Judicial Branch, Day 4 - Class Recap

Today in class, I showed students my ballot (not filled out) for the upcoming May primary! Here's my mom, Portland City Commissioner Amanda Fritz, at a parade in 2011.

Hi everyone,

Welcome back from your weekend! I enjoyed starting the mock trials today in class. Here's what happened today:

Learning Targets Addressed:

Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different branches of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana. Selected for today because of the teen spirit involved in Morse v. Frederick, the recent PRIDE assembly, and because we have made it to May together! Lyrics here.

AGENDA 5/2/16:
Ballot/News Brief – Faiza
Mock Trial Prep
Present Cases
The National Judiciary

Homework: Read the blog. Look at your grade and improve it, if possible! Next news brief: Nyree.

News Brief: Faiza had the news brief today and talked about this story: CNN.com - Was Hillary Clinton wrong on the marijuana research laws? So, this was a little different from what we talked about in class - Clinton said that marijuana should be removed from being a schedule 1 drug, so more research could be done. The video has more about it.

I also opened my ballot in front of the class and talked about the process for voting in Oregon. So cool to be able to vote for my own mom!

If you are 17 and not already registered to vote, here's the online enrollment form:

Oregon Secretary of State: Voter Registration

Yay for participating in our democracy! :-)

Mock Trial Prep: I gave the class about 20-25 minutes to finish preparing to present the four cases in the mock trial. Again, I know this was somewhat complicated, but I think we got the hang of it eventually!

Present Cases: During class, we were only able to get to two cases. The first was Morse v. Frederick, involving the humorous (but serious Constitutional issue) of a student holding a "Bong Hits 4 Jesus" sign outside of a school in Alaska as an Olympic torch relay went by. In class, the judges found 4-1 for Frederick (the student) in being able to do this as protected free speech. In the actual case, the judges ruled for Morse. Here is the overview:

Oyez.org - Morse v. Frederick

Next, we did a mock trial for the Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District No. 1 case. This was looking at issues of racial diversity in schools, as well as students being able to attend their own neighborhood school. In class, the judges split 3-2 on this, with the parents winning the case against more diverse schools. Here's the actual case overview:

Oyez.org - Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District No. 1

That was it for the day! Next class, we will do the last two trials and then move on with the rest of the judicial branch unit. Remember to hang on to all of your mock trial materials and notes - you will be turning them in! See you Wednesday!

Judicial Branch, Day 3 - Class Recap

Looking down the National Mall, from the top of the Washington Monument. The United States Supreme Court building is behind and to the left of the Capitol Building. Photo taken in 2010.

Dear class,

We finished looking at the Supreme Court landmark cases today, then I passed out Mock Trial prep materials. Here's what happened today in class:

Learning Targets Addressed:

Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different levels of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "Ordinary People" by John Legend. Selected for today because of the Supreme Court cases we looked at, which involved ordinary people making a difference in our country. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 4/27/16:
News Brief – Angel
Finish Landmark Cases
Mock Trial Prep
Work Time

Homework: Read the blog. Look at your grade and improve it, if possible! Enjoy the long weekend! Next news brief: Faiza.

News Brief: Angel had the news brief today, but it slipped his mind, so I showed the results from the presidential primaries last night in the Northeast of the United States:

NYTimes.com - Primary Election Results 2016

I tried to give my analysis of what happened, which basically was that Mr. Trump had a dominant night and looks somewhat likely to win the Republican nomination for president, while Secretary Clinton solidified her lead and will almost certainly be the Democratic Party nominee. Very interesting stuff!

Faiza was assigned to do the next news brief.

Landmark Case Reading: We finished going through these today:

Google Drive: Landmark Supreme Court Decisions Handout

The assignment that went along with the reading is here:

Google Drive: Landmark SCOTUS Cases Assignment Sheet

Please make sure you have your completed notes for these very important cases! It was interesting to get to talk about stuff like Japanese internment camps in the United States during World War II!

Mock Trial Prep: The rest of the class was devoted to preparing for mock trials, which we will do next class. This was a very complicated process to explain, but students in class got it, I think! If you missed class, you are going to need to come see me in person to get your case forms and the assignment sheet.

Be prepared to finish these at the start of next class, and then do the four mock trials! Have a great weekend! :-)

Judicial Branch, Day 2 - Class Recap

Alcatraz Island, San Francisco Bay, which was a prison for federal criminals. Photo taken in 2011.

Dear class,

Today was another deep dive into various different Supreme Court cases, to see how the Judicial Branch of the U.S. Government impacts our day to day lives. Here's what happened today in class:

Learning Targets Addressed:

Knowledge LT 2: I can demonstrate an understanding of the role of governments in current issues.
Knowledge LT 5: I can demonstrate an understanding of the principles, structures, and functions of different branches of U.S. government.

Soundtrack: "Princess of China" by Coldplay and Rihanna. Selected for today because a monarchy is an example of a form of government. Lyrics here.

AGENDA 4/25/16:
News Brief – D'Shawn
SCOTUS Overview
Cases Teens Should Know
Landmark Cases

Homework: Read the blog. Look at your grade and improve it, if possible! Next news brief: Angel.

News Brief: D'Shawn had the news brief today and selected an article about this story to talk about: NYTimes.com - U.S. Cyberattacks Target ISIS in a New Line of Combat. Since we just talked about the Executive Branch, this related because President Obama has been wanting to attack ISIS using cyber warfare, instead of troops on the ground in Syria.

We also checked in about the weekend and what was going on outside of class.

Angel volunteered to do the next news brief.

SCOTUS Overview: Before moving on to the reading and discussion, we learned a little more about the Supreme Court, as I read through a few of the interesting points on this document:

Google Drive: Supreme Court Overview Information

Then, I talked a little bit about how the current Supreme Court only has 8 members, due to Justice Scalia recently passing away. President Obama has nominated Merrick Garland to be a replacement judge, but it is unlikely that Republicans are going to let him even get a hearing in the Senate, as many want the next president to decide who the nominee should be. We watched the video on this website for a little biography about Merrick Garland, so students know a bit more about who he is:

WhiteHouse.gov - President Obama's Supreme Court Nomination

Seeing as this has been in the news, I wanted students to be educated!

Cases Teens Should Know: This was the reading was from last class - we finished and then went over the answers:

NYTimes Upfront - 10 Supreme Court Cases Every Teen Should Know

The assignment was to, on a separate sheet of paper, read and write the answers to the following questions for a minimum of five out of the ten cases.

1) What was the issue?
2) Describe the judge’s decision and explain their reasons why.
3) Do you agree or disagree with the judge’s decision? Explain your reasons why or why not.

I had a good time discussing these cases with everyone! Thanks for the interest and questions. Here are a few of the articles I used in class to discuss the cases:

BusinessInsider.com - These Are The 19 States That Still Let Public Schools Hit Kids

JonathanTurley.org - Fast Times At Westview High: Student Journalists Fight for Right to Cover Story on Sex at School

Salon.com - Sex ed under the bleachers

Landmark Case Reading: This was definitely a reading and work heavy day. That's kind of what the Supreme Court is all about, though - lots of legal papers and decisions to look at, in order to understand the law. Here was the reading:

Google Drive: Landmark Supreme Court Decisions Handout

The assignment that went along with the reading is here:

Google Drive: Landmark SCOTUS Cases Assignment Sheet

That was it for the day! Thank you so much for your focus and hard work! Next class, we will finish up the Supreme Court landmark cases, then prep a little for some fun mock trials. :-)