Classroom Law Project
What should I watch for in the debates?
Prepare your classes for election year debates with a series of activities that model how to watch televised debates and how to evaluate the moderators as well as the debaters.
Saskatchewan Elocution and Debate Association
Grab ‘N Go Debate
Here's a resource that provides debaters with the background information and worksheets they will need when planning a policy debate. Templates and sentence frames, as well as a rationale for using debates in the classroom, are included...
Curated OER
The Waterfront Debate
Tenth graders debate a resolution about a planned waterfront community from the point of view of various interest groups. They have a "Town Meeting" in which members from each interest group debate their researched opinions for points....
Curated OER
Writing Resolutions
Students prepare for Youth Voices Forum by writing resolutions using actual format employed by United Nations. Students explore components of resolution, including formal language, and practice writing and critiquing resolutions.
Curated OER
Language, Communication, and Successful Conflict Resolution
Students consider how communication skills may diffuse conflict. In this conflict resolution activity, students play a word game and discuss how vocabulary may contribute to creating conflict of diffusing it.
Curated OER
Model UN Simulation on Population Control Policies
Students participate in a Model UN Simulation Activity in which they take the role of country delegates and NGO representatives in an attempt to develop and debate resolutions that seek to provide remedies to the problems of...
Curated OER
Racial Profiling
Students debate both positions on the controversial topic of racial profiling with support for each and then develop a consensus position on how racial profiling as a law enforcement tool should be used.
Curated OER
How Do Conflicts Escalate?
Young scholars examine, evaluate and understand the concept of conflict, conflict escalation and colflict resolution through a variety of creative interactions.
Curated OER
"We, the People": New Voices in the Constitutional Debates
Students study the goals set out for the Constitution. They examine the resolutions arrived at to resolve three major conflicts which arose during the writing of the Constitution. They discuss or write down a one-sentence summary of...
Curated OER
Debate: Oregon's Death with Dignity Act
Students hold formal debate on the Death with Dignity Act. After researching information in the library, they record it on index cards. They prepare construction, cross examination, and rebuttal speeches.
National Endowment for the Humanities
Kennewick Man: Science and Sacred Rights
"Have respect for the dead!" Scholars investigate how science and religion often clash. As they look into the laws of science and the laws of religion, the legal ramifications at the federal level of both play into an argument they...
K20 Learn
(Mis)Reported and (Mis)Remembered: The Vietnam War
New ReviewWhat are the complicated legacies of the Vietnam War? Learners consider the question as they examine videos and primary sources from the conflict. After examining footage and documents such as the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution and an op-ed...
Curated OER
Youth Voices: Fair Access to Resources and Quality of Life
Student delegates conduct "United Nations" style session in which they are challenged to develop resolution or resolutions that address how to feed growing population, taking into consideration quality of life and impact on environment.
Curated OER
Wall to Peace: Deconstructing Divisions Among People and Cultures
Students analyze quotes and poetry related to relationships in society. In this civics lesson plan, students participate in small group debate game and focus on communication skills that reinforce civil discussion. Students reflect and...
Curated OER
Supply & Demand: Finite Resources, Infinite Needs
Students discuss conflict resolution strategies they use in real life. They listen to "Getting to Yes" about principled negotiation. They negotiate the distribution of goodies on a table according to rules and time constraints. They...
Curated OER
Troop Surge vs. Redeployment
Students explore American foreign policy regarding the war in Iraq. In this Iraq debate lesson plan, students examine videos and documents about the pros and cons of keeping American troops in Iraq.
Curated OER
Federalist and Antifederalist Papers
Students debate the Federalist and Anti-federal Papers after using the Internet as a research tool.
Curated OER
Setting Up Camp
Draw on what learners know about conflict resolution and the situation in the Middle East to build understanding of the Camp David summit meeting beginning on July 11, 2000. They develop an understanding of the functions of summit...
Curated OER
Fast Food and Daily Nutrition Choices
Students explore food. In this nutrition instructional activity, students investigate multiple facets of healthy eating and how the fast food industry impacts our society. They will participate in class discussions, read from their...
Constitutional Rights Foundation
Naturalized Citizens and the Presidency
Article II, Section 1 of the U.S. Constitution takes center stage in a lesson that asks class members to assume the role of state senators, debate a resolution to amend the U. S. Constitution to permit naturalized citizens to run for...
Curated OER
Join Gloria Steinem
High schoolers research events relating to the Chicana rights movement and analyze the 1973 Chicana Caucus Resolutions. They draft a set of Chicana rights resolutions.
Curated OER
Avoiding Armageddon
PBS has written a series of lessons on avoiding Armageddon. This is instructional activity 4 of 5 and focuses on defining terrorism. Upper graders watch episode 3 of "Avoiding Armageddon - The New Face of Terror," read how terrorism is...
Curated OER
Bill of Rights
US history classes explore constitutional rights as they relate to court cases involving teens. Your class must already be familiar with the Bill of Rights before beginning this series of exercises. In preparation for a debate-style...
Curated OER
Heroic Actions
Learners identify heroic actions in various situations. They discuss characteristics of heroes, analyze various scenarios, create their own scenarios and resolutions to the conflicts, and participate in role-playing activities.