Digital Public Library of America
Voting Rights Act of 1965
Despite the passing of the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments, as well as the passing of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the struggle to ensure fair voter registration and election procedures continues. Young historians...
C-SPAN
Civil Rights Movement: Sit-Ins
Part of the protests of the Civil Rights Movement were small scale sit-ins at lunch counters. This form of on-the-ground activism is the focus of a C-SPAN resource that includes four video-clips about the sit-ins by pupils at a lunch...
DocsTeach
U.S. v. Amistad: A Case of Jurisdiction
Just what is jurisdiction and why does it matter? A helpful activity takes academics on a journey to understand how judicial jurisdiction works. Scholars read excerpts from the Constitution and court documents to understand the process...
National Endowment for the Humanities
Oyez! Oyez! Oyez!: Simulating the Supreme Court
High schoolers have freedom of speech—or do they? Using an actual court case and research materials on the Supreme Court, young legal scholars examine the Supreme Court's role and history. Then, they argue a case the court declined to...
National Endowment for the Humanities
A Day for the Constitution
The "Constitution Day and Citizenship Day" law requires schools receiving any federal funding to provide educational programming on the history of the American Constitution. The lesson plans, materials, videos, questions, and activities...
C-SPAN
The Impact of Citizens United v. FEC
What began as an effort to show a movie by an interest group has impacted financing of federal elections. Did the Citizens United case lead to more "dark money" in politics, or did it shine a light with more speech? Using video clips...
C-SPAN
Voting Discrimination and the Effects of Shelby County v. Holder
Show students that every vote counts as they debate the federal government 's role in protecting voting rights in historically racially discriminated areas. In the Supreme Court case Shelby County v. Holder, the high court found that...
C-SPAN
14th Amendment Equal Protection Clause
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.
C-SPAN
Judicial Review and Marbury v Madison
The Supreme Court case Marbury v. Madison may not be widely recognized but the landmark case is particularly significant because it established the precedent for judicial review and that the Supreme Court had power as an interpreter of...
Constitutional Rights Foundation
Elections, Money, and the First Amendment
Those who spend the most, win. Academics read informational text, participate in group discussion, and defend campaign reforms to understand the correlation between money, the First Amendment, and election results. The resource explains...
Constitutional Rights Foundation
Why We Have Freedom of the Press
A newspaper receives documents that reveal not only a devastating secret the public needs to know, but also troop movements that could put American lives at risk: to publish or not to publish? Using background readings, discussion...
Constitutional Rights Foundation
Prayer and Friday Night Lights? An Establishment Clause Case from Texas
Is a Christian prayer before a Friday night football game a nice gesture or the imposition of religion on the rest of the community? A resource asks the question using a clip from the popular movie "Friday Night Lights" and readings...
Constitutional Rights Foundation
The Census in US History
The census has been a part of the American landscape since the Constitution was written; however, it does have a history of controversy. Class members use a guided reading and simulation activity on developing census questions to...
Judicial Branch of California
Fayette v. Take Two: The First Amendment
An informative lesson provides scholars the opportunity to study a Supreme Court case regarding the First Amendment and make a ruling with the members of their group. Class members also participate in group discussion and prepare a...
Teaching Tolerance
Using Photographs to Teach Social Justice | Confronting Unjust Practices
A powerful photograph of the Freedom Riders of 1961 launches an examination of the de jure and de facto injustices that the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s addressed. Young historians first watch a video and read the Supreme...
EngageNY
Studying Conflicting Interpretations: Perspectives on Plessy v. Ferguson: Part 2
The Plessy v. Ferguson case was influential in establishing segregation in the United States. Scholars continue reading the court's decision in the case, seeking to understand the key reasons the court came to its decision. Pupils also...
New York State Education Department
US History and Government Examination: January 2011
The presidencies of John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, and Ronald Reagan were defined by the Cold War. Using primary source documents and scaffolded analysis questions, pupils explore the effect the Cold War had on these presidencies. A...
New York State Education Department
US History and Government Examination: January 2012
What led to the United States Civil War? Interested historians consider a variety of political, social, and economic factors using primary sources and an essay prompt in an authentic high-stakes test. Primary sources include political...
New York State Education Department
US History and Government Examination: June 2013
How successful has American foreign policy been in the past? Pupils consider the question as part of a state examination in American history. Other prompts include a document analysis and essay of important civil rights cases decided by...
National Constitution Center
Dred Scott v. Sanford
Dred Scott v. Sanford was a watershed moment for the country—and a key moment leading up to the Civil War. Using videos and analytical worksheets, scholars consider the facts of the case and then develop their own arguments before the...
iCivics
Supreme Decision
Is the right to wear a band t-shirt included in our freedom of speech? Budding historians consider the question by using a video game. After a brief animated video, users drop in and listen to Supreme Court justices as they debate the...
PBS
The Supreme Court: The Importance of Precedent in the Decisions of the Supreme Court
People often hear the words precedent and Supreme Court together, but why? A resource on the Supreme Court includes a variety of discussion questions, handouts that guide young historians, a video about Nixon and the court system, and...
Judicial Learning Center
The Power of Judicial Review
Marbury v. Madison is arguably the most important landmark case in the history of the Supreme Court. A fact-filled lesson provides background information about the case and two others related to the concept of judicial review. Scholars...
Judicial Learning Center
Civil Rights and Equal Protection
Almost every American is familiar with the Supreme Court case of Brown vs. Board of Education. Far fewer understand the constitutional reasoning or the wide-ranging consequences of the ruling in the field of criminology. The interesting...