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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Cultural Defense to Crime?

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students define a "defense to a crime" and identify various defenses to crimes in Utah. They examine "cultural defense" and apply it to case studies.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Judges in the Classroom Lesson Plan: Cultural Defense

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students define defense to crime, identify various defenses to crime in Washington State, examine cultural defense and apply it to case studies, and identify arguments for and against a cultural defense.
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Interactive
2
2
Judicial Learning Center

Types of Court Cases

For Students 6th - 12th Standards
How can one court acquit someone of a crime, while another convicts the person of the same one? It's all because of the differences between civil and criminal trials. An informative resource provides scholars in the field of criminology...
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Lesson Plan
3
3
Alabama Department of Archives and History

"Scottsboro Boys": A Trial Which Defined an Age

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Here's a must-have resource. Whether your focus is racism, the Great Depression, the "Scottsboro Boys" trial, or part of a reading of To Kill A Mockingbird, the information contained in the seven-page packet will save hours of research...
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Interactive
2
2
Judicial Learning Center

The Players in the Courtroom

For Students 6th - 12th Standards
Courtrooms are complicated. In addition to the many rules, there are a number of people whose jobs are not very clear to the casual courtroom observer. With the resource, individuals identify some of these roles and review more...
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Handout
ProCon

President Ronald Reagan

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
At 69 years old, Ronald Reagan was the oldest man ever to be elected president in the United States. After reviewing a thorough history of Reagan's presidency, pupils read the main pro and con arguments to determine if he was a good...
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Activity
Constitutional Rights Foundation

Saved from the Gallows — the Trial of Leopold and Loeb

For Students 7th - 12th Standards
Was justice served for Bobby Franks? An informative article about the 1924 trial of Richard Loeb and Nathan Leopold includes an overview of the murder of Bobby Franks, the defense’s legal strategy, and excerpts of closing arguments from...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Affirmative Defenses

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students examine what an affirmative defense is. They explore some of the substantive affirmative defenses - self defense, duress, necessity, insanity and entrapment. They determine what purposes are served by allowing different...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lessons from the Holocaust

For Teachers 9th - 12th
In an ultimate instructional activity about listening to opposing points of view, your young historians read testimony from the Nuremberg Trials by Nazi SS officers regarding their actions during the Holocaust and a brief speech by...
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Organizer
Curated OER

Monster: Guilty or Not Guilty

For Students 4th - 8th Standards
Is Steve Harmon innocent or guilty? Examine the evidence with a instructional activity based on Monster by Walter Dean Myers. As kids read the book, they note particular passages that they believe indicate whether or not Steve committed...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Trial of Iago: "To you...remains the censure of this hellish villain"

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students analyze text and utilize outside resources to determine Iago's fate, which is not addressed by Shakespeare in Othello; students present their findings in an organized trial scenario.
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Handout
ProCon

President Bill Clinton

For Students 9th - 12th Standards
Was Bill Clinton a good president? Scholars set out to answer the question as they prepare for a class debate on the topic. They watch videos, review pros and cons, and read facts about the process of becoming a United States president....
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Mock Tribunal in Action

For Teachers 10th - 11th
Learners role-play as members of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. They participate as members of the prosecution, defense, and other parties involved with the trial of alleged war criminals.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Making a Case

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Start the day by sharing opinions about human rights. Then, read "A Defiant Hussein Pleads Not Guilty to Mass Execution" with your middle and high school class. Your pupils research the specific charges in the case against Saddam...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Allen's Dilemma

For Teachers 4th - 12th
Students read, discuss and act out an actual case study dealing with a juvenile crime. They complete discussion questions associated with case study.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

DNA Fingerprinting

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Students discuss methods used by forensic scientists and the basics of DNA and how it can be used to identify an individual after reading an article from The New York Times.
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Beowulf Mini-Mock Trial Manual

For Students 10th - 12th
For this Beowulf worksheet, students identify a crime and prepare the prosecuting and defense case to present to the class "jury."  Students must follow court procedure and use court terminology as they present their case.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The 8th Amendment: The Death Penalty

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers take a closer look at the death penalty. For this U.S. government lesson, students watch a Discovery video about capital punishment in the United States and then compose letters to the editors of newspapers about their...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

JACK - CRIMINAL OR VICTIM?

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students to use all levels of Bloom's taxonomy to look at the case of 'Jack and the Beanstalk' through the eyes of our present legal system. They analyze the story to determine if Jack was a criminal or a victim.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Right and Responsibility To Bear Arms

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Young scholars write a paragraph summarizing the rights and responsibilities of owning a gun, including penalties for owners of guns which injure or kill. This less is designed for students acquiring English.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Courtroom Testimony and Presentation

For Teachers 12th
Twelfth graders examine the court process and practice writing and reviewing reports. They practice their public speaking skills as they pretend to present information to a court.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Modern Messages

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students explore the aims of artists working in various contemporary art movements, then create works in a similar art style to convey
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

CSI: Native America

For Teachers 5th - 6th
Young scholars discuss the murders of Native Americans in Indiana. In groups, they research and make drawings of the scene as if they were part of a CSI team. They complete any needed experiments to help them solve the crime and create a...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Torts: Intentional Torts

For Teachers 9th - 12th
High schoolers are introduced to the concept of intentional torts. In groups, they compare and contrast civil and criminal wrongs committed by people. They are given case studies and use the elements of torts to apply to them. They share...