Imagine sitting down with representatives of your school to write a new student handbook. What arguments would ensue? How would compromises be made to finish the project? Scholars research the Constitutional Convention using a directory...

What's the right way to teach young historians about the Bill of Rights? Many an instructor has asked this question when pondering lesson plans over the US Constitution. The Constitution and Rights is a nifty resource that provides a...

Supreme Court justices debate the meaning of the US Constitution, but we expect teachers to explain it to scholars with far less training and experience. A daunting task for sure, but it's not insurmountable with resources that simplify...

What's the best way to make sense of the Constitution?  A helpful lesson contains both the text of Article III and annotation of each of its sections, breaking it down into easy-to-understand parts. It also includes links to a...

Most Americans profess their love for the US Constitution, but this was not always the case. An informative lesson overviews the debate between the Federalists and Anti-Federalists by summarizing the main arguments of each side. It...

The Supreme Court gets all the glory, but very few federal cases make it to the highest court. An interesting lesson explores the structure of the lower levels of the federal court system. In addition to outlining the organization of...

Did you know there are seven Articles and 27 Amendments to the US Constitution? Explore each and every one of them, including the Bill of Rights and other rights around the world, in a super neat US Constitution interactive. 

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...

Churches have been tax-exempt since the founding of America, but should they be? Pupils ponder the question as they browse the website in preparation for a class debate or discussion. They research the history of tax-exemption for...

Former President Barack Obama reformed the United States' health care system with Obamacare, but is the new legislation good for America? Scholars read a historical timeline about the passage of health care reform laws and compare United...

As many unfortunate journalists have learned, taking someone else's ideas and passing them off as your own is never a good idea. It's called plagiarism—and it's a big deal. Thankfully, a handout helps writers learn how to avoid...

Should physician-assisted suicide be legal? Using a debate topics website, pupils prepare to discuss the morality and legality of euthanasia. Scholars discover historical case studies involving assisted suicide, explore state-by-state...

When researchers write a paper, they become curators of information. It's their job to determine the best sources of information on a topic and use those sources to inform their writing. As part of a larger series, a handout on annotated...

What do Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg have in common? They're both billionaires, and neither one has a college degree! Using the website, scholars explore whether having a college education is truly worth the money it costs. They read...

The first legal gay marriage in the United States occurred in Massachusetts in 2004. Since then, countless others have tied the knot. Scholars decide whether gay marriage should be legal by reading a history of the issue, analyzing the...

This site is from a unit called 'Writing the US Constitution.' It looks at the documents that preceded the Constitution, and the major issues that were debated while the Constitution was being created.

The framers of the Constitution had a great distaste for the monarchial society of Great Britain. See how this was reflected in the checks and balances they wrote into the Constitution in an effort to create a working republic.

This website was created by faculty, students, and staff to publicly present information about Columbia's historical connections to the institution of slavery. This article focuses on King's College, soon to be Columbia College, in the...

See how state constitutions were the incubator of ideas that eventually became embodied in the U.S. Constitution.

Annenberg Classroom resource on the 10th Amendment which attempts to create a balance of power between federal and state government. With links to related news articles and resources.

A large collection of Social Studies units, WebQuests, and games that focuses on teaching students how government works and the importance of being responsible, informed American citizens. Units are linked to state standards. A teacher...

What is the Bill of Rights? Why were they created? Find out the purpose of these ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution and how they work to protect the citizens in the U.S.

This resource from the Indiana Historical Bureau makes available documents that were instrumental in the settlement of Indiana from as far back as 1781. The documaents have introductions that help in understanding their relevancy in the...