Curated OER
Lesson 4: The Judiciary: A Brief Introduction to the Courts System
Focusing on the judicial branch of government, the fourth lesson in this series explores the structure of the US courts system. Beginning with an engaging activity based on the short story The Lady or the Tiger, students go on...
Curated OER
Digital Forensics
Students examine a crime scene and photograph evidence. In this forensics digital photography lesson, students recognize the correct procedures for filming a crime scene. Students document evidence and keep a log of the...
Curated OER
Justice at the Local Level: Is it Effective?
Students view a PowerPoint presentation on the court system. They are arranged into groups and evaluate the effectiveness of the criminal and civil courts in local Michigan communities.
Judicial Learning Center
The Appeal Process
Why doesn't the Supreme Court hear testimony from witnesses? How do they complete an entire proceeding in less than two hours? A helpful lesson guides scholars of criminology through these and other questions by explaining how appeals...
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Supreme Court Confirmation Process
Learners examine the Supreme Court and the confirmation process. They simulate a confirmation hearing with students role-playing as nominees and others as members of the Judiciary Committee. Learners compose short essays outlining the...
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Deadlock on Verdict
Students read a text about a murder trial. They review related vocabulary, complete a matching exercise and take a quiz. Afterward, they play a game called 'alibi' where the group with the weakest alibi is found guilty.
Curated OER
Which Court Would You Use?
Students study court system and the various levels of courts in their state. In groups, they create their own brief scenario for each court they have studied. As a follow-up activity, they match given scenarios to the correct court, as...
Curated OER
5th Grade Social Studies
In this social studies worksheet, 5th graders answer multiple choice questions about important court cases, World War II, Abraham Lincoln, and more. Students complete 14 questions.
Curated OER
Court System Scavenger Hunt
Students are assign a particular Federal or State Court. They are asked to make a poster of the court they have been assigned. Students are told that the poster should include a list of the types of cases that particular court hears. ...
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Knife crime and sentencing
Students discuss their feelings about kids carrying knives and whether or no people who carry knives should be punished just as much as people who carry guns. Students study what a fixed penalty is, the dangers of kids carrying knives,...
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Introduction to Juvenile Delinquency
Students discuss cases in which juveniles were convicted of horrific crimes. They answer questions in which there are no right or wrong answers related to juvenile delinquency.
Curated OER
Paying for Crime
Students participate in activties examining ratios and proportions. They use graphs to interpret data showing the government's budget for prisons. They present what they have learned to the class.
Curated OER
Interstate Relations
Your class might be clear on how the federal government relates to states, but what about how states relate to each other? Challenge your students with this worksheet, which could function as a review activity or as a quiz. Questions...
C-SPAN
C Span Classroom: Teaching About Criminal Justice Reform
C-Span classroom examines criminal justice reform, particularly whether or not the federal government should reform minimum sentencing laws and reduce incarcerations for non-violent drug offenses. With lesson plan, vocabulary preview,...
CommonLit
Common Lit: Book Pairings: "Holes" by Louis Sacher
Stanley Yelnats is sent to a juvenile correctional camp for boys where each day he is forced to dig holes into a dry lake bed. Selected (8) reading passages (grades 5-8) to pair with the novel "Holes" by Louis Sacher. [Free account...