Inquiry Companion: Unit 5
Unit 5 challenges students to trace the shifts in federal oversight as well as public opinion when it comes to civil liberties. Our Inquiry Companion Guide activities for Unit 5 facilitate student participation in inquiry-based civics learning for each strategy.
Students engage by considering the meaning of consent of the governed as well as explore primary source documents associated with landmark Fourth, Fifth and Sixth Amendment Supreme Court cases. They will explain the tension created by the intersection of Free Exercise Clause and the Establishment Clause by participating in a Paideia Seminar. Students then elaborate on their knowledge of the rights of the accused through a democratic experience simulation. Finally, students will evaluate their understanding of the Bill of Rights as they assess and defend each amendment.
Best practices for culturally responsive teaching weave through each activity.
Inquiry Guide Activity
- Unit 5, Lesson 27: What Are Bills of Rights, and What Kinds of Rights Does the U.S. Bill of Rights Protect?
- Unit 5, Lesson 31: How Do the Fourth and Fifth Amendments Protect Against Unreasonable Law Enforcement Procedures?
- Unit 5, Lesson 32: How Do the Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Amendments Protect Rights Within the Judicial System?
- Unit 5, Lesson 27: How Does the Constitution Protect the Right to Due Process of Law?
- Active learning
- Compromise
- Critical thinking
- Real-world application
- Relationship skills
- Self-management
- Identify the rights and protections guaranteed in the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth Amendments.
- Illustrate the rights and protections provided to the accused by creating and performing a puppet show.
- Should the accused have rights and protections?
- Rights of the Accused Overview
- Puppet Show Planner
- Construction paper, craft sticks, tape/glue, scissors
- We the People: The Citizen & the Constitution textbook
- bail the temporary release of a prisoner in exchange for security (usually money) given in exchange for the prisoner’s appearance at a later hearing.
- double jeopardy the putting of a person on trial for an offense for which they have previously been put on trial under a valid charge.
- due process of law a requirement, stated in the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments, that treatment by state and federal governments that involves life, liberty, or property of individuals be reasonable, fair, and follow known rules and procedures.
- eminent domain a right of a government to take private property for public use.
- grand jury a jury that examines accusations against persons charged with crime and, if the evidence warrants, makes formal charges on which the accused persons are later tried.
- jury a group of people legally selected and sworn to inquire into any matter of fact and to give their verdict according to the evidence.
- probable cause a reasonable ground for supposing that a charge is well-founded.
- self-incrimination the giving of testimony that will likely subject one to criminal prosecution.
- warrant a commission or document giving authority to do something.
The Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth Amendments create the major rights of those people accused of crimes. The Fourth Amendment protects against unreasonable searches and seizures, requiring warrants to have probable cause. The Fifth Amendment ensures due process through the judicial system, protects against self-incrimination and compelled confessions, and guarantees the right to a grand jury indictment for serious crimes. The Sixth Amendment outlines procedures for speedy and public trials, an impartial jury, and the assistance of legal counsel to ensure a fair and transparent legal process. Finally, the Eighth Amendment defines rules for punishment, including protections against cruel and unusual punishment, excessive fines, or bail. Together, these amendments create a comprehensive constitutional framework that seeks to uphold the principles of justice, individual rights, and the limitations of government power.
Additional resources for teacher background:
- Bill of Rights, Part 4: The Fourth Amendment (Video)
- The Fourth and Fifth Amendments: Introduction to the Bill of Rights, Part 3 (Video)
- Bill of Rights, Part 5: The Fifth Amendment (Video)
- Bill of Rights, Part 6: The Sixth Amendment (Video)
- The Sixth and Seventh Amendments (Video)
- Bill of Rights, Part 7: The Seventh Amendment (Video)
- Bill of Rights, Part 8: The Eighth Amendment (Video)
To enhance the experience, teachers are encouraged to provide optional supplies for puppets including construction paper, craft sticks, tape/glue, and scissors. A puppet-show stage could be created using a trifold display board.
Teachers should preview all student materials and resources prior to the lesson.
- Welcome students to social studies.
- Introduce the inquiry question: “Should the accused have rights and protections?”
- Allow students time to make a prediction about the inquiry question as well as offer their own supporting questions.
- Tell students that today they will participate in a democratic experience by investigating the amendments that provide protections and guarantee rights to those accused of crimes. The amendments to be examined include the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth.
- Using your routine strategy for establishing groups, divide students into collaborative groups of three or four, assigning each group to one of the amendments.
- Distribute both the Rights of the Accused Overview and the Puppet Show Planner. Discuss directions to ensure students understand expectations.
- In collaborative groups, students will investigate their assigned amendment and write a script for a puppet show that illustrates the rights protected or guaranteed.
- Teachers may need to provide an example scenario to help students launch their own ideas.
- Discuss lesson vocabulary, as needed.
- Provide time for students to brainstorm the puppets and scenes using the storyboard in step three of the Puppet Show Planner. Consider providing optional craft supplies.
- Students will present their puppet shows to the class. Consider setting “active listening audience” goals for students such as giving the presenters your undivided attention, deferring judgment, and providing positive feedback.
- Students should write down one to two facts about each amendment while observing other presentations.
- Thank the students for showcasing democratic experiences via their puppet shows.
- After all puppet shows have been presented, ask students which amendment they feel is most important for the rights of the accused and why.
Create riddles or a game show quiz using examples of the following case studies on the rights and protections of the accused:
Case options:
Fourth Amendment cases
Mapp v. Ohio
Katz v. United States
Terry v. Ohio
Carpenter v. United States
Fifth Amendment cases
Miranda v. Arizona
JDB v. North Carolina
