DocsTeach
Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Fight for Civil Rights
Find clues to the past with photos! Young historians use a photo from one of Martin Luther King Jr.'s peaceful protests to practice photo analysis. Academics look at the image to gain clues about what is happening and why. To finish,...
Curated OER
First Amendment Guarantee of Free Speech (Senior, Social Studies)
Students receive a list of banned books from which they choose one to read. They read their chosen book and write a paper that includes a discussion of the First Amendment and its guarantees and the reason(s) why they believe their book...
Curated OER
The First Amendment
Students examine the freedoms and rights guaranteed by the First Amendment. In this Bill of Rights lesson, students review court cases and create a collage that require them to consider the right they are guaranteed by the First Amendment.
Curated OER
The First Amendment
In this government worksheet, students read the First Amendment to the United States Constitution before reading about the limitations of the laws. They answer 2 short answer questions about the freedoms, and write an essay on the back...
Curated OER
Perseverance and the First Amendment
Students investigate the right to petition and assemble. In this Bill of Rights lesson, students read the First Amendment and discuss the rights guaranteed by the amendment. Students research selected groups and movements that have...
Curated OER
The Supreme Court and the Fourteenth Amendment
Students examine the ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment. In this Reconstruction Era instructional activity, students read and analyze 4 Supreme Court decisions regarding the Fourteenth Amendment and determine how the decisions...
Administrative Office of the US Courts
Engel v. Vitale
"Is school-sponsored prayer in public schools unconstitutional?" That is the question teams debate as they consider the arguments presented to the Supreme Court in Engel v. Vitale. The attorneys study the provided talking points and...
Curated OER
Cartoons for the Classroom: Celebrating the 19th Amendment
Eighty-eight years after women earned the right to vote, a women ran for president. Young analysts consider the role women play in politics, how they are portrayed, the standards they are held to, and if they are still treated unfairly...
Curated OER
Express Yourself Lesson Seed 18: Investigate
Prepare your class for argumentative writing with a close inspection of the controversy surrounding Theodore Taylor's novel, The Cay. All necessary articles and materials are linked at the beginning of the resource. Kids use the provided...
Administrative Office of the US Courts
Cox v. New Hampshire
Staging a debate is a great way to class members to think deeply about issues, especially those related to rights guaranteed by the US Constitution. The Supreme Court case, Cox V. New Hampshire, focuses on the First Amendment's...
National Constitution Center
Thirteenth Amendment Poster
President Lincoln believed in the Thirteenth Amendment so strongly that he signed 14 copies of it, but died before he could see it passed on December 18, 1965. Explore the text that forever abolished slavery in America with a document...
Administrative Office of the US Courts
Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier
Freedom of speech is not always free. Scholars investigate how the First Amendment provides for the right to express opinions. Through the court case Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier, they analyze free speech using primary documents—and hopefully...
Newseum
‘45 Words' Video Lesson
A short video introduces viewers to the political struggles involved in passing the First Amendment and the many challenges it has faced since its passage. Viewers then discuss how to balance issues of freedom of the press,...
Curated OER
Cartoons for the Classroom: Free Speech vs. Respect for Religion
In this historical events instructional activity, students analyze political cartoons about the First Amendment. Students respond to 3 talking point questions.
Curated OER
Imus: How much free speech is too much?
Students explore current interpretation of the First Amendment, including that of commercial speech. Next read background about Don Imus and his comments about the Rutgers women's basketball team.
Curated OER
Regulating Freedom of Speech
Students examine the nature and limits of the Constitutional right to freedom of speech. They read and analyze the First Amendment, discuss various case studies, and research and record their own opinion on discussion questions.
State Bar of Texas
Wisconsin v. Yoder
How far does freedom of religion truly go? The 1972 Supreme Court case Wisconsin v. Yoder introduces the concept of the free exercise clause of the First Amendment. Individuals examine the case with a short video and open discussion. To...
Carolina K-12
African Americans in the United States Congress During Reconstruction
The Civil Rights Act of 1866, which granted citizenship to all males in the U.S., resulted in the first African Americans to be elected to Congress. Class members research 11 of these men, the challenges they faced, and craft...
Heritage Foundation
Slavery and the Constitution
It's hard to believe the abolition movement was once seen as scandalous. Help learners understand how the US Constitution changed everything. A variety of activities such as corresponding reading activities, group work ideas, and...
Alabama Department of Archives and History
New York Times Co. v Sullivan: The Alabama Case that Changed Libel Law
Malice aforethought? Can the New York Times be held libel for false claims appearing in its ads? The Supreme Court case New York Times v Sullivan changed the interpretation of the First Amendment. Class members examine these changes and...
Project Tahoe
Does the Use of Torture on Enemy Combatants Violate the 8th Amendment?
Tackle ethics in your high school history classes with a Socratic seminar about torture as a means for obtaining information. The plan allows for pupils to take the reins during the seminar. On the first day, class members read several...
Newseum
When the News Media Make Mistakes
Mistakes happen. When they happen in news reporting, be it in print or on the internet, journalism ethics requires that the errors be corrected. Young journalists use an Accuracy Checklist to track how news organizations post corrections...
Newseum
Civil Rights: Chronicling the Movement
Scholars investigate events in the civil rights era in their community and develop a multimedia presentation of their findings. They compare local events with national events discussed on a NewseumED timeline.
Newseum
From the Front Page to the History Books
Young journalists compare news coverage of four major events with how the same events are covered in historical accounts. The ensuing discussion asks class members to compare and contrast the role of a reporter and the role of a historian.