scenarios. They deepen their understanding by taking a position and supporting their arguments with evidence from a gallery of print and visual sources.

The lesson requires a free registration for Nesweum ED resources.

As part of the Bill of Rights, freedom of speech is guaranteed by the Constitution, but it is not defined by it. That task is left up to the people through a representative government that makes the laws and a judicial system that interprets and applies the laws to resolve disputes. When people bring their First Amendment challenges into the court system and decisions are made, principles get established that help define the boundaries of free speech for everyone.

While most Americans believe there should be some limits to free expression, there is much disagreement about what constitutes speech and where those limits should be. Consequently, freedom of speech ends up being our most contested right.

In this lesson, based on the Annenberg Classroom video “A Conversation on the Constitution: Freedom of Speech,” students gain insight into the many challenges involved in defining and protecting free speech. They also learn about principles that come from Supreme Court decisions and case law that are applied to define the limits for us today.

: In this lesson, students will learn about how “freedom of speech” is applied in schools. Students will begin by brainstorming the meaning of “free speech” from prior lessons and then brainstorming about how they think speech might be limited in schools. Then students will learn about speech rights in school by completing a reading and watching a short video. For the activity, students will look at school-based scenarios and decide whether or not they think a school could limit student speech.’
This lesson is part of a Unit that includes the following lessons:
Grade 5 History Mystery 1: WHAT IS "FREE SPEECH" AND WHY DOES IT MATTER?
Grade 5 History Mystery 2: DOES "FREE SPEECH" MEAN I CAN SAY WHATEVER I WANT?
Grade 5 History Mystery 3:WHAT CAN I SAY IN SCHOOL?

In a constitutional system of government, the role of the judiciary is essential for maintaining the balance of power, protecting individual rights, upholding the rule of law, interpreting the Constitution, and ensuring equal justice for all. In this lesson, students learn about the role of an independent judiciary in the United States.

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.

Most socially significant issues from America's past were brought before the nation's courts. Subject introduces the themes and events of American law since 1787, focusing on three recurring themes in American public life: liberty, equality, and property. Readings consist mostly of original court cases, especially from the US Supreme Court. Subject also focuses on the historical connections between cases and broader social, political, and cultural trends.

This is a guided packet used with my Yearbook Publication class.  It was designed to specifically meet standard RI.11-12.8, which is asking for students to read, understand, and evaluate legal reasoning used in US Supreme Court cases.  The cases students are required to look at in this packet are cases specifically related to student journalism and student press rights ( and ).  It is used as a guided Internet search to supplement the information presented in the journalism textbook.

A moot court is a role-play of an appeals court or Supreme Court hearing. The court is asked to rule on a lower court’s decision. No witnesses are called, nor are the basic facts in a case disputed. Arguments are prepared and presented on a legal question (e.g., the constitutionality of a law or government action or the interpretation of a federal statute). Moot courts are an effective strategy for focusing student attention on underlying legal principles and concepts of justice.

Slavery was embedded into America’s fabric by the time of the framing and ratification of the Constitution. At the Constitutional Convention, the delegates refused to write the word “slavery” or enshrine a “right to property in men” in the Constitution’s text, but they did compromise on the issue of slavery, writing important protections for slaveholders into our nation’s charter. Debates over slavery continued (and increased) in the decades to come, culminating in Abraham Lincoln’s election as America’s first anti-slavery president, Southern secession, and the Civil War. Following this bloody war, the Reconstruction Republicans worked to rebuild our nation on a stronger constitutional foundation, passing our nation’s first civil rights laws and ratifying the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments. These amendments ended slavery, wrote the Declaration of Independence’s promise of freedom and equality into the Constitution, and promised to end racial discrimination in voting. Many scholars refer to this key period as America’s “Second Founding.”

The original Constitution did not specifically protect the right to vote—leaving the issue largely to the states. For much of American history, this right has often been granted to some, but denied to others; however, through a series of amendments to the Constitution, the right to vote has expanded over time. These amendments have protected the voting rights of new groups, including by banning discrimination at the ballot box based on race (15th Amendment) and sex (19th Amendment). They also granted Congress new power to enforce these constitutional guarantees, which Congress has used to pass landmark statutes like the Voting Rights Act of 1965. While state governments continue to play a central role in elections today, these new amendments carved out a new—and important—role for the national government in this important area.