Tips and guidance for helping K-12 schools encourage students to become civically engaged, provide safety and protection for all students, and adhere to students’ First Amendment rights.
16 Results
Teach students about disability rights activist Judy Heumann and what work in schools and communities still remains.
Olivia Julianna (who uses only her first and middle name publicly to protect her privacy) has been an activist for several years, advocating voting rights and reproductive-health care. Like many in her generation, she found the political side of TikTok where young people post about important issues facing them. Olivia is involved with Gen-Z for Change, a nonprofit organization leveraging social media to promote civil discourse and political action on a variety of topics including…
Table Talk: Family Conversations about Current EventsOn June 24, 2022 in a historic decision, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, asserting that the constitutional right to an abortion no longer exists. The decision, most of which was “leaked” (when confidential information comes out for the public to see) in May 2022, means that in almost two dozen states, abortion will likely to be banned immediately.
It is also important to note that in his concurring…
April is National Poetry Month
National Poetry Month provides an opportunity for many schools and classrooms to dedicate time to the study of reading and writing poetry.
Poetry uses vivid and descriptive language, beautiful imagery, unique sounds and rhythms, and diverse voices. It often evokes an emotional and empathetic response and can open doors to people and worlds for which we are unfamiliar. It can touch hearts and minds and motivate action and societal…
Civics Lesson
GRADE LEVEL: High School What are Human Rights?
What is the Universal Declaration of Human Rights?
In 1946, in the immediate aftermath of World War II, with hopes of preventing future atrocities, an international committee with varied legal and cultural backgrounds began to draft the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). The UDHR was proclaimed by the new United Nations General Assembly in 1948. This document contains 30 Articles that set a standard…
Sports and athletes are captivating to young people and adults alike. We look up to athletes as our heroes, idols and role models. And yet, sometimes sports provide a negative example: a way not to act or behave.
Throughout our nation’s history, athletes have taken stands on issues and made political statements, lent their names to causes they believe in and used their power and platform to speak truth to…
Teach students about the role and importance of the youth vote and have them consider barriers to the youth vote.
Civics Lesson
GRADE LEVEL: High School What is ‘Fake News’ and How Can We Identify it on Social Media?
What is Our Role and Responsibility to Identify and Stop the Spread of Fake News?
The term “fake news” refers to misinformation that presents false, inaccurate, or intentionally misleading information in news stories, current events and other issues. Many of these stories are spread through online sites and social media platforms that…
by: Libby Otto By mid-September, you’re busy with school, work and fall activities. Constitution Day, on September 17, may slip past you without a thought. So why should this year be any different?
Constitution Day is the anniversary of the day that the Founding Fathers signed the United States Constitution. As you reflect this year on how the current political climate and public policies impact millions of people, continue asking yourself: are you making a positive change to…
Teach students about the First Amendment, how these freedoms originated and how they function today.
GRADE LEVEL: High School
COMMON CORE STANDARDS: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, Language The words that make up the First Amendment haven’t changed since they were adopted by the United States as part of the Bill of Rights on December 15, 1791. For over 200 years, the First Amendment has been the cornerstone of freedom in the United States. Commonly referred to as the “five freedoms,” the First Amendment has helped people in the U.S. exercise their rights to…
GRADE LEVEL: Elementary School, Middle School, High School
COMMON CORE STANDARDS: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, History/Social Studies In commemoration of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, this curriculum for grades 3–12 provides grade-specific lessons, resources and extension activities to provide your students opportunities to examine civil rights in the United States past and present. The lessons provide an opportunity for students to delve deeper into Martin Luther King Jr…
Teach students about the history of discrimination and racism in the U.S., the struggle for civil rights and the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
GRADE LEVEL: Middle School, High School
COMMON CORE STANDARDS: Reading, Speaking and Listening “We conclude that in the field of public education the doctrine of ‘separate but equal’ has no place. Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal.” These are the words of the landmark Supreme Court decision on May 17, 1954 that declared segregated schools unconstitutional. Sixty years later, even though much progress has been made, there are still great…
The Civil Rights Movement of the 1950’s and 1960’s came about out of the need and desire for equality and freedom for African Americans and other people of color. Nearly one hundred years after slavery was abolished, there was widespread segregation, discrimination, disenfranchisement and racially motivated violence that permeated all personal and structural aspects of life for black people. “Jim Crow” laws at the local and state levels barred African Americans from…