Alcatraz Island, San Francisco Bay, which was a prison for federal criminals. Photo taken in 2011.
Dear class,
Today was another deep dive into various different Supreme Court cases, to see how the Judicial Branch of the U.S. Government impacts our day to day lives. Here's what happened today in class:
Learning Targets Addressed:
Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different branches of U.S. government.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different branches of U.S. government.
Soundtrack: "Princess of China" by Coldplay and Rihanna. Selected for today because a monarchy is an example of a form of government. Lyrics here.
AGENDA 4/25/16:
News Brief –
Cases Teens Should Know
SCOTUS Overview
Landmark Cases
Homework: Read the blog. Look at your grade and improve it, if possible! Next news brief: Angel.
News Brief: Caitie had the news brief today, but forgot it, so we will get to her story next class.
We also checked in about the weekend and what was going on outside of class.
Daniel was selected to do the next news brief.
Cases Teens Should Know: This was the reading was from last class - we finished and then went over the answers:
2) Describe the judge’s decision and explain their reasons why.
3) Do you agree or disagree with the judge’s decision? Explain your reasons why or why not.
I enjoyed the discussion here! Very interesting cases to analyze.
SCOTUS Overview: Before moving with the reading and discussion, we learned a little more about the Supreme Court, as I read through a few of the interesting points on this document:
Then, I talked a little bit about how the current Supreme Court only has 8 members, due to Justice Scalia recently passing away. President Obama has nominated Merrick Garland to be a replacement judge, but it is unlikely that Republicans are going to let him even get a hearing in the Senate, as many want the next president to decide who the nominee should be. We watched the video on this website for a little biography about Merrick Garland, so students know a bit more about who he is:
Seeing as this has been in the news, I wanted students to be educated!
We also checked in about the weekend and what was going on outside of class.
Daniel was selected to do the next news brief.
Cases Teens Should Know: This was the reading was from last class - we finished and then went over the answers:
The assignment was to, on a separate sheet of paper, read and write the answers to the following questions for a minimum of five out of the ten cases.
1) What was the issue?2) Describe the judge’s decision and explain their reasons why.
3) Do you agree or disagree with the judge’s decision? Explain your reasons why or why not.
I enjoyed the discussion here! Very interesting cases to analyze.
I had a good time discussing these cases with everyone! Thanks for the interest and questions. Here are a few of the articles I used in class to discuss the cases:
SCOTUS Overview: Before moving with the reading and discussion, we learned a little more about the Supreme Court, as I read through a few of the interesting points on this document:
Then, I talked a little bit about how the current Supreme Court only has 8 members, due to Justice Scalia recently passing away. President Obama has nominated Merrick Garland to be a replacement judge, but it is unlikely that Republicans are going to let him even get a hearing in the Senate, as many want the next president to decide who the nominee should be. We watched the video on this website for a little biography about Merrick Garland, so students know a bit more about who he is:
Landmark Case Reading: This was definitely a reading and work heavy day. That's kind of what the Supreme Court is all about, though - lots of legal papers and decisions to look at, in order to understand the law. Here was the reading:
The assignment that went along with the reading is here:
That was it for the day! Thank you so much for your focus and hard work! Next class, we will finish up the Supreme Court landmark cases, then prep a little for some fun mock trials. :-)
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