bill of rights current events assignment

Portfolio Assignment 2

Discover examples of Bill of Rights issues in current events.

Follow the instructions for the assignment below. Save your assignments so they are easy to find when it is time to submit them in Portfolio 1.

Bill of Rights Newspaper Assignment

Throughout this unit we have discussed some of the history of the Bill of Rights as well as Bill of Rights issues that have arisen from this great document. To help you see that Bill of Rights issues continue to come up in our everyday lives, you will be asked to cut and paste two newspaper articles (or letters to the editor) from any newspaper or online news site within the last three months that portray Bill of Rights issues.

You will need to write a short caption (three lines or more) for each of the articles explaining why you chose these as representative samples of the Bill of Rights in current events. In the caption you will also need to cite the appropriate amendment to the Constitution. It is important that you differentiate between issues dealing with the Bill of Rights and issues dealing with the Constitution (the Constitution is covered in unit 1).

In summary, you will need to cut (or copy) and paste two news articles dealing with Bill of Rights issues. You can either physically cut out newspaper articles, paste them on paper, write in the captions, and scan in these documents, or you can copy news articles you find on the internet and paste the opening sections into a word processing document. Make sure you cite the article title, author, date, and source of the article. In your caption, you will need to explain how the article connects to the Bill of Rights and explicitly state the amendment to which your article connects. Be sure to look at the grading rubric before beginning the assignment.

Options for Online News Sites

• Washington Post
• New York Times

Examples of past newspaper headlines dealing with Bill of Rights issues:

• “Transcript: 9/11 bomber confesses.” The confession has brought up Bill of Rights issues because some say that the U.S. government forced a confession from the terrorist using “cruel and unusual” punishment, which conflicts with the eighth amendment.
• “Mystery Witness in NYPD probe.” This article deals with the sixth amendment: right to a jury trial.

Formatting Your Written Work

You will submit written assignments electronically through your course. To make sure that I can open and read your papers, please save them as DOCX files.

Remember: Do not submit any assignment until you have completed all the assignments for portfolio 1!

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Current Events: Bill of Rights Day

Students are making their voices heard across the country and calling for action on issues they want addressed. Over the past few weeks, students in at least three states, Massachusetts, Minnesota, and here in Oregon, have seen students walk out of their schools in protest of a wide variety of issues. In Massachusetts, high school students in Medford left their classrooms in response to growing violence at their school. In southern Oregon, after the reinstatement of district staff whom students saw as hostile to the trans community, high school students walked out of their school to show support for the LGBTQ+ community.  In November 2021, middle school students at a Portland-area school staged a walkout in response to what they reported as a refusal by the teachers and administration to address the growing problem of sexual assault and harassment happening in their school. In Minnesota and Tigard, Oregon, students left their classes and held demonstrations because of growing environments of hate and racism within their schools. In both cases, student communities were moved to action in response to both hostile school environments for students of color, as well as hate-filled social media posts that circulated among the student body.

These students are not only fighting for what they believe in, but with their actions, they are also honoring the fundamental rights inscribed in the United State’s Constitution. With their collective actions, these students utilized their freedom of speech, and rights to peaceful assembly. These cornerstone rights, as well as seven others, make up what has been called the foundation of American security and liberty: the Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights includes the first 10 amendments of the Constitution, which were enacted to protect an array of freedoms including freedom of religion, freedom of press and freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures.

The Bill of Rights was ratified on December 15, 1791. Some 150 years later, in November 1941, President Franklin Roosevelt issued a proclamation dedicating December 15 as Bill of Rights Day, to honor the anniversary, and to draw a stark contrast between American democracy and growing fascism around the globe. It was a year after the end of World War 2 when the U.S. would celebrate Bill of Rights Day again, with President Truman issuing a proclamation at the behest of Congress. Then, in 1962, President John Kennedy officially proclaimed that every December 15 th from that year onward would be Bill of Rights Day.

This week’s Current Events resources examine the Bill of Rights. The resources shared provide context and history around the first ten amendments as well as their impact on American society.

Looking for more current events resources?  Sign up at our We the Teachers Educator Resource Community page , where you can find all of our Current Events, and learn about our other programs!

Essential Questions, Vocabulary & Extend the Resources:

• How are students’ actions protected by the Bill of Rights?
• What fundamental liberties are protected by the Bill of Rights?
• How has the Bill of Rights impacted American society?
• In your opinion, which freedoms guaranteed by the Bill of Rights are most important in today’s society?
• Why may it be important to nationally recognize the Bill of Rights by having its own ‘day’?
• How has the Bill of Rights impacted people and countries outside of the United States?
• If the Constitution and the Bill of Rights were being drafted today, which freedoms do you think should be added or subtracted from the original ten?

Click here for a hardcopy of the Essential Questions & Bill of Rights Day Vocabulary

Click here for a hardcopy of the Extend the Resources handout with suggested lesson activities and extensions

Civics Shorts: The Bill of Rights, Civics 101, NPR

Akhil Reed Amar on the Bill of Rights,  We The People, National Constitution Center , December 22, 2016

American Legal History & the Bill of Rights, Ben Franklin’s World, October 8, 2019

Framed, Constitutional, The Washington Post, July 24, 2017

Background Resources:

Bill of Rights Day , National Archives

Bill of Rights Day , National Today , December 15, 2021

Happy Birthday Bill of Rights , National Constitution Center

Recent Articles:

Rediscovering America: A Quiz for Bill of Rights Day , The Palm Beach Post , December 8, 2021

Bill of Rights Day Explained , CNN , December 15, 2019

Bill Of Rights Day: 8 Interesting Facts About Constitution’s First Ten Amendments, International Business Times , December 15, 2017

Students are fed up with racist slurs and bullying. Now they’re walking out of class , KPTV , December 5, 2021

Students State Walkout to Protest Video Featuring Racial Slurs , Newsweek , December 2, 2021

Tigard High Schools walk out of class to protest racist video posted on TikTok , KGW , December 1, 2021

Students walk out of Portland middle school, demand response to sexual harassment allegations , OPB, NPR , November 3, 2021

3 arrested during Grants Pass High School walkout in support of LGBT+ community , KGW , November 17, 2021

Recent Editorials:

229 years ago, because of the Bill of Rights, America became America | Opinion , Tennessean , December 13, 2020

Bill of Rights Day: We keep our freedoms by teaching them , Pittsburgh Post-Gazette , December 14, 2020

Articles for Elementary Students:

Bill of Rights (3rd – 5th Grade) , National Constitution Center

Constitutional Law Lesson Plan: Do I Have a Right? Game , BrainPop Educators

We the Civics Kids Lesson 3: The Bill of Rights , National Constitution Center

The Bill of Rights , Ducksters

Lesson Plans:

The Bill of Rights , The Bill of Rights Institute

You’ve Got Rights! , iCivics

Why the Bill of Rights Matters to You , Annenberg Classroom

Our Constitution: The Bill of Rights , The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History

The Bill of Rights Choice Board , C-SPAN Classroom

The Bill of Rights: Debating the Amendments , Library of Congress

Visitor from Outer Space , Teaching Civics

Media & News Literacy Lesson Plans:

Media Literacy Resources – Newseum

News & Media Literacy Lessons – Common Sense

Media Misinformation, Viral Deception, and “Fake News” – University of Wyoming

Evaluating Sources in a ‘Post-Truth’ World: Ideas for Teaching and Learning About Fake News – New York Times Lessons

Our Key Issues

• Constitution Connection
• Energy & the Environment
• Foreign Policy
• Freedom of Speech
• Health Care
• Immigration
• Law and Criminal Justice
• Second Amendment

Is Harm Reduction a Feasible Solution to the Opioid Epidemic?

Should Voting Rights be Reinstated for Convicted Felons Who Completed Their Sentence?

Should States Expand Access for Voting in Elections?

Should the United States Allow More Immigrants to Enter the Country?

Should the Supreme Court Have Term Limits?

Does the United States Have an Obligation to Uphold Freedom Around the Globe?

Should Students Have Broader Free Speech Rights at School?

Should Former Presidents Be Generally Immune to Prosecution for Official Acts Made in Office?

Do laws banning homeless encampments constitute “cruel and unusual punishment”.

Should the United States Government Force a Sale of TikTok?

Was the Boston Port Act Justified?

Should the United States Create a Wealth Tax?

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This lesson, which includes a pre-lesson and several post-lesson ideas, is designed to be used in conjunction with the National Constitution Center’s Bill of Rights show, which is available as part of themed museum packages for groups and the Traveling History & Civics Program for schools. Together, they provide students with first-hand experience about one of our nation’s most important documents. In this lesson, students begin by learning about the specific rights and freedoms protected by the Bill of Rights.

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