Social Studies & Civics Resources

Series of 3-5 minute videos discussing how to invoke rights in situations involving ICE officers. Available in 8 languages. Note: Videos use cartoons, not real actors, but still depict arrests and family separations in a dramatic way, so may not be appropriate for all groups.

#IamABE is a 3-lesson, standards-aligned curriculum, developed at three different levels, geared towards Adult Basic Education students. Designed to be easily implemented in any classroom, lessons and materials are available at the beginning, intermediate, and Advanced/GED levels. Lessons range from understanding First Amendment rights, to voicing one's political opinions on social media. This project-based curriculum builds towards launching a social media campaign to elevate student voices.

Collection of links to free citizenship test prep materials. (The author also has her own citizenship class textbooks for sale.) The "News" page tracks changes to the N-400 citizenship application form and USCIS administration of the test.

Classroom resources (lesson plans, handouts, videos) from the National Constitution Center for teaching about topics like the First Amendment, judicial review, executive power, etc. Published by a non-partisan nonprofit. Intended for K-12 students but could be adapted for more advanced ABE classes.

A history lesson about a movement that brought change in accessibility law. This lesson can be split into two days, with day one being vocabulary, scaffolding, reading, and comprehension. Day two could be vocabulary extension, grammar, text review, and application to present day. 

Activity where students refer to "The Constitution and Rights" section of the Judicial Learning Center's website, which explains the amendments in the Bill of Rights, and fill in a handout with key vocabulary. A good intro to constitutional rights; could be used as a vocabulary activity for high-level ELL or GED students, or a digital literacy activity. Note: This website also has an Educator Center with a variety of additional podcast and video activities, online learning modules, lesson plans, and other resources.

Collection of lesson plans from The Advocates for Human Rights for various ages of K-12 students, intended to teach about human rights generally and specifically (e.g., rights of migrants, racial discrimination, etc.). Some lessons may not be ideal for all ABE classes, since they were created for children; teachers should use best judgment.

Part of a series of lesson plans from the ACLU of Maine, intended for high school students, about constitutional rights. After a teacher explains the 4th amendment (searches and seizures), students form a "Supreme Court" and debate an actual past SCOTUS case. The case deals with searching students' belongings, but could be used to explain protection against unlawful search more generally (i.e., stopped by officers on the street).

Created by the Immigrant Legal Resource Center, the Family Preparedness Plan can be downloaded as a PDF from their website. Pages 16-19 of the PDF allow individuals to fill in phone numbers and information for emergency contacts, health conditions and medical help, community resources, important documents, etc. This could be done as a class activity, possibly in a computer lab so students can practice searching for information online.