The Power of the Press: The First Amendment

California Content Standards

This lesson is designed to address the following California State Board of Education's content standards for History-Social Science and English/Language Arts. For more information on the standards, or to see the complete list, please visit: www.cde.ca.gov/be/st/ss/   

Social Studies and History Standards:

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.

Visual Art Standards:

2.7 Communicate values, opinions, or personal insights through an original work of art.

4.1 Identify how selected principles of design are used in a work of art and how they affect personal responses to and evaluation of the work of art.

College and Career Readiness Anchor Standards for Writing K-5

Text Types and Purposes

1. Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence.

Big Ideas:

• The political process involves participation; understanding requires student engagement. (Integration and application of new learning in multiple learning modalities helps students deepen understanding).
• The strength of a democracy is equal to the strength of its citizens. (We must understand, participate in, and further develop our system of government to ensure democracy).
• E Pluribus Unum: out of many, one. (From a variety of sources and experiences, we  have developed a successful government and legal system).

Essential Questions/Issues:

1. What does it mean to be an American citizen?
2. Is citizenship a right or a responsibility?
3. Does social capital strengthen a republic?

Higher Order Thinking Questions:

• Do you think the media influences court cases too much today? (Evaluation, Synthesis)
• Do you believe it is possible for the judicial system to maintain its independence from political views, public pressure, and the media?  Why or why not? (Evaluation, Synthesis)
• How do court cases affect the strength of our democracy? (Synthesis, Analysis)

Assessment: 

Students will be evaluated through informal checks for understanding, teacher observation, self-reflections, and performing an authentic task (GRASP) evaluated by a rubric.

Click here to download assessment tools.

Activity Steps: 

This lesson should be divided into 2-3 class periods per teacher discretion and student need.

Click here to download activity steps

Special Needs of students are considered in this lesson:

Students are put into flexible grouping scenarios that will benefit learning for all types of learners and special needs. Hands-on learning with plenty of visuals, opportunities for movement, verbal, written, and nonverbal expression, and multiple learning modalities are available within the context of this lesson. The opportunity for student choice creates an embedded differentiation opportunity as well as student ownership of learning.

Extension Ideas:

• Students can recreate court case reading transcripts from the www.law.umkc.edu website address.
• Students can debate current political cartoon content
• Students find current local articles about cases that have a possible impact on our rights as citizens.

Materials and Resources Needed:

• Screen
• Laptop or PC
• External speakers
• Press kits
• Sharpies
• Tracing paper
• Printer paper
• Pre-cut 8” x 10” black mats 
• iMovie of Haymarket case
• Powerpoint

References: 

www.law.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/ftrials.htm Website of Prof. Douglas Linder of University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law.  This webpage has 30+ cases complete w/images, transcripts, judgments, timelines, media sources that have been prominent in our history. 
This is the website that has the biographies of the defendants used in the press kits.
 
www.chicagohistory.org The Chicago Historical Society webpage has numerous trial records, photos, media publications, artworks, chronologies, etc. regarding local cases and histories.

Chicago Anarchists on Trial (Library of congress: “American Memory” Project) http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/award98/ichihtml/hayhome.html transcripts, map.

The Haymarket Riot of 1886 (Chicago Public Library) http://cpl.lib.uic.edu/004chicago/timeline/haymarket.html

Haymarket, Martin Duberman, Novel set against the Haymarket tragedy. (Seven Stories Press, 2005)

www.crystalproductions.com  Great visual art site for supplies and posters.

www.dickblick.com Order tracing paper through this source for best value.

www.bagsunlimited.com/ Site to order pre-cut black mats for students (approximately $1 ea)

Student Handouts:

Download student handouts here

Outline of the Unit Plan:

This unit is designed to focus on the fifth grade standards in Social Science and Visual Art.  These include: student learning, analysis, and understanding of historical documents (The Constitution and Bill of Rights).  Students begin to understand the significance of events and historical figures (as seen through case law studies) in shaping what we have as a government today.  Students will also learn about, experiment with, and critique visual art skills related to historical documentation, media persuasion, and how art can be both a catalyst and a reflection of our society.