The Washington Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction has teamed with the Civic Learning Council and the National Constitution Center to provide this professional development opportunity on resources and tools for helping students engage in discussions of controversial issues.

Download the video file here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/jefvmk5tv6t0zoa/OSPI_CLC_CIVICS-BridgeTheDivide-FINAL.mp4?dl=0

This lesson plan can is geared for social studies, but can also be used in other content areas.

Trauma can result when a group of people are forced away from their schools, friends, businesses/work, neighborhoods/communities, then incarcerated without due process, under difficult conditions.
Students explore how historical and traumatic events such as Japanese American incarceration affect communities for the long term and how communities have worked to heal.

Note: This is not a ‘typical’ social studies lesson on Japanese American incarceration. It will involve working with material regarding trauma.
Activities 1 and 2 cover life skills and can be offered in the classroom at any time. (It may be ideal to teach this toward the beginning of the school year) Activity 3 is a foundational piece on what intergenerational trauma is. Activities 4, 5 and 6 go deeper into this topic.

This inquiry takes students through an analysis and evaluation of the Compelling Question “Is protest important in a democracy?” using the Vietnam War as a lens to approach the topic. To accomplish this, students will become more media literate through evaluating sources, biases, perspectives, and the goals of creating media. Throughout the inquiry, students will engage in activities designed to promote and develop media literacy while analzying the Compelling Question and learning about the historical protests of the Vietnam Era.This inquiry is expected to take two weeks (10 periods) to complete: one 45-minute class period to stage the question, introduce the inquiry, and to review media literacy; two 45-minute class periods for each of the three supporting questions; and then three 45-minute class periods for students to write and research their argumentative thesis. If students are as of yet less familiar with media literacy, the instructor should add at least another class period, or more, introducing them more fully to this.The full unit, along with all materials and resources, is available as a PDF attachment.

This activity teaches students how to break down different elements of a political cartoon. Students examine how different symbols and images can be combined to convey meaning. Then students analyze a 1902 political cartoon about U.S. expansion overseas and the acquisition of new territories in the Philippines in Cuba. This activity includes a Smartboard Notebook file.

Developed by the World Affairs Council of Seattle, this teaching and learning module provides a series of lessons that engage students in exploring the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. With 17 goals in total, this ambitious framework targets local and global issues ranging from ensuring quality education for all to mitigating climate change. This set of lessons has student facing materials translated into Spanish. .Desarrollado por el Consejo de Asuntos Mundiales de Seattle, este módulo didáctico proporciona una serie de lecciones que involucran a los estudiantes en la exploración de los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible de las Naciones Unidas. Con un total de 17 objetivos, este marco ambicioso apunta a problemas locales y globales que van desde garantizar una educación de calidad para todos hasta mitigar el cambio climático.

Students begin this unit by discussing their relationship with art, and the extent to which they believe art drives resistance movements. Students then participate in a Gallery Walk that highlights how members of the Puerto Rico community in the Young Lords used art to advance their ideas and preserve their culture. Students center the activism of Indigenous peoples in Puerto Rico by studying bomba music and murals. This helps them understand the roots of art—both visual and performance—as activism, and respond to the question: How can understanding Latinidad through art help us confront social and political injustices? Throughout this unit, students work in teams to create a poster series that inspires civic engagement and action on issues of social and political injustice.

Civics is the study of our national government, constitution, and the rights and responsibilities of citizenship. Topics in the Puyallup Civics course include democracy and other forms of government; legislative, executive, and judicial functions; the political process; and foreign and domestic policies. The course also includes a summary of Washington State History and local native sovereignty.

This model course reflects 2018 Washington state legislation regarding the High School Civics Course requirement - RCW 28A.230.094.

This course is by Puyallup School District - only submitted by Barbara Soots.

Developed by the World Affairs Council of Seattle, this teaching and learning module provides a series of lessons that engage students in exploring the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. With 17 goals in total, this ambitious framework targets local and global issues ranging from ensuring quality education for all to mitigating climate change.You will find the student-specific instructions provide appropriate translations to assist teachers and students of heritage languages. Overall, these lessons will support students in developing the knowledge, skills, and dispositions that will prepare them for college, career, and civic life. 

Developed by the World Affairs Council of Seattle, this teaching and learning module provides a series of lessons that engage students in exploring the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. With 17 goals in total, this ambitious framework targets local and global issues ranging from ensuring quality education for all to mitigating climate change. This set of lessons has student facing materials translated into Russian. Разработанный Советом по мировым делам Сиэтла, этот образовательный модуль предлагает серию уроков, которые позволят студентам исследовать Цели устойчивого развития Организации Объединенных Наций. Включающая в себя 17 целей,  эта амбициозная структура направлена на решение как локальных, так и глобальных проблем, начиная от обеспечения качественного образования для всех и заканчивая смягчением изменения климата. 

Developed by the World Affairs Council of Seattle, this teaching and learning module provides a series of lessons that engage students in exploring the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. With 17 goals in total, this ambitious framework targets local and global issues ranging from ensuring quality education for all to mitigating climate change. This set of lessons has student facing materials translated into Ukrainian. Цей навчальний модуль, розроблений Світовою Радою з міжнародних відносин у Сіетлі, надає серію уроків, які залучають студентів до вивчення Цілей сталого розвитку Організації Об'єднаних Націй (ООН). Ця амбітна програма, що має загалом 17 цілей, спрямована на вирішення місцевих і глобальних проблем, починаючи з забезпечення якісної освіти для всіх і закінчуючи зменшенням впливу зміни клімату.