14th Amendment Teacher Resources

Two Supreme Court cases, Plessy v. Ferguson and Brown v. Board of Education take center stage in a lesson about the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. Class members research both cases to compare and contrast the rulings.

High schoolers focus on the 14th Amendment of the Bill of Rights to decide whether or not racism denies citizens of their rights under the amendment. They watch a movie, Every Two Seconds and complete a worksheet (included in the plan)...

The ratification process for the Fourteenth Amendment that granted citizenship to everyone male born in the United States was contentious. The video reenacts a portion of the 39th Congressional debates focusing on the ratification of the...

In 1863 life forever changed for African American slaves when the Emancipation Proclamation was announced. An interesting video clip shows two actors reading excerpts from the Emancipation Proclamation and a letter by a slave named Annie...

The Black Codes and Jim Crow Laws were rules that served the same purpose: to restrict the rights of African Americans. Young historians watch performers read Black Code laws from different states to explain how African Americans were...

Explore how the 14th Amendment changed the way the United States operated, both politicallay and socially. In this United States history worksheet, students utilize a word bank of 10 terms or phrases to answer 10 fill in the blank...

Students examine the 1st, 4th, 5th, 6th, 8th and 14th Amendments to the Constitution. They work with a partner to determine which amendment has been violated while working on a worksheet.

What makes the Fourteenth Amendment relevant to today's America? Jeffrey Rosen, president of the National Constitution Center, attempts to answer the question by walking through the clauses of the Reconstruction-era amendment. Due...

The Civil War ended slavery, but what was the status of the newly freed people? Renowned historian Eric Foner explains how the Fourteenth Amendment—written to answer this question—created a foundation for the rights of all citizens. The...

What do marriage equality, protection from racial discrimination, and protection from gender-based discrimination have in common? According to Harvard professor Tomiko Brown-Nagin, the Fourteenth Amendment protects all Americans in these...

Students watch the Discovery program "Racial Inequality: Remnants of a Troubled Time" then examine the ratification of the 14th Amendment and the Plessy v. Ferguson decision. They research one of three events that tested Brown v. Board...

What is the central idea of the Fourteenth Amendment? Scholars attempt to answer the question as they read and discuss the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which guarantees all citizens equal protection of the...

The authors of the court's decision and the dissenting opinion on Plessy v. Ferguson disagreed on their interpretations of the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments. Scholars set out to show how with an on-demand writing prompt. They...

Illegal immigration is an ever-changing source of consistent controversy. A reading passage about the rights of undocumented workers and illegal immigrants—and the lack thereof—guides high schoolers into a mock trial activity. Three...

The 50th anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington, President Johnson's signing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 provide the backdrop for a series of lesson...

Eighth graders study the ratification of the 14th Amendment and the Plessy v. Ferguson decision.  In this US History lesson, 8th graders read excerpts from the Brown v. Board of education decision.  Students investigate one of...

Students explore the concept of due process. In this American law lesson, students view a 9-slide PowerPoint presentation on the topic and then respond to 3 discussion questions about the 5th and 14th amendments.

As part of a study of the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution, class members examine four Supreme Court decisions—Gitlow v. New York, Mapp v. Ohio, Gideon v. Wainwright, and Griswold v. Connecticut—that incorporated the due...

High schoolers study the legal battles involving same-sex marriage. They examine primary sources and a video regarding the 14th amendment and its implications for gay marriage. They analyze a report of a California case that was sent to...

How do you create equality in education? Viewers examine the case University of California vs. Bakke to learn about the issues of affirmative action in the college admission process. They see how the case relates to the 14th Amendment...

Ambitiously spanning American history from 1865 to 1941, this video discusses and clarifies topics such as women's suffrage, the sinking of the Maine, and the development of America as a world empire. Maps and photographs will engage...

Teach young historians about the historical legacy of Rosa Parks with a multi-faceted lesson plan. Pupils follow stations and use journals to explore prominent events, analyze primary resource documents, and engage in interesting...

Upper graders critically examine the history and process of amending the U.S. Constitution in light of the current issue facing the courts on legalizing gay marriage. They read a variety of articles, watch news clips, and develop a...

Easily broken into pieces for several class sessions, this presentation is a great way to transition your class out of a Civil War unit and closer to the 20th century. Engaging photographs, including relevant maps and humorous political...