Curated OER
Whose God?
Students investigate religious freedom in the U.S. They watch and discuss a Bill Moyers NOW video, take a Freedom of Religion quiz, write an essay, and participate in a mock trial and debate.
Curated OER
Gun Control and Terrorism: Laws or Loopholes?
Students examine the Second Amendment of the Constitution. They research and organize key arguments and other fundementals of gun control. They participate in a debate defending the wording of the Second Amendment.
Curated OER
Foreign War and Domestic Freedom: A Delicate Balancing Act
Students investigate civil liberties in the U.S. They watch and discuss a PowerPoint presentation, conduct research on an event from a timeline, complete a worksheet, take an ideology quiz, and conduct a debate.
C-SPAN
Political Polarization
Dive into the political breach with pupils and explore the reasons for political polarization. Using clips from C-SPAN that include discussions from reporters and scholars, class members consider what is causing the political fault lines...
C-SPAN
The Impact of Citizens United v. FEC
What began as an effort to show a movie by an interest group has impacted financing of federal elections. Did the Citizens United case lead to more "dark money" in politics, or did it shine a light with more speech? Using video clips...
PBS
An Attack on Syria- What Would You Do?
Has United States military intervention in the conflicts of other countries always been warranted? After reviewing a brief background on contemporary US conflicts and reading articles describing the civil war in Syria, your learners...
Teaching Tolerance
Film Festival
Everybody's a critic—even your pupils! Using the included resources as a guide, screen films related to social justice and ask film enthusiasts to critique them. Publish the reviews for your school community or develop a film festival...
Curated OER
Sandra Day O'Connor: Always Supreme
Demystify America's governing system through a legendary role model and a fabulous website.
Curated OER
Much Ado About Shakespeare
Lesson ideas to introduce pupils to the life, language, and works of William Shakespeare.
Achievement Strategies
Unit/Chapter Design Template
A thorough lesson plan template allows teachers to design balanced and standards-based lessons for any grade. The template includes spaces for unit vocabulary and concepts, objectives, and additional resources.
Achievement Strategies
CCSS Unit Design Template for PE
From baseball and tennis to capture the flag and four-square, here is a great document that will help you design your next unit on a sport-related activity.
Scholastic
Collaborative Year-End Projects
Coming up with a menu of engaging year-end projects can be a challenge. Never fear, help is here with an article that suggests eight projects sure to capture the interest of learners of all ages.
Crabtree Publishing
Why Does Media Literacy Matter?
Criticism of news and entertainment journalism is at an all-time high. Help 21st-century learners develop the media literacy skills they need to become critical consumers with a three-lesson guide the looks at persuasive techniques used...
K20 LEARN
Show Me Your Credentials: Voting In America
The debate over voting rights continues. To begin their study of voting rights, class members first vote on proposed new classroom rules. After a discussion of the activity, groups are given a copy of the 1965 Alabama Literacy Test and...
Curated OER
Representation: Majority Rule
Students explore government. In this decision making lesson, students discover the importance of majority rule in the passing of bills. They all participate in a class debate and practice the different forms of decision making. This...
Curated OER
Intelligent Design
students research the "intelligent design" decision the Ohio State Board of Education reached in October 2002, following a lengthy debate. After analyzing what each side proposed, part of the class is assigned the roles of members of the...
Curated OER
The Constitutional Convention: What the Founding Fathers Said
Students list some ideas proposed and debated during the Constitutional Convention, and discuss the important issues requiring compromise during the Constitutional Convention.
Smarter Balanced
Intellectual Property
To prepare for a study of intellectual property rights, (or an assessment) introduce your learners to the legal concepts and key vocabulary associated with the debate. After defining intellectual property, copyright, fair use, and...
Curated OER
The Search for a Meaningful Dialectic
Pupils explore a framework of political and social values to evaluate the validity of any public policy debate, bill, or law. They participate in cooperative learning in terms of the group investigation model.
Curated OER
Commercial Surrogacy: Questions & Considerations of Parties with Vested Interests
Teenagers explore the topic of surrogate motherhood. They examine the technology involved, types of surrogacy, interested groups, and current laws. Each collaborative group is assigned an interest group. They work together to develop...
Curated OER
Teaching Controversial Science Issues Through Law Related Education
A set of lessons help aspiring scientists practice the critical thinking skills required for facing controversial issues such as evolution. As a group, they discuss what controversy consists of. They compare and constrast the concepts of...
Curated OER
Making Good Decisions
Learners engage in some form of classroom decision making and look at possible options and consequences of each decision. In this investigative lesson students look at different options in solving social issues and can debate each.
Curated OER
A Salute to Flag Day
Use Flag Day as a learning opportunity for your classroom. Collect a variety of books and other resources on the subject of the U.S. flag. Have pupils conduct independent research at home and come to class prepared to share some fun...
Curated OER
Potential Consequences of Climate Variability and Change
Students examine the potential impact of climate change to agriculture, coastal areas, forests, water, and human health. They hypothesize what might happen to a sugar maple forest and hold a debate about global warming.