Bill of Rights Institute
Bill of Rights Institute: The Federal Budget and the Constitution
What responsibilities belong to the U.S. President and the Congressional houses when it comes to establishing the federal budget? Take a look at these resources and incorporate this instructional activity into classroom learning.
Constitutional Rights Foundation
Constitutional Rights Foundation: How the First State Constitution Helped Build the u.s. Constitution [Pdf]
Article describes how the written constitutions adopted by each of the 13 colonies were the seeds of the U.S. Constitution including the Bill of Rights. Includes questions for discussion and small group activity.
Bill of Rights Institute
Bill of Rights Institute: Internet Copyright and Piracy Bills
A lesson focused on SOPA, Stop Online Privacy Act, which protects online businesses from counterfeiters and from folks using copyrighted materials without appropriate permissions.
Stephen Byrne
History for Kids: Bill of Rights
History for Kids reference page provides an overview of the Bill of Rights, outlining each of the ten amendments, and teaching about the history and principles of the U.S. Consitution and first ten amendments.
Mocomi & Anibrain Digital Technologies
Mocomi: The Bill of Rights
Learn about the Bill of Rights and when it was added to the Constitution.Provides a list of the ten Amendments.
Texas State Historical Association
Texas State Historical Association: The Constitution of Texas [Pdf]
An activity guide where young scholars refer to the Texas Almanac, which is free to download, for information needed to complete assigned tasks. In this lesson, they examine the Texas Constitution and the Texas Bill of Rights and record...
Huntington Library
Huntington Library: The Rule of Law
In this lesson, students examine primary source materials including the Book of Laws, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the Magna Carta in order to understand their meaning and to compare them. They then prepare an argument on...
Constitutional Rights Foundation
Constitutional Rights Foundation: Saved From the Gallows: The Trial of Leopold and Loeb [Pdf]
Referred to as "the crime of the century," Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb were tried and convicted of the murder of a fourteen year old in Chicago in the early twentieth century. This Bill of Rights in Action features the story of the...
Bill of Rights Institute
Bill of Rights Institute: Constitutional Principles
James Madison knew that a key challenge of maintaining just government was framing it in such a way that the government would be forced to control itself. How does a system of separated powers-and the checks and balances built into those...
Other
Bill of Rights Institute: Citizen Bee Study Guide: Citizen Responsibilities
Use this study guide to get a quick review of the responsibilities of Texas citizenship.
iCivics
I Civics: Interpreting the Constitution
Students analyze real-life cases interpreting the 8th and 5th amendments to see whether they interpret the Bill of Rights the same way the Supreme Court did and discover how tricky interpreting the Constitution really is.
George Mason University
Roy Rosenzweig Center: Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen
After a long debate about what should be included in their Bill of Rights, French leaders eventually came to a "Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen," seventeen articles that laid out a government that protected natural rights....
University of North Carolina
University of North Carolina: Constitution 101 [Pdf]
Provides a good basic introduction to the Constitution. Explains the founding principles, checks and balances, the rationale for it, the accomplishments of the Constitutional Convention, the debate and ratification, the structure of the...
Ducksters
Ducksters: Us Government for Kids: United States Bill of Rights
Kids learn about the Bill of Rights of the United States government. The first 10 amendments to the Constitution.
Bill of Rights Institute
Bill of Rights Institute: Constitution Quiz: Constitution Duel
Challenge friends to a duel! As you take this quiz you will be asked to answer 10 multiple-choice questions in this knowledge duel to defend your constitutional honor. Questions will come from categories such as the Constitution, primary...
Bill of Rights Institute
Bill of Rights Institute: Benjamin Franklin
Although he was the old sage of the American Revolution and the Founding generation, Benjamin Franklin's considerable work in the areas of journalism, science, and invention often obscure his many contributions to the creation of the...
Bill of Rights Institute
Bill of Rights Institute: Elbridge Gerry
Elbridge Gerry is remembered today for his controversial attempt as governor to draw congressional districts in Massachusetts to the advantage of his party. Indeed, "gerrymandering" is a common political tactic today and undeniably part...
Bill of Rights Institute
Bill of Rights Institute: Roger Sherman
Although not the most charismatic or eloquent Founder, Roger Sherman was highly esteemed by his contemporaries. At Sherman's death, Ezra Stiles, president of Yale College, wrote, "He was an extraordinary man-a venerable uncorrupted...
Bill of Rights Institute
Bill of Rights Institute: John Dickinson
John Dickinson was called "The Penman of the American Revolution." During the 1760s and 1770s, he authored numerous important essays in defense of American rights, including The Late Regulations Respecting the British Colonies, the...
Bill of Rights Institute
Bill of Rights Institute: Charles Pinckney
Born near Charles Town (now Charleston), South Carolina, Charles Pinckney was the child of a wealthy family. He received a first-rate education and became an accomplished lawyer. Pinckney joined the state militia during the American...
Bill of Rights Institute
Bill of Rights Institute: Texas v. Johnson
This Landmark Supreme Court Cases and the Constitution eLesson focuses on a case involving expressive conduct, and what is for many a deeply cherished symbol of America, the U.S. flag. In a closely divided (5-4) ruling, the Supreme Court...
Bill of Rights Institute
Bill of Rights Institute: Charles Carroll
Charles Carroll is primarily remembered today for his political leadership in Maryland during the Revolutionary era. A wealthy planter, Carroll became a major figure in the patriot movement in 1773 when he penned the First Citizen...
Bill of Rights Institute
Bill of Rights Institute: Founding Principles
Below, you will find suggested definitions of each principle. Click here to read the words of James Madison, a primary contributor to the Constitution, and other Founders on these principles.
Bill of Rights Institute
Bill of Rights Institute: John Hancock
Forever famous for his outsized signature on the Declaration of Independence, John Hancock was a larger than life figure in other ways as well. Part of the great Boston triumvirate that included Samuel Adams and James Otis, Hancock was a...