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CIVICS

GRADE 7
Behavioral
Objectives
S.O.L.s
S.O.L. CE.2
The student will
demonstrate
knowledge of the
foundations of
American
constitutional
government by:
b. explaining the
significance of the
charters of the
Virginia Company
of London, the
Virginia
Declaration of
Rights, the
Declaration of
Independence, the
Articles of
Confederation, the
Virginia Statute for
Religious Freedom,
and the
Constitution of the

NUMBER OF STUDENTS: More than 20

LESSON NUMBER 1 (Cooperative)


LENGTH OF LESSON: 90 minutes

Content
Previous instruction on the Bill of Rights will be used to play
this game.

Procedures

Evaluation

Activity (45
minutes): Games
This activity will
take place in the
computer lab, and
each student will
play the iCivics
game Do I Have A
Right with Bill of
Rights experts.
Students will
progress through
7 days of turns at
their law firm,
using their Bill of
Rights knowledge
to properly link a
case and a right
protected by the
Bill of Rights. Once
done, the entire
class will return to
the classroom for
the next activity.
Activity (30

The iCivics game


provides a score
for the 7-day
period of the game
Do I Have A Right,
which I will
analyze and
compare against
the relative score
range the student
should be scoring
in.
I will also use the
arguments the
students use in the
role-play
courtroom activity
to determine if
they do in fact
understand the
amendment
assigned to them,
how and when
they apply it and if
they use it

United States,
including
the Bill of Rights;
CE.3
The student will
demonstrate
knowledge of
citizenship and the
rights, duties, and
responsibilities of
citizens by
b. describing the
First Amendment
freedoms of
religion, speech,
press, assembly,
and
petition, and the
rights guaranteed
by due process and
equal protection of
the laws;
1. Students will be
able to properly
identify each bill of
the Bill of Rights
and its protections.

minutes): Roleproperly.
play
In this activity,
students will be
grouped into two
groups, with each
student
representing one
of the
amendments Bill
of Rights as an
expert for that
amendment. They
will serve as a
defense attorney
or prosecutor for a
client, which I will
play if numbers do
not allow another
student to, and be
asked to argue
their clients case
with the correct
protection from
the Bill of Rights
to win. The cases
will be read aloud
by me and the
student
responsible for

2. Students will be
able to properly link
a case to the specific
protection
guaranteed to that
client in the Bill of
Rights.
3. Students will be
able to successfully
argue a case in the
role-play activity
using their Bill of
Rights knowledge
and using the
appropriate
amendment to do
so.

that case will need


to speak up and
argue his/her case
with the proper
right and
protections. If the
student is unable
to do so, he/she
can confer with
other members
from their firm to
come up with the
correct response.
The firm which
confers with their
firm the least and
wins the most
cases is victorious
in this activity and
will be awarded 2
bonus points on
the upcoming test.
The other group
will be awarded 1
point.
Reflection (15
minutes): Then I
will review the Bill
of Rights and go
over and weak

points I noticed
from the activity.
Then, make the
student write an
exit slip where
they identify the
amendment that
gives them the
most trouble and
why. Collect it as
they leave class.
Materials needed:
Computers, desks
and chairs
arranged to recreate a
courtroom and a
gavel.
1. http://www.doe.virginia.gov/testing/sol/standards_docs/history_socialscience/next_version/stds_civics_economics.p
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