Bill of Rights Day 2024

December 15 is Bill of Rights Day, celebrating the day that the Constitution's first 10 Amendments were ratified in 1791.  Courts around the country celebrate this important milestone throughout the month of December.

STUDENT CONTEST:  The United States Courts within the Seventh and Eighth Circuits hosted the Fifth Annual Bill of Rights Day Contest. Students in Grades 5-12 from Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin were encouraged to submit art and essays on the importance of the Bill of Rights.

Nearly 300 entries were received. 39 were selected as finalists, and a grand prize was awarded in each of 8 categories.

To see the list of winners and their entries, visit the official contest website, hosted by the Judicial Learning Center.

To be informed about this and other contests and opportunities in the future, subscribe to the newsletter mailing list HERE.

Constitution Day 2024

September 17 marks the anniversary of the ratification of the U.S. Constitution and is designated as Constitution Day by the United States government. By Congressional mandate, “Each educational institution that receives federal funds for a fiscal year shall hold an educational program on the United States Constitution on September 17 of such year for the students served by the educational institution.”

Ideas for meeting this requirement:

• Use this activity and video from the U.S. Courts to consider and practice civil discourse skills.

• Learn about the U.S. Constitution and complete a 6-question quiz on the Judicial Learning Center’s website.

• Use the text of the U.S. Constitution to lead a lesson on the qualifications of office for leaders of each of the three branches of government.

• Ponder the Promises of the Preamble using videos produced by the U.S. Courts.

Law Day 2024

In 1961, Congress passed a joint resolution designating May 1 as the national day set aside to celebrate the rule of law. Law Day underscores how law and the legal process contribute to the freedoms that all Americans share.

To celebrate the 2024 theme, "Voices of Democracy," the U.S. Courts have created classroom activities related to Thurgood Marshall, who worked through the legal system to create educational opportunities for students to learn together. Visit the U.S. Courts Law Day webpage to access:

• A presentation about Thurgood Marshall and five strategies he used to open doors to equal opportunities for education;
• A profile of Thurgood Marshall;
• A podcast about Brown v. Board of Education;
• A student reenactment related to Brown v. Board of Education;
• A student reenactment related to Mendez v. Westminster.

The Supreme Court and My Hometown

"The Supreme Court and My Hometown" is an enrichment program for high school students, presented by the Supreme Court Historical Society.  Locally hosted by the Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of appeals, the U.S. District Court Eastern Missouri, the Judicial Learning Center in St. Louis, and the Federal Bar Association's St. Louis Chapter. 

The “Hometowns” program, a nationwide initiative, kicking-off in St. Louis in fall 2023, engages high school students, over the course of a semester, in an intensive study of the process and substantive issues of cases decided by the Supreme Court of the United States in a unique and personalized way. A distinguishing feature of this program is that students focus on a Supreme Court case that originated in their hometowns and local courts. The St. Louis program explores both the Constitutional questions as well as the procedural history of Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier (1988). The course of study will immerse the students in an analysis of the facts, trials, and appeals that led to the Supreme Court decisions.

The program encourages students to interact with their local government and communities based on what they have learned throughout their study. At the end of the program sessions, students will design an installation in the Judicial Learning Center at the Thomas F. Eagleton Courthouse as a capstone project that further solidifies their learning, enhances their creative skills, and engages with their community.

Law Day 2022

In 1961, Congress passed a joint resolution designating May 1 as the national day set aside to celebrate the rule of law.  Law Day underscores how law and the legal process contribute to the freedoms that all Americans share.

The Judicial Learning Center in the Thomas F. Eagleton U.S. Courthouse is proud to display Mary Beth Tinker’s original black armband from 1965, on loan from her personal collection. The armband is surrounded by an educational exhibit explaining the historical context of the time, the story of the students’ action, and the resulting landmark U.S. Supreme Court case.

To celebrate Law Day 2022, the U.S. Courts and the Judicial Learning Center have launched an online exhibit about the landmark case Tinker v. Des Moines. Hosted on the learning center's website, the online exhibit mirrors what can be seen in person at the courthouse.

• Visit in person
• Visit online

2020 - Nineteenth Amendment Centennial

 The year 2020 marked the 100th anniversary of the constitutional amendment securing the right to vote for women. The following resources have been collected for teachers, students, and the public.

The Suffrage Project by artist Mary Kline-Misol

This collection of 19 portraits highlights women who worked to secure the right to vote for all. The artist has generously allowed her work to be used here for the following educational activities. For information on the original works, see the websites of GalleryMKM and Artisan Gallery 218 in Des Moines, Iowa.

• Activity Suggestions:
• Download a set of 19 printable bookmarks below.
• Create your own bookmark using this template. Your bookmark might feature a famous suffragist from your home state, someone you admire as a modern-day hero, or yourself and what you can do to support voting rights for all.
• Research one of the featured suffragists and create a short presentation or video.
• Use the portraits to complete these lessons from the National Portrait Gallery or EDSITEment from NEH.

Mock Trial: The Trial of Susan B. Anthony

Susan B. Anthony was arrested for registering and voting in the 1872 presidential election.  Below you will find everything you need to recreate this famous trial with your class.  The script is not the exact trial transcipt; it is adapted to take about 20 minutes, plus 5-10 minutes for jury deliberation.  It is appropriate for grades 6 and up.  Exhibits for both sides are provided, as are discussion questions.  Virtual backgrounds are provided for online classes.

• Mock trial script and discussion questions
• Government's exhibits: Exhibit 1, Exhibit 2, Exhibit 3
• Defendant's exhibits: Exhibit A, Exhibit B, Exhibit C, Exhibit D, Exhibit E
• Virtual backgrounds for each role: Judge, Court Clerk, Plaintiff's Attorney, Defendant's Attorney, Plaintiff's Witnesses, Defendant's Witnesses, Defendant, Jurors, Jurors v2, Bailiff (optional)
• For advanced and AP students, see U.S. v. Susan B. Anthony: The Fight for Women's Suffrage from the Federal Judicial Center's "Famous Federal Trials" project.

Reading and Discussion Activities

• Grades K-5 - "The Voice that Won the Vote: How One Woman's Words Made History" by Elisa Boxer
• Grades 6-8 - "The Woman's Hour: Our Fight for the Right to Vote" adapted for young readers, by Elaine Weiss
• Adult and Grades 9-12 - "The Woman's Hour: The Great Fight to Win the Vote" by Elaine Weiss
• Book discussion questions for The Woman's Hour
• Suggested discussion questions for students
• Suggested activites for students
• The Great Unfinished Fight - Video conversation with author Elaine Weiss and Judge M. Margaret McKeown of the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals.  Learn the gripping story of how women won the right to vote and opened the door to future battles for civil rights.  

Video Activity: From Suffragist Sashes to Antiwar Armbands

In this video produced by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, an unlikely connection is made between two rights activists from different eras. Suffragist Virginia Minor and Vietnam war protester Mary Beth Tinker were separated by 100 years, but their passions came together in the legal history of St. Louis, where they worked through the courts to seek social change. Both lost their appeals in St. Louis but went on to the Supreme Court of the United States. 

• Read more about the video and find related activities from the U.S. Courts HERE and HERE
• Student Activity Sheet for the video
• Student WebQuest Activity to follow the video
• Learn more about Virginia Minor from the National Park Service.
• Reenact Virginia Minor's trial with this mock trial script from the National Park Service.
• Find teaching resources for the Tinker case from Mary Beth Tinker's website.

Additional Resources

• Women's Suffrage timeline from the American Bar Association
• Nineteenth Amendment teaching resources, from the Civics Renewal Network
• The 19th Amendment: A Woman's Right to Vote video and lesson plan, from Annenberg Classroom
• Women's Suffrage in the United States lesson module, from the Center for American Women and Politics, Rutgers University
• 19 for the 19th Challenge, from the Girl Scouts of San Diego and the American Bar Association
• Rightfully Hers online exhibits from the National Archives