Supreme Court Cases
American History, the Founding Principles, Civics
and Economics
Unit Overview:
Essential Standard Correlations:
ECONOMICS
CIVICS AND
GOVERNMENT
CE.E.2.1
CE.C&G.2.6,
CE.C&G.2.7, CE.C&G.
5.3
Unit 6
CMS Social Studies – Revised 2014-2015
FINANCIAL
LITERACY
This unit will analyze the events
surrounding major Supreme Court
decisions and their impact on the U.S.
Conceptual Lens:
Court Cases
Civics and Government
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Marbury v. Madison
McCulloch v. Maryland
Gibbons v. Ogden
Mapp v. Ohio
Gideon v. Wainwright
Miranda v. Arizona
Gregg v. Georgia
Roe v. Wade
Brown v. Board of Education
Plessy v. Ferguson
Engle v. Vitale
Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier
Tinker v. Des Moines
Texas v. Johnson
U.S. v. Nixon
Korematsu v. U.S.
Dred Scott v. Sanford
In Re Gault
State v Mann
Swann v CMS
Leandro v. NC
CMS Social Studies – Revised 2014-2015
CONCEPT/CONTENT WEB
Economics
Conceptual
Lens:
Court Cases
Personal Financial Literacy
n/a
Interstate Trade
Essential Understandings (Generalizations) and Guiding (Essential) Questions:
A nation’s political and legal systems are often comprised of adversarial groups which must find ways to resolve conflict and balance competing
interests.
a. What types of cases are handled in the various state and federal courts?
b. How have the decisions of the Supreme Court changed the principle of due process and impacted the rights of the accused?
c. What factors influence the way a judge rules in a case?
Legal systems can be structured to allow courts the authority to hear and decide cases.
a. What role does the North Carolina Supreme Court play in protecting the rights of individuals?
b. What is the purpose of a tiered court system?
Many different groups can influence government actions by using a variety of techniques.
a. Should violence ever be used to force change in government?
b. Why do most people voluntarily comply with the law?
c. Should civil disobedience be used to secure civil rights?
.
CMS Social Studies – Revised 2014-2015
Unit Vocabulary
Tier 1
Tier 2
Tier 3
Low level, every day basic words
More complex, interdisciplinary words
Content specific, complex words
Press
Property
busing
Censorship
Juvenile
desegregation
Marbury v. Madison- judicial review
o McCulloch v. Maryland- Supremacy Clause
o Gibbons v. Ogden- federalism
o Mapp v. Ohio- exclusionary rule
o Gideon v. Wainwright- legal representation
o Miranda v. Arizona- self-incrimination, Miranda Rights
o Gregg v. Georgia- capital punishment/death penalty
o Roe v. Wade- right to privacy
o Brown v. Board of Education- desegregation
o Plessy v. Ferguson- separate but equal
o Engle v. Vitale- Establishment Clause
o Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeiero Tinker v. Des Moines- symbolic speech
o Texas v. Johnson
o U.S. v. Nixon- impeachment
o Korematsu v. U.S.- internment camps
o Dred Scott v. Sanford
o In Re Gault
o State v Mann
o Swann v CMS
o Leandro v. NC- sound, basic education
CMS Social Studies – Revised 2014-2015
Key People
Current Supreme Court justices
By the end of this unit, students should be able to state…
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I can explain how the Supreme Court has expanded individual rights.
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I can explain how the Supreme Court has limited individual rights.
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I can describe how the powers of the U.S. and N.C. Constitutions have been expanded through amendments and court cases.
Performance Task and Scoring Guides/Rubric
Generalizations: Many different groups can influence government actions by using a variety of techniques.
Why: Allows students to demonstrate mastery of court case content and skill based instruction
How: Students will read case briefs with their group and design a presentation for the class on their assigned court case
CMS Social Studies – Revised 2014-2015
Supreme Court Case Research
Directions: You and your assigned partner (I will choose!!!) will be assigned a court case that you will be responsible to teach
to the class. Research the case and answer the following questions. After completing this assignment, transfer the information
to your _________________
Using case briefs (challenging text) and suggested sites, you will research your court case, the time period and political climate,
as well as the significance over time of the case.
Name of Case: ________________________
Date of Case: ________________
Facts of the Case: (you can bullet them to make it easier)
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Constitutional Issue: (What was the court case questioning?)
Outcome of Case/Lasting Impact: (Once the case was decided, what changed from before?)
CMS Social Studies – Revised 2014-2015
Supreme Court Case Presentation Rubric
You will create a _________ and deliver a presentation on an assigned Supreme Court case. Your _________ is due at the time of the presentation.
Date______________ – First Amendment Cases
Date______________ – Equality Cases
Date______________ – Rights of the Accused Cases
This project will be a FORMAL grade. To earn full credit on this assignment, you must
 Complete the Research Guide on the back of this sheet
 Create a poster with the following elements
Category
Facts of the
Case
Constitutional
Issue
Outcome of
Case
CMS Social Studies – Revised 2014-2015
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Points
The Story – What did the key actors do to bring about the lawsuit? (5)
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Key players – Who were the key actors in this lawsuit? (3)
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Year - When was this case heard by the Supreme Court? (2)
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Specific parts of Constitution Involved – What amendments and clauses
are relevant? (5)
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Question – What was the constitutional question being asked in this
case? (5)
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The vote – Was the court unanimous (9-0) or divided (5-4, etc) in their
decision? (2)
Score
Lasting Impact
Delivery
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Summary of the majority opinion – What was the decision of the
majority of the court? (8)
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Precedent – What rule did the Supreme Court create through this
case? (5)
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Relevance – How does this case apply to today? (5)
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Creativity – is your poster visually appealing? (2)
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Organization – Can someone understand your case without hearing
you explain it? (3)
Presentation- information is delivered to class clearly, concisely, and
between 2-4 minutes. (5)
Evidence of 3 pieces of textual evidence from the case brief (9)
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Evidence of 2 pieces of textual evidence from the case brief (6)
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Evidence of 1 pieces of textual evidence from the case brief (3)
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Textual
Evidence
Total
CMS Social Studies – Revised 2014-2015
Unit Resources
Resource Title
The Supreme Court
Street Law
Location
Summary
The Supreme Court
The official website of the U.S. Supreme court where students
can learn from case briefs and overviews of major court cases
and justices
Comprehensive site that gives students a place where they can
explore major court cases and their impact on the nation
This article and site from the NY Times explores the major
decisions of 2015 and provides a summary of the case with
interesting visuals of justices and their votes
Great interactive map that allows students to practice a
different type of literacy.
Article from Washington Post that uses interactive graphics to
demonstrate disagreements among justices
Website that has several quality videos on major court cases
that students can use as research or to present in class with
discussion
Website that has procedures and handouts for activities on the
Supreme Court
Website that has free primary document and video material
with lesson plans and bell ringers. Registration is required but
worth it
Street Law: Cases
NY Times: Supreme Court 2015
Supreme Court 2015
Infographic: Supreme Court
Decisions
Washington Post: Agreement
Among Supreme Court Justices
Annenburg Classroom
Infographic: Supreme Court Decisions
U.S. Courts
C-SPAN
CMS Social Studies – Revised 2014-2015
Agreement Among Justices
Annenburg Classroom; Supreme Court
U.S. Court : Supreme Court Activity
C-SPAN Classroom