In this lesson, students will learn both to be informed and to be engaged as they learn about an issue that is important to them, and communicate their thoughts on the issue to the President of the United States.
Midterm Elections Matter
This lesson is intended to help students understand that midterm elections (whether they be for congressional candidates, governor, state representatives, or state initiatives) are equally as important as the presidential race every four years.
3 Must-Have Supreme Court Nomination Documents
“3 Must-Have Supreme Court Nomination Documents” looks at President Ronald Reagan’s appointment of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia in 1986. Primary Source A outlines the suggested qualities of an ideal candidate for President Reagan to nominate to the Supreme Court. Primary Source B provides a Memo to the President from Peter J.
Wallison, Counsel to the President, in which Wallison provides background information with a few potential questions for both Justice Rehnquist and Judge Scalia. Primary Source C is a transcript from President Reagan’s August 9, 1986, Radio Talk on the appointment of the Supreme Court Justices. Each of these documents showcase the amount of thought and consideration the president must take when nominating a Supreme Court Justice.
Voting by Mail
Because of concerns over COVID-19, many states may ask people to vote by mail this year. Are your students ready to vote on Election Day 2020? Let students see what a mail-in ballot process is like, and discover the advantages and disadvantages of mail-in elections.
What Does It Mean to Be a Good Citizen?
This is the first lesson in Khan Academy’s new high school civics course. This lesson focuses on what it means to be a good citizen, what civil society is, and what are democratic principles and civic virtues.
Why Study U.S. History, Government and History?
In an interview with Sal, John Dickerson, a correspondent for CBS’s “60 Minutes,” shares his views about the importance of studying US history, government and civics.
The Media and Partisanship
Hear from John Dickerson, a correspondent for 60 minutes, in an interview with Sal as he discusses how partisanship and the media has changed since the founding of the United States.
Campaign Finance
Students can hear Sal give an introduction to campaign finance up to and after Citizens United, including the difference between soft and hard money, the influence of PACs and super PACs, and the impact of the McCain-Feingold Act. They can then follow that up with an in-depth video on Citizens United v. FEC in which Sal discusses the background and holdings of the case with scholars Richard Hasen, professor of law at UC Irvine School of Law, and Bradley Smith, former chairman of the FEC. Teachers can then assign an exercise to their students aligned to the current AP Government and Politics exam to assess how well they understood the content of the lesson.
Selective Incorporation
Teachers can use this lesson as a supplemental resource in their federalism unit, their Supreme Court unit, or their civil rights and civil liberties unit to help students understand how some rights apply to the states and others don’t. This lesson includes a video from Sal in which he describes the basic concept of selective incorporation, a video about McDonald v. Chicago in which Kim interviews Alan Gura and Elizabeth Wydra about the facts and outcome of the case, and practice questions aligned to the new AP Government and Politics exam.
Structures, Powers, and Functions of Congress
Teachers can assign the materials in this lesson as homework or use them to create stations in their classroom in which students can understand how the House of Representatives and Senate differ in their structures, powers, rules, and functions. After students have gone through the lesson, teachers can assign one of two practice exercises to assess how much they understood from their lesson.