Lesson: Introduction to First Amendment law (free speech opinion poll)
I. Goals: Studying First Amendment law (with a focus on free speech) helps
students:
a. Understand the basic protections the First Amendment provides to
individuals.
b. Understand the scope of those rights, with a particular focus on free
speech.
c. Realize that reasonable minds may often differ when considering how far
individual rights should extend.
II. Objectives
a. Knowledge Objectives – as a result of this class, students will be better
able to:
i. Understand that the First Amendment applies to both the federal
and state governments.
ii. Understand that the First Amendment does not absolutely protect
all speech; there is a difference between protected and unprotected
speech.
iii. Understand that there are still unresolved questions regarding the
scope of some First Amendment protections, and that even
“settled” questions about First Amendment law can be
controversial.
b. Skills Objectives – as a result of this class, students will be better able to:
i. Invoke the free speech protections of the First Amendment where
appropriate.
ii. Articulate their opinions and the reasons behind them.
iii. Engage in civil, reasoned debate with their peers.
c. Attitude Objectives – as a result of this class, students will feel:
i. That the First Amendment protects a wide variety of speech –
including a lot that the government or the majority of individuals
might find offensive.
ii. That the law is not absolute; there are shades of gray and spaces
for debate inherent in many legal questions (including in First
Amendment law).
iii. That their thoughts and opinions are worth voicing and hearing,
even though others may not agree with them.
III. Classroom Methods
a. Introduction/Attention Grabber (5 minutes)
i. Show students a video/share an article about a current, interesting
issue in the area of free speech.
ii. We used an article and video about a juvenile who created an
opinion poll on Facebook that asked whether President Obama
should be assassinated. (The possible answers were: “yes,” “no,”
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