NCJ Number
75173
Date Published
1978
Length
202 pages
Annotation
This guide presents learning activities and teaching methods for law and citizenship education for kindergarten (K) through the eighth grades.
Abstract
The guide's objective is to aid the teacher in preparing students for citizenship responsibilities. The basic topics treated are liberty, justice, equality, property, and power. The presentations are designed for adaptation to existing curricula. One section, which provides learning activities for grades K-3, outlines purposes and activities; contains educational objectives; and suggests activities such as viewing filmstrips, discussions, brainstorming, and gaming. Activities are limited to simple definitions and tasks emphasizing conceptual learning. Other lessons are aimed at grades 4-8. They explore the same topics by using activities and references of growing complexity and sophistication. Creative writing, dramatization, case studies, and field investigation are suggested for grades 4-6; students should examine the topics and relate them to subject matter such as American history and Government, legal terms and processes, historical documents, and court systems. Lessons for grades 7-8 recommend films, court cases, textbooks, comparative analyses, and opinion polls for use in studying controversial issues relating to the basic topics. The concluding section is an appendix that offers teaching materials and objectives, as well as teaching strategies to stimulate discussion and student involvement. Fifty-seven references (books and films) are cited. (ERIC abstract modified)