Protecting the Independence of the Judiciary from Disinformation

Disinformation threatens the independence of the judiciary. In this lesson, students will analyze and find examples of disinformation as it relates to; bots, ads, sock puppets, memes, and inauthentic domains. After understanding the types of disinformation, students will read Chief Justice Roberts’s 2019 End of Year Report to find out the power of disinformation and

Interactions Between the Branches

Article III of the Constitution is short compared to the Articles for Congress and the President. In these lessons, students will explore different documents to determine what the role of the judiciary is and why it is important that it was set up to be independent. Students will explore past and present efforts to adapt

Lessons plans for “The Supreme Court and the 1876 Presidential Election”

These lesson plans for both basic high school and AP US History have been created for students who have watched the video. Students will analyze a map of 1876 electoral votes, a cartoon depicting a Black voter being turned away from the ballot box, an infographic about voting procedures that highlights the role of canvassing

Marbury v. Madison, The Empowerment of the Judiciary – Video

Marbury v. Madison (1803) is the landmark decision that established the principle of judicial review. But the facts behind the case are complicated and often confusing to students, especially the part about original jurisdiction. This 15-minute video tells the story of Marbury in a clear and straightforward way. It uses period images—portraits and newspaper headlines—as

Grades 8, 9, 10, 11
Executive Branch/Presidency
Assessments

Life Story: John Marshall

The biography of John Marshall, the soldier, attorney, and American statesman who became the longest serving Chief Justice in Supreme Court History. After fighting in the Revolutionary War, John opened up a successful legal practice in Virginia where his renowned legal skills were in high demand. He served as Secretary of State before being nominated

Lessons Plans for “Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Court-packing Controversy”

These lesson plans for basic high school and for AP US History have been created for students who have watched the video. They include activities such as analyzing part of the text of FDR’s Court-packing Plan,  interpreting political cartoons reacting to the plan, and discussing the intersection of the three branches of government. 

Article V and the 27 Amendments – Module 15 of Constitution 101

With the Constitution, the Founding generation created the greatest charter of freedom in the history of the world. However, the Founding generation did not believe that it had a monopoly on constitutional wisdom. Therefore, the founders set out a formal amendment process that allowed later generations to revise our nation’s charter and “form a more perfect Union.” They wrote this process into Article V of the Constitution. Over time, the American people have used this amendment process to transform the Constitution by adding a Bill of Rights, abolishing slavery, promising freedom and equality, and extending the right to vote to women and African Americans. All told, we have ratified 27 constitutional amendments across American history. Learning objectives: Describe the reasons that the Founding generation included a formal process for amending the Constitution;
explain how the Constitution’s amendment process works, and why the founders made it so hard to amend the Constitution; identify the key periods of constitutional change in American history and outline factors that drive successful pushes to amend the Constitution; describe all 27 amendments to the U.S. Constitution.