Curated OER
Bill of Rights
Students discuss the government as a whole and then each amendment is examined. They complete a Bill of Rights test in groups or on their own. Answers are gone over in class and discussion is encouraged.
Curated OER
Bill of Rights
Students work in collaborative groups to research an amendment of the Bill of Rights. They then design and present a skit that demonstrates and communicates the core values and concepts of the amendment to the class.
Ashbrook Center at Ashland University
Bill of Rights
Do citizens need protection from the federal government? Scholars investigate why the framers of the Constitution created the first 10 amendments and what these amendments mean to citizens of the United States more than 200 years later....
National Constitution Center
Writing Rights: The Bill of Rights
Where did the cherished ideals enshrined in the Bill of Rights originate? While history gives the Founding Fathers much of the credit, laws in colonial America influenced the Bill of Rights. An interactive web-based activity allows...
Close Up Foundation
Rights Auction
In an engaging activity on universal and unalienable rights, learners work in groups to establish a democratic nation and determine what principles they want to protect to ensure a democratic society. They conduct a "rights auction" in...
Curated OER
The Bill of Rights: Debating the Amendments
Provide your class with an opportunity to investigate an important historical document. Without identifying the document, distribute copies of the original Bill of Rights, as transcribed by John Beckley, Clerk of the House of...
Curated OER
Why A Bill of Rights?
Examine conflicting viewpoints in this lesson, in which middle schoolers write their own proposal for including a Bill of Rights in the Constitution. As a class, they discover how the Bill of Rights was not a planned document to be...
Curated OER
Picture Books and the Bill of Rights
Students identify the basic freedoms of citizens in the United States. In this Bill of Rights lesson, students act out scenarios about the Bill of Rights. Students create a picture book describing the rights they've acted out.
Curated OER
For The Sake Of Security: U.S.A. Patriot Act & Bill of Rights
A substantive New York Times article about the U.S.A. Patriot Act, military tribunals, racial profiling, and the Bill of Rights forms the basis for a discussion of the complex interplay of fundamental American rights and the aftermath of...
Curated OER
Is Everyone Protected by the Bill of Rights?
Who is protected by the Bill of Rights? Learners examine the Bill of Rights and conduct research regarding gay people in the military. They use their research findings to prepare for and participate in a debate regarding the military ban...
Curated OER
Simplified United States Constitution and Bill of Rights
A good handout is a great find. Print this resource and hand out a simplified version of the US Constitution and Bill of Rights to your US government or US history class. The powers of the president, Congress, and the Senate are...
Bill of Rights Institute
Preserving the Bill of Rights
Consider how America's founding fathers and their experiences contributed to the rights we all enjoy today. A collection of reading, writing, and collaborative exercises prompt high schoolers to think about the ways their current lives...
National Endowment for the Humanities
The Creation of the Bill of Rights: “Retouching the Canvas”
While the Constitutional Convention lay the foundation of the new government for the United States, the protections given under the Bill of Rights were controversial. Using documents, such as James Madison's and Thomas Jefferson's...
DocsTeach
Comparing the Magna Carta and English Bill of Rights with the U.S. Bill of Rights
Just how alike are some historical documents? Discover the similarities between the Magna Carta and the United States Bill of Rights in a fast-paced activity. Historians learn the importance of both documents and the lasting impact they...
Judicial Learning Center
The Bill of Rights and Civil Liberties
Why is the Bill of Rights so important to American's civil liberties? An important resource helps scholars find these answers and more by reading through state and federal constitutions to discover their own civil liberties. The activity...
Judicial Learning Center
Do You Know Your Bill of Rights?
The Bill of Rights is much more than an important piece of paper! The rights cover everything from freedom of speech to the right to remain silent if arrested. Scholars find out their own rights by answering the questions in the form of...
NPR
Civil Rights of Japanese-American Internees
Prompted by a viewing of Emiko and Chizu Omori’s Rabbit in the Moon, a documentary about the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II, high schoolers examine a series of documents, including the Bill of Rights and the UN’s...
Curated OER
The Bill of Rights and You
The right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The lesson plan explains what the Bill of Rights is and how it applies to everyday life, like freedom of speech or the right to a jury trial. Young historians complete hands-on...
iCivics
You've Got Rights!
If aliens invaders nearly destroy the world in the distant future and leaders must decide on a pamphlet of protections to preserve individual rights, what should they include? Introduce the Bill of Rights and the struggle between the...
Judicial Branch of California
Protecting our Freedoms: The Bill of Rights
Take to the stage! Integrate both drama and civic skills by asking pupils to create and perform skills that demonstrate the importance of the amendments in the Bill of Rights. After reviewing the Preamble to the Constitution, learners...
Judicial Branch of California
The U.S. Constitution Bill of Rights
Using discussion questions and a poster-creating activity, learners explore how the framework of the Constitution and its Bill of Rights help create safe communities. After listening to a song about the preamble and reading the Bill of...
Curated OER
The Bill of Rights and Your Life
Pupils review the contents of the Constitution by taking a trivia quiz and brainstorm the rights contained in the Bill of Rights. After discussing the Bill of Rights, students categorize and outline its content. Given a worksheet, pupils...
Curated OER
"Father" of Our Country vs. "Father" of the Bill of Rights
Students examine the relevance of the Bill of Rights. In this Bill of Rights instructional activity, students study the parts of the Constitution and the ten amendments. They investigate the rights and responsibilities that accompany...
Curated OER
The Bill of Rights is for US Today
The first ten Amendments of the U.S. Constitution are vital for young people to understand. Provide the foundation of the laws that govern our country with this junior high school instructional activity. Groups use the newspaper to...