High School Curriculum on the Judiciary

The American Judicature Society is committed to helping educate the public about the workings of the judicial branch of government.

We invite you to download the lesson plans described below, use them in your classroom, and then suggest revisions to the plans and share your comments and questions about them.

See "How to Participate" at the bottom of the page.

What Is This?

The High School Curriculum on the Judiciary is a four-lesson unit prepared for high-school seniors.

The newest lesson, The Jury System, helps students understand the role of juries in our judicial system and how juries came to be used to ensure justice and protect individual rights.

The third lesson, Judicial Independence, uses a variety of activities and assignments to help students understand the concept of "judicial independence," why it is important for our courts, and how it can be threatened. Upon completion of the lesson, students should:

• Identify the three branches of government and the role of each branch.
• Understand the concepts of “separation of powers” and “checks and balances” and the role of the courts in these systems.
• Understand how judges make decisions.
• Understand how judges are selected and retained in the federal system and in your state, and how this relates to judicial independence and accountability.

The second lesson, The Supreme Court, involves research and students role playing U. S. Supreme Court justices, their clerks, and opposing attorneys. Upon completion of the learning activities, students should:

• Know the jurisdictions of the various courts.
• Understand how the Supreme Court works.
• Understand the changing role of the Supreme Court through history and its relationship to the two other branches of government.
• Understand the Constitution as a living document.

The first lesson, titled Court Procedure, is a simulation game about a murder. It requires students to role play witnesses, prosecuting and defense attorneys, detectives, CSI team members, jurors, a court clerk, journalist, photographer, and other justice-system actors. At the completion of this unit students will:

• Understand the rights of the accused.
• Know the role of the players in the court system.
• Know the protections in the Bill of Rights that apply to an accused.
• Know the influence of the Supreme Court on the court process.
• Understand relevant legal terminology.

Who Made This Possible?

This curriculum was made possible by a grant from the Spencer Williams Foundation for Judiciary Independence. Project staff at the American Judicature Society worked with a committee of judges, lawyers and high-school social science teachers and a curriculum writer to draft and refine the lesson plans. Then they were pilot tested in three high schools, one suburban (Miller Place High School, Miller Place, NY), one urban (Somerville High School, Somerville, MA) and one rural (Lake Havasu High School, Lake Havasu, AZ), and evaluated by professionals at the Research Institute for Studies in Education (RISE) at Iowa State University. We are very grateful to the project advisory committee members, and thank them for their dedication and commitment. They are: Judge Betty Fletcher, U. S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit Judge Ann Williams, U. S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit Judge Ortrie Smith, U. S. District Court, Western District of Missouri Jon B. Comstock, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. John Wheeler, Iowa State Bar Association Richard Theisen, Past President, National Council for the Social Studies Kristen Borges, High School Government Teacher Nancy Peterson, High School Government Teacher; Curriculum Writer.