Read Works
Read Works: News Debate: Religion on Display
[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text debating whether or not schools should be allowed to display the 10 Commandments. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.
PBS
Pbs Teachers: Foreign War and Domestic Freedom: (Civil Liberties Lesson Plan)
A lesson plan that directs students to review the concept of civil liberties and to examine examples from American history wherein rights were restricted. They will investigate key arguments between those who seek to restrict liberties...
US National Archives
Nara: Teaching With Documents: United States vs. Thomas Cooper
The information, documents and lessons relating to the United States vs. Thomas Cooper case. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Mit: The Tech: Cnn Foils Prior Restraint
An essay by a freshman at MIT gives a definition and examples of "Prior Restraint." The Tech is the MIT school newspaper. (Published Dec. 7, 1990)
Illinois Institute of Technology
Oyez Project: Masson v. New Yorker Magazine, Inc. (1991)
This summary examines the impact of the 1991 US Supreme Court decision regarding the attribution of quotes to sources used in journalistic articles. Includes links to the full case, audio files, and how the justices voted on the case.
Illinois Institute of Technology
Oyez Project: Schenck v. United States (1919)
This U.S. Supreme Court case established the famous "clear and present danger" doctrine by dealing with the issue of freedom of speech. This resource provides an abstract containing a summary, a link to the full text of the decision, and...
George Mason University
George Mason University: The Espionage Act of May 16, 1918
The original text of Section 3 of the Espionage Act of May 16, 1918 is provided at this site.
Other
Newseum: Petition Overview
This well-documented resource provides an overview of the right to petition the government, as well as answers to frequently asked questions about this right. Recent cases and expected reforms are also explained.
US National Archives
Our Documents: A National Initiative on American History, Civics, and Service
Our Documents is home to one hundred milestone documents that influenced that course of American history and American democracy. Includes full-page scans of each document, transcriptions, background information on their significance, and...
PBS
Pbs Liberty!: Congress Adds a Bill of Rights
Informative site recounting the events of December 15, 1791, when the Bill of Rights was added to the Constitution. Learn about the Bill of Rights and the freedoms it was designed to protect!
University of Maryland
Department of History: Freedmen and Southern Society Project
Collection of primary documents that depict the social revolution and drama of the Emancipation in the words of the participants. Includes the voices of liberated slaves and defeated slaveholders, soldiers and civilians, common folk and...
Annenberg Foundation
Annenberg Classroom: The Bill of Rights Interactive Quiz
Many Americans take for granted the freedoms contained in the first 10 amendments to the Constitution. As students play this game, they will discover surprising facts about the story behind the Bill of Rights and gain a clearer...
University of Groningen
American History: Biographies: George Mason the Virginia Bill of Rights
The Virginia Bill of Rights was the framework for the U.S. Constitution's Bill of Rights. Some of Mason's actual phrasing appear in the first ten amendments passed fifteen years later. He is credited for authoring the first American...
University of Groningen
American History: Outlines: The Purpose of the Bill of Rights
Text of the first ten amendments of the Constitution found in the Bill of Rights.
Annenberg Foundation
Annenberg Classroom: The Preamble
The preamble is the introduction to the Constitution. It outlines the general goals of the framers: to create a just government and to ensure peace, adequate national defense, and a healthy, free nation. With its first three words, "We...
TED Talks
Ted: Ted Ed: A 3 Minute Guide to the Bill of Rights
A brief video that summarizes the first ten amendments to the Constitution. [3:36] Followed by a quiz and a list of additional resources to explore.
Vocabulary.com
The Bill of Rights
This site contains a list of 50 words from the Bill of Rights of the United States Constitution. Teachers can digitally assign this list to their students to reinforce the spellings, pronunciations, and meanings of these words.
Annenberg Foundation
Annenberg Classroom: Presidential Succession
This website contains an interactive timeline about the history of Presidential succession.
Constitutional Rights Foundation
Constitutional Rights Foundation: Illustrated Bill of Rights
For elementary students, an easy to understand illustrated explanation of the Bill of Rights is offered.
Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
Colonial Williamsburg: Politics in Colonial Virginia
This site explores the politics involved in Colonial Williamsburg, leading up to the American Revolution. Content focuses on famous speeches, documents, and influential people.
Digital History
Digital History: President Johnson Impeached [Pdf]
No love was lost between the Congress' trying to pass Reconstruction plans and President Andrew Johnson's attempts to thwart those plans. Read a short biography of Andrew Johnson to get an idea of the man. Follow the timeline of...
Annenberg Foundation
Annenberg Classroom: Terms and Succession
Check out this interactive timeline that documents the history of terms of succession in the United States.
Library of Congress
Loc: America's Story: Bill of Rights
The Bill of Rights was adopted to protect each United States citizen's rights. Learn about how the Bill of Rights was formed and the protections it guarantees to Americans.
iCivics
I Civics: No Bill of Rights, No Deal
In the debate over the Constitution, the Bill of Rights was a deal-breaker. In this lesson, students learn why the federalists thought the Constitution didn't need a bill of rights and why the anti-federalists refused to accept the...
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