Birchfield v. North Dakota (2016)

Can a state make it a crime for a driver to refuse to take a test to detect alcohol in the driver’s blood? This case summary deals with unreasonable search and seizure and how that relates to DUIs.

Counties Work

In Counties Work, students learn about local government by playing a county official responding to citizen requests. They must keep citizens happy and manage county resources responsibly. Are citizens making sensible requests? Which department of local government has the solution? Do taxes need to be raised or lowered to keep a balanced budget? How will citizens react—and what’s the best action when crisis strikes? Challenges come from all directions in this fast-paced game!

Deliberation Materials: “Sanctuary Cities”

Classroom deliberation materials provide classroom-ready readings presenting the issue background and arguments on both sides. These materials focus on the issue of “sanctuary cities.” Should cities or counties be able to declare themselves “sanctuaries” and refuse to cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainer requests?

Labor Day: Union Education Resources

Share My Lesson has curated a collection of free lesson plans, activities, and resources to help teachers explore labor history with their K-12 students. Students will learn about the meaning of Labor Day, labor history, how Labor Day got its name, how labor unions work, and how labor unions have impacted the course of history.

Policymaking in the Three Branches of Government

This lesson introduces students to executive, legislative, and judicial policymaking and to policy evaluation. First, students discuss how policy can be made by each of the branches. Then they read about and discuss how the Chicago City Council passed a controversial ordinance to suppress gang activity and how each branch of government was involved in the policy. Finally, students are introduced to a policy-analysis rubric. Lesson 5 in Civic Action Project.

Arizona v. United States

Students will examine a controversial law passed in the state of Arizona that directs law enforcement officers to investigate suspected unauthorized immigration. They will recognize the constitutional issues of preemption, reasonable suspicion, and equal protection and relate them to the facts of the Arizona law. Students will then judge whether several sets of facts are valid examples of reasonable suspicion.

Constitutional Index – Full Faith and Credit Clause

The Constitutional Index breaks down the U.S. Constitution by Section, Amendment, and Clause and contains broader topics and themes. These are used to cross-reference Library resources in an effort to annotate constitutional history.

Constitutional Index – Prescribe and Prove Clause

The Constitutional Index breaks down the U.S. Constitution by Section, Amendment, and Clause and contains broader topics and themes. These are used to cross-reference Library resources in an effort to annotate constitutional history.