Students read a fact situation, identify the constitutional issue, find and analyze the portion of the Constitution that treats the issue, and consider the analysis to be an hypothesis that will be supported or will fail when examined in light of reference material, such as Supreme Court case summaries. (RM)

This article offers a class activity on separation of powers and checks and balances within the U.S. government. Based on Franklin Delano Roosevelt's attempt to push through legislation for the New Deal of the 1930s by "packing" the U.S. Supreme Court, the activity includes worksheets and teaching suggestions. (JDH)

Offers an eight-day unit on search and seizure for high school students. Includes condensed versions of famous court decisions, teaching materials, and day-by-day teaching procedures. (JDH)

Provides a list of 23 activities which demonstrate how constitutional issues and law are manifested in current events. Maintains that the activities help students gain a working knowledge of the U.S. Constitution in addition to seeing it as a relevant, living document which inspires critical and creative thinking. (JDH)

Provides a six day unit of instruction designed to help senior high students understand the civil rights guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment. Based around provided summaries of famous court cases, the unit includes instructional objectives, suggested teaching procedures, and evaluation aids. (JDH)

Provides a two-to-four period lesson plan designed to help students in grades 7 through 12 explore the power of the U.S. President to use military forces. Based on the 1964 Gulf of Tonkin Resolution and the legislation which it spurred, the lesson includes teaching procedures, discussion questions, and student readings. (JDH)

Intended for ninth grade students, this ten day unit focuses on the constitutional powers of the President of the United States. Included are worksheets, vocabulary, writing assignments, tests, and quizzes. (JDH)

Describes the annual Moot Court Competition held each year in Sacramento, California and supported by the Citizenship and Law-Related Education Center. The program gives high school students the opportunity to learn about the nation's justice system using a role-playing scenario of an appellate-level court argument. (MJP)

Presented is a list of resources on the U.S. Constitution for elementary and secondary schools. Listed alphabetically and topically, the resources include organizations which provide classroom materials, teacher training, and other services. Included are special sections on the cultural and political contexts of the bicentennial, women and the…

Advocates teaching constitutional history and principles to middle school students in accordance with the 1988 California History-Social Science Framework. Reports findings of a survey of 118 California middle school and high school teachers that revealed a need for improved teacher knowledge about the U.S. Constitution. Recommends steps to ensure…

Describes a high school civics course constructed almost solely around a close reading of the Declaration of Independence, United States Constitution, and Gettysburg Address. Maintains that understanding these documents establishes the minimum essentials of civic literacy and frees classes from the burden of irrelevant and unreadable textbooks.…