The Great Debate: U.S. Supreme Court Cases

Standards Addressed:

Language Arts Standards:

Writing:

2.4  Write persuasive letters or compositions:
        e. State a clear position in support of a proposal.
        f. Support a position with relevant evidence. 
        g. Follow a simple organizational pattern.
        h. Address reader concerns.

Speaking:

2.2  Deliver informative presentations about an important idea, issue, or event by the following  means:
       d. Frame questions to direct the investigation.
       e. Establish a controlling idea or topic.
       f. Develop the topic with simple facts, details, examples, and explanations.

History Standards:

5.7 Students describe the people and events associated with the development of the U.S. Constitution and analyze the Constitution's significance as the foundation of the American republic:

3. Understand the fundamental principles of American constitutional democracy, including how the government derives its power from the people and the primacy of individual liberty. 

4. Understand how the Constitution is designed to secure our liberty by both empowering and limiting central government and compare the powers granted to citizens, Congress, the president, and the Supreme Court with those reserved to the states. 

5. Discuss the meaning of the American creed that calls on citizens to safeguard the liberty of individual Americans within a unified nation, to respect the rule of law, and to preserve the Constitution.

Common Core State Standards for ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS & Literacy in History/Social
Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects K-5

College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Speaking and Listening K-5

Comprehension and Collaboration

1. Prepare for and participate effectively in a range of conversations and collaborations with diverse partners, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.

2. Integrate and evaluate information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.

3. Evaluate a speaker’s point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric.

Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas

4. Present information, findings, and supporting evidence such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning and the organization, development, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.

5. Make strategic use of digital media and visual displays of data to express information and enhance understanding of presentations.

6. Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and communicative tasks, demonstrating command of formal English when indicated or appropriate.

Big Ideas: 

• The strength of a democracy is equal to the strength of its citizens (The judicial branch interprets the Constitution and with people’s participation into the judicial system, our Constitution is strengthened and our democracy is strengthened).  
  
• E Pluribus Unum: out of many, one (One person can make a difference in the legal system by bringing their Constitutional questions to the judicial branch). 
  

Essential Questions/Issues:

1. How is the Constitution a living document?

2. When people participate in the judicial branch, how can citizens have an effect on interpreting  the Constitution?

Higher Order Thinking Questions: 

1. How would you debate your side of each of the famous U.S. Supreme Court Cases? (analysis  and synthesis)

2. After the debates, does the U.S. Supreme Court decisions to your case seem fair to you?  (judgment)

Assessment: 

Students will be evaluated through informal checks for understanding, teacher observation, self-reflection, and performing an authentic task evaluated by a persuasive writing and class debate rubric.   

Click here to download assessment tools

Lesson Activity Steps:

Click to download the activity steps

Special Needs of students are considered in this lesson: 

Students are put into groups that will benefit learning for all types of learners and special needs. Each student has a different part in the debate so all students will participate in the writing of the essay and the debate. The teacher will also provide persuasive essay writing outlines to help ELL and special needs students.

Extension Ideas:

The extension idea for this unit is to do a class debate each month on different topics so we can extend this unit by using our other topics we cover in history for debate such as a Patriot and Loyalist debate or who really discovered the New World debate. This lesson can be extended by finding other recent U.S. Supreme court cases to debate.
 

Materials and Resources Needed:

1. Microphone
2. Computer
3. Audacity recording program

References: 

Courts in the Classroom: http://www2.courtinfo.ca.gov/lre2/CourtsLRE/index.html

Audacity recording download: http://audacity.sourceforge.net/
 

Click here to download student handouts

Context of the Unit: 

This unit is a year-long unit that will focus on a persuasive debate every month. The previous debate before this one was a pop culture debate to give the students an introduction about debates and persuasive writing. Each debate will be recorded and podcasted on my website. Also, the students will write persuasive essays to show them how a debate is formatted and to provide content for their debate.   

Context of this Lesson within the Unit:

This lesson follows the unit on the formation of the U.S. government and the U.S. Constitution in the student’ social studies textbook. Also, this lesson follows the first lesson of the students’ pop culture debates and a persuasive writing lesson.

Standards Addressed in the Unit: 

Language Arts Standards:

Writing:

2.4  Write persuasive letters or compositions: 
       a.  State a clear position in support of a proposal. 
       b.  Support a position with relevant evidence.
       c.  Follow a simple organizational pattern. 
       d.  Address reader concerns.

Speaking:

2.2  Deliver informative presentations about an important idea, issue, or event by the following  means:
       a. Frame questions to direct the investigation.
       b. Establish a controlling idea or topic. 
       c. Develop the topic with simple facts, details, examples, and explanations.

History Standards:

5.5 Students explain the causes of the American Revolution:
      3.  Understand the people and events associated with the drafting and signing of the Declaration of Independence and the document's significance, including the key political concepts it embodies, the origins of those concepts, and its role in severing ties with Great Britain. 

5.7  Students describe the people and events associated with the development of the U.S.   Constitution and analyze the Constitution's significance as the foundation of the American republic:

      3. Understand the fundamental principles of American constitutional democracy, including how the government derives its power from the people and the primacy of individual liberty. 

      4. Understand how the Constitution is designed to secure our liberty by both empowering and limiting central government and compare the powers granted to citizens, Congress, the president, and the Supreme Court with those reserved to the states. 

      5. Discuss the meaning of the American creed that calls on citizens to safeguard the liberty of individual Americans within a unified nation, to respect the rule of law, and to preserve the Constitution.