Make
Friends and Influence Justices: A
Supreme Court Exercise and Webquest
By
J. Goring
John
F. Kennedy High School
Bronx,
NY
A recreation of yesterday evening:
(ring…ring…)
Yes?
Hello?
Help!
I got your name from the Kennedy directory, and I know you’re supposed
to be the best attorney in the 11th grade. My best friend just got arrested after a police officer at our
school snatched his bag out of his hands and found whiskey in it. Yes, whiskey is not allowed in school, and
yes, my friend probably has a problem, but this situation is something both of
us think is unconstitutional. We want
to fight this all the way to the Supreme Court, but we’re not sure how great an
argument we’ll make. We need your
knowledge and expertise to assist us.
Will you take the case?
Don’t
worry. I’m on it!
The
Assignment:
Prepare an argument for the Supreme Court on the right of this student
to make fun of his school principal via the Internet. This argument should be five minutes in length, must refer to
appropriate Constitutional amendments and legal precedent as seen in previous
Supreme Court cases (use at least three).
The argument must be supplemented by a Powerpoint presentation
consisting of no fewer than four slides.
Potential
Resources:
TIPS website: www.maxwell.syr.edu/plegal/tips.html
American Bar Association website: www.abanet.org
Your government textbook
Evaluation:
·
Speech referencing amendments and legal
precedent: 75%
·
Powerpoint Presentation: 25%