BRI Gave Wisconsin Teacher an Entire Semester of Material
<p><em>By Jeff Maves</em> </p>
<p>In August, I traveled to Madison, Wis., to take part in my first live event by the Bill of Rights Institute, “Civics in the 21st Century.” </p>
<p>Giving up two days of summer so close to the start of the school year made me a little apprehensive, but what I gained from my two-day experience was completely worth it. </p>
<p>I am in my 23rd year as a social studies teacher and I teach all grades between 6-12, with my primary subject being high school government. When I attend professional development experiences, I always hope to have one or two really good ideas to incorporate into my lessons or units. I was hopeful since it was so close to the start of the school year, I would take something back and implement it right away this fall. </p>
<p>Within the first couple hours, I was already trying to revamp whole units and figuring out how my semester would be laid out. I walked away after two days with multiple full-day lessons (I teach in an 85-minute block)! </p>
<p>I visited the BRI website before, but it wasn’t until I attended the civics event that I truly realized how many resources BRI has to offer. If you have never experienced the Life, Liberty, and Pursuit of Happiness resource (LLPH), you need to do so today. There are so many things that will help you in your U.S. History and government courses. Primary sources, political cartoons, debates – the list goes on and on. </p>
<p>I wanted to do something unique and different for myself and my students this year to commemorate Sept. 11, 2001. My teaching partner and I created a lesson using LLPH. Students were given Handout A from Chapter 16; there is a great lesson on security, liberty, and the PATRIOT Act. Our schools in Wisconsin do not start until Sept. 1, so we had not really covered any real content prior to Sept. 11. </p>
<p>We gave students Handout A and asked them to read and then answer questions about Article I, II, and the Fourth Amendment. Once we had a chance to go over these answers, I showed a video about 9/11. After the video, I explained my own experience as a first-year teacher as 9/11 unfolded, and then came the fun part. We used Handout B to see what the government’s response was and discussed the PATRIOT Act. </p>
<p>Thanks to block scheduling, we were able to push forward and talk about how the FBI and law enforcement are now using artificial intelligence and surveillance. Students finished the day by discussing security cameras in schools, intersections, and their daily lives. They got a lot out of this lesson! </p>
<p>I’m looking forward to using many more BRI resources in the next couple of weeks. I’m particularly excited to start using some of the point-counterpoint debates! </p>
<p><em>Jeff Maves teaches social studies at Cedarburg High School in Cedarburg, WI.</em> </p>