History from Scratch

Last month we celebrated Black History, and this month we celebrate Women’s History. Both months provide a specific opportunity to celebrate and remedy the historical lack of widely shared stories, and struggle for equal rights, of members of both groups.

Have you ever wondered if our Constitution would look different if our Founders had looked like this?

What if today’s students were to devise their own rules for how a society should operate? Would their innate sense of fairness create a Constitution in which “We the People” truly was all the people?

The Judges in the Classroom program matches judges with teachers who would like them to deliver a vetted lesson plan to their students. This piece is a supplement to the lesson plan called Creating A Bill of Rights in Space.

Essential Questions

What are rights?

Who should have them?

What does it mean to be fair?

Who will be responsible for enforcing the rules?

Where will the power of enforcement come from?

Civics knowledge, skills and dispositions

Civic education starts with understanding the basics of our government’s organization and founding principles. As with most learning, applying that knowledge to real life through civic engagement sparks more interest, more questions, and enhances the development of core civics skills such as critical thinking, problem analysis, and the ability to argue effectively from evidence. By participating and serving, practicing disagreeing while also respecting the rights of others, and deepening their understanding of the rule of law, students will strengthen their sense of agency and “voice,” in their schools, communities and government.

The reference staff at the Washington State Law Library has written about Women’s History Month, and provides a variety of resources for teaching and learning.