Alabama Learning Exchange
Read All About It! Supreme Court Case Makes Headlines!
Students are assigned a landmark Supreme Court case to research. They construct a one-page newsletter on the case which include a summary of the case, two pictures and a short biography on one of the justices on the Court at that time.
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Moot Court Preparation
Twelfth graders prepare themselves for a mock moot court. In groups, they are presented with an overview of each activity and research appellate cases related to the topic given to them. They identify regions of the country that have...
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Does the Supreme Court Affect Teens?: A Survey of Court Cases
Students read and restate the Ten Amendements of the Bill of Rights. They analyze Supreme Court cases using the Bill of Rights. Students make predictions about how the Supreme Court might have deicided each case. They evaluate how the...
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Learning about Vincent Van Gogh
Learners conduct research on the life and artwork of Vincent Van Gogh. They explore various websites, answer research questions and write a paragraph about the information found online, and discuss as a class what makes Van Gogh's...
National Constitution Center
Address America: Your Six-Word Stump Speech
Stump speeches are the focus of this exercise that combines politics and language arts. After learning about this type of speech, the class listens to Obama's 2008 presidential campaign stump speech and answers a series of questions that...
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the Rights of Detainees At Guantanamo Bay
Students identify the legal issues involved in the case of the detainees being held at Guantanamo Bay and surrounding the existence of the base itself. They explain the clash between civil liberties and national security during wartime.
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How Does the USA Patriot Act Approach Race?
Students define and discuss the definitions of race and terrorism as a class. Using the Patriot Act, they analyze it and identify how it is a response to terrorism. They discuss how the documents could be viewed as one that supports...
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The Nuclear Option
Students explore the history behind judicial nominations as well as the filibuster process. They discuss and debate filibuster merits and detractions, its use and alleged misuse, and what some Congressional leaders are currently doing...
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Democracy, A Basic Element In Our Society
Students investigate the concept of freedom with the context of the First Amendment. They research and take notes looking for the connections between democracy and freedom. They complete a writing assessment that includes naming all of...
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Beauty Behind Barbed Wire: The Relocation Camp Experience of Estelle Ishigo
Eighth graders study World War II through art.
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Democracy in the Middle East
Students explain that President Bush's foreign policy to promote democracy is a departure from the Cold War policy of containment, and examine the reasons this policy has been proposed at this time.
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The Role of the United Nations in Postwar Iraq
Young scholars study the history of the United Nations and answer study questions regarding the role of the UN in present day post-war Iraq.
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Understanding Treaties: Students Explore the Lives of Yakama People Before and After Treaties
Learners examine the impact of treaties on the Yakama nation. They discover the importance of land and how they felt when their land was taken away. They role-play the positions of both the Yakama and citizens of the United States.
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Planning a Railroad
Students use a topographical map to plan a route from Doknner Summit to Truckee, then compare it to the route selected by Theodore Judah.
National First Ladies' Library
Rock the Vote! But When?
Middle schoolers research and examine about voting turnouts in the United States and around the world. They assess about various aspects of the so-called "youth vote," and have an opportunity to consider the meaning of the vote in a...
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Lee Yick: Fighting Racism
High schoolers study the 14th Amendment, then review and analyze a Supreme Court brief. There was much racism exhibited toward the Chinese immigrants by the European Americans; this came in the form of institutional racism and mob...
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Quotas and Jim Crow Laws
Students examine the use of quotas and Jim Crow laws. They discuss discrimination against minority groups both historically and in contemporary society. Students examine an affirmative action case and discuss the controversies involved.
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Cultural America
Seventh graders investigate the cultural differences that can be found in America. They discuss what it means to be called an American. The patterns of migration to America are discussed with the use of maps and geographical terms....
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The Cost of Saving
Tenth graders compare accounts provided by the two newspaper articles with the visual account provided by Sue Coe. They articulate how those accounts are alike and different. Students consider the economic choices that made the Hamlet...
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Presidential Eligibility
Students examine what requirements determine who can and can't run for president.
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Unit on International Law and Organizations
Students participate in a debate between internationalists and the rights of sovereign nations. They read interviews and role play one of the sides in a mock interview.
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Immigration and American Life on African-Americans
Students examine how human migration started in Africa, and draw maps of Africa and place the names of the countries and capitals on the maps. They write essays on how Africans came to America.
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Lincoln-Douglas Debates of 1858
Students examine the transcripts of the 1858 Lincoln-Douglas debates and create a platform for each candidate in the 1858 Senate race. They utilize the candidates' arguments to explore the historical and political impact.