Use this activity to help your students view any political debate - local to national, historical to live broadcast. Preview candidates, issues, expectations, and details about the location and moderators. Track what the candidates say and how they say it. Then ask students to reflect on the debate experience.

Love this lesson? Explore all of our free election curriculum and teaching resources at our Election Headquarters. LESSON OBJECTIVES: Evaluate candidates for political office. *Compare different perspectives and prioritize issues according to personal views. *Identify America's current political parties and illustrate their ideas about government. *Analyze political communications and multiple perspectives on public and current issues.

This is a full unit of study from iCivics, featuring multiple lesson plans with presentations, downloadable documents, and more. This unit is designed to provide students with an introduction to the electoral processes of the American political system. Students will develop a strong foundation that will inform them of their choices and encourage civic involvement. The Politics and Public Policy unit guides students to a deep understanding of concepts and processes across the political spectrum through simulations, presentations, vocabulary-building activities and a mock election.

Public opinion polls can give insight into people's priorities and opinions, and give candidates and the media a sense of the whole picture. Use this infographic to show how public opinion polling works, from pollster to prediction! Students will engage with the concept of sampling and gain a better understanding of the purpose of public opinion polls. LESSON OBJECTIVES: Define public opinion polling *Describe key aspects of and uses for the polling process *Explore the concept of sampling and how it is used to represent whole populations

Can the candidate who wins the majority of the popular votes miss out on being president? They can, and it's happened before. In this lesson, students learn about the Electoral College and the difference between the electoral and popular vote. Finally, students analyze arguments in favor of and against the Electoral College and decide which side they'll stand on.
Or use our Google Slide and Pear Deck activities!
Love this lesson? Explore all of our free election curriculum and teaching resources at our Election Headquarters. LESSON OBJECTIVES: Describe the process for electing the president *Differentiate between the electoral vote and the popular vote *Evaluate pros and cons of the Electoral College *Make and defend an argument

For the winning candidate, campaign promises evolve into an official presidential agenda. And despite the doubting general public, 75% of agenda goals since Woodrow Wilson have been delivered. This mini-lesson takes a look at how the presidential agenda is developed, shared, and executed. LESSON OBJECTIVES: Explain the purpose of the presidential agenda *Describe the process of creating and modifying the agenda over time *Apply the concept of checks and balances to the relationship between the president and Congress as it relates to the presidential agenda *Analyze strategies used to create a successful agenda *Explain the role of the State of the Union in communicating the presidential agenda

Examine the seven forms of propaganda found in advertising and politics. Discover the persuasive methods behind the messaging we see every day and gain skills to effectively identify and counter them. A classroom gallery walk challenges students to detect the propaganda techniques at work and evaluate their effectiveness.
LESSON OBJECTIVES: Differentiate among forms of persuasive media. *Identify bias, propaganda, and symbolism in media. *Identify forms of propaganda in use.

Public sphere, public agenda, public opinion, public policy… What's the difference? Students discover the relationships among these concepts and how they influence the issues we all discuss and care about.
LESSON OBJECTIVES: Define the following terms: public sphere, public agenda, public opinion, public policy. *Identify the relationships among the public sphere, the public agenda, public opinion, and public policy. *Describe the effect of the news on the public agenda. *Evaluate different ways of reporting poll results.

Race to Ratify drops your students into 1787, where the ink is still drying on the new Constitution. Will it become the law of the land or will it fall into the dustbin of history? The fate of the young nation is in their hands! Use this game to teach the big ideas at the core of the ratification debate between the Federalists and Anti-Federalists. Planning to play Race to Ratify on Constitution Day? Explore our Constitution Day collection to find more resources. LEARNING OBJECTIVES: Identify the main stances of the Federalists and Anti-Federalists between 1787 and 1789. Understand the key debates surrounding the ratification of the constitution, including an extended republic, the House of Representatives, the Senate, executive power, the judiciary, and a bill of rights. Interact with the ideas, perspectives, and arguments that defined the ratification debate. Explore the many different viewpoints, which spanned geographic regions, populations, and socio-economic class. Identify the building blocks of the proposed Constitution. Engage with competing ideas in order to form an effective and cohesive set of arguments for, or against, ratification within a state.

Make your students' gameplay more meaningful by using our activity and assessment set designed specifically for Race to Ratify. This easy-to-use Extension Pack helps you give context and purpose to the game, as well as reinforce and assess the game concepts. That means deeper learning for students and best practices around game-centered learning for you! Extension Packs require PowerPoint and are designed for use with projectors or interactive whiteboards. LESSON OBJECTIVES: identify the main stances of the Federalists and Anti-Federalists between 1787 and 1789 *understand the key debates surrounding the ratification of the Constitution, including an extended republic, the House of Representatives, the Senate, executive power, the judiciary, and a bill of rights *interact with the ideas, perspectives, and arguments that defined the ratification debate *explore different viewpoints spanning geographic regions, populations, and socio-economic class *identify the building blocks of the proposed Constitution

Ranked-choice voting lets voters select their favorite candidate-and their second and third favorites too! Not sure what that means? What are the pros and cons of ranked-choice voting? Use this downloadable infographic to walk students through the process step-by-step with colorful graphs that show where the votes go.
¡iCivics en español! A translated version of this infographic is available in Spanish, and tips for sharing with ELs/MLs can be found at the end of the Teacher's Guide. LESSON OBJECTIVES: Understand the process of ranked-choice voting *Discuss the pros and cons of this electoral system

The First Amendment includes a two-for-one deal in its protection of religious freedom. This mini-lesson explains the difference between the Establishment and the Free Exercise clauses. Students practice applying the clauses to scenarios and take on the role of judge to evaluate if the Establishment clause applies.
How to use this lesson: Use this lesson by itself or pair it with more iCivics resources, like the Supreme Court cases Minersville v. Gobitas (1940) or our game Do I Have a Right? LESSON OBJECTIVES: Identify the religious protections of the First Amendment *Explain the meaning of the Establishment Clause *Explain the meaning of the Free Exercise Clause *Apply religious freedom clauses in different scenarios *Develop a persuasive argument based on an interpretation of the First Amendment

Use this graphic organizer to guide independent student research on a Supreme Court case, or for analyzing one of the mini-lessons in the Landmark Library. It includes critical thinking and discussion questions for work in small groups or as an entire class. Also available as a fillable PDF! LESSON OBJECTIVES: Conduct independent or group research on a Supreme Court case. *Identify the main arguments put forth in the case. *Describe the rationale behind the Supreme Court's decision. *Analyze the impact of the Supreme Court's decision on people's lives at the local and national levels.

Discover the people, groups, and events behind the Civil Rights Movement. Learn about means of non-violent protest, opposition to the movement, and identify how it took all three branches of the federal government to effect change. Protest posters, fictional diary entries, and a map of the movement's major events develop a greater understanding of the struggle for civil rights.
LESSON OBJECTIVES: Describe the processes that led to the expansion of rights for African Americans. *Identify the role of the three branches of government in establishing and protecting rights. *Describe methods that civil rights activists used to protest segregation. *Identify individuals and groups that influenced the Civil Rights Movement. *Explain the significance of civil rights Supreme Court cases: Brown v. Board of Education, Loving v. Virginia, Bailey v. Patterson, Heart of Atlanta v. US. *explain the significance of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and 1968, the 24th Amendment, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Fair Housing Act.

This is a full unit of study from iCivics, featuring multiple lesson plans with presentations, downloadable documents, and more. How did we go from thirteen British colonies to the United States of America? Explore the major hardships of life under British rule, how the colonists decided to break away, and how they set a path for a new and independent government.

What is the media? What does it do? Students examine the types and roles of the media by taking on the role of newsmaker and agenda setter.
LESSON OBJECTIVES: Analyze the role of mass media in monitoring and influencing government and the public sphere. *Explain the impact of the media on monitoring and influencing government and the public sphere. *Analyze media communications for bias. *Recognize the media acting in its roles as gatekeeper, agenda-setter, and watchdog.

Explore the ideas of Enlightenment thinker, Jean-Jacques Rousseau. His writings on natural and social freedom, the social contract, and democracy shaped the American system of government in a variety of ways.

In this mini-lesson, students will explore the ideas of Enlightenment thinker, Jean-Jacques Rousseau. His writings on natural and social freedom, the social contract, and democracy shaped the American system of government in a variety of ways. LESSON OBJECTIVES: Analyze the ideas behind America's founding documents. *Identify the ideas of various Enlightenment thinkers who influenced America's founders. *Big Ideas: The Social Contract, natural freedom, social freedom, general will, majority rule, direct and representative democracy

What is a monarchy and why has it been one of the most common forms of government throughout history? In this lesson, students explore the advantages and disadvantages of monarchy and take a look at the roles power, authority, legitimacy, and sovereignty have played in its long-standing history. Then in a unique trading card activity, students explore the achievements of real-life monarchs and craft arguments to defend their success or failure. LESSON OBJECTIVES: Explain the advantages and disadvantages of monarchical government *Recall the history of monarchy as a form of government *Determine why monarchy has been a common form of government throughout history *Describe and defend the characteristics and actions that deem a monarch successful or unsuccessful

Students learn about the rule of law and how it protects individual rights and freedoms. By performing short, scripted skits that illustrate what life might be like without the rule of law, students identify six factors that make up the rule of law and analyze how each factor affects daily life. Students then make connections between the rule of law and America's founding documents and think about the relationship between the rule of law factors. LESSON OBJECTIVES: Define the rule of law. *Explain how the rule of law protects individual rights and preserves the common good. *Recognize the influence of the rule of law on the development of the American legal, political, and governmental systems. *Analyze the necessity of establishing and enforcing the rule of law. *Examine how the rule of law affects everyday life. *Identify the effect of Marbury v. Madison and its relationship to the rule of law.

Lace up your shoes and learn how candidates run the race to become President of the United States! In this printable infographic, your students will see the requirements to run for president, how candidates must prepare, and the different hurdles they have to overcome to make it to the finish line: Inauguration Day.
Love this poster? Explore all of our free election curriculum and teaching resources at our Election Headquarters. LESSON OBJECTIVES: Identify the constitutional requirements to run for president *Learn the major steps involved in the presidential election process *Understand the choices candidates can make in how to run their campaign