Teachers and Students

The following lessons were developed specifically for use in virtual or distance learning settings, though they are also applicable when teaching in-person.  They are PDF files set up as a slide deck.  If you would prefer to receive any of the three lessons below in a PowerPoint file, please use the email link on the Contact tab in this section to request the file.
 

• No Vehicles in the Park - Grades 3-8 (PDF slide deck) Objectives: To learn about the court’s role as interpreter of laws and to understand the sometimes difficult duty of considering the letter of the law as well as the intent of the law.
• Resolving Conflicts - Grades K-5 (PDF slide deck) Objectives:  To learn the mediation process for resolving conflict and to learn the courts’ role of resolving conflicts peacefully.
• How Laws Affect Me - Grades 3-8 (PDF slide deck) Objectives: To learn why we have laws, where laws come from, and how laws correspond to daily activities in our lives.
• Choosing a Judge - Grades 7-12 (PDF slide deck) Objectives: To explain and evaluate the procedures used to select judges. To understand the governor’s constitutional power to appoint judges. To identify factors that are considered in judicial appointments.

The following lessons were developed as part of a curriculum-development workshop that was sponsored by the Minnesota Supreme Court Historical Society, with the assistance of the Minnesota Supreme Court, the Minnesota State Bar Association Civic Education Committee, and the Learning Law and Democracy Foundation. Lesson development was supported in part with funds from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund of the Clean Water, Land, and Legacy Amendment to the Minnesota Constitution, which Minnesotans passed into law via the 2008 general election ballot. 

• Understanding the Minnesota Judiciary: Legislators and Judges are Different - Grades 9-12 (PDF) Students will learn that judges and legislators have different roles to play in our system of government by analyzing a case study that describes the development and application of the Minnesota Move Over traffic law, which requires that drivers move over a lane when approaching a squad car involved in a traffic stop. Students will storyboard the steps taken as the law moves from the legislature through the three levels of the court system and then back to the legislature. Lesson includes a student reading and comparison chart.  

• Understanding the Minnesota Judiciary: Judicial Decision Making - Grades 9-12 (PDF) This lesson describes Minnesota’s different levels of courts differentiating them by structure, function, and decision making processes. The lesson includes a brief lecture/direct instruction component as well as a guided discussion activity. The direct instruction component is appropriate for any Civics course with a Judicial Branch unit focus. Due to its content, the lesson activity as written is most suitable for older high school students in Government or Civics classes.

• Understanding the Minnesota Judiciary: Elections and Impartiality - Grades 9-12 (PDF) Students will learn about judicial elections and impartiality through case studies on the exercise of First Amendment rights in judicial elections, limitations on corporate contributions, and procedures to protect impartiality. Strategies used include jigsaw of case studies and deliberation on proposed change to the Minnesota Constitution regarding judicial elections.

 

"Going to Court in Minnesota" Videos and Curriculum

“Going to Court in Minnesota” is a half-hour video designed to help immigrants, refugees, and others better understand the Minnesota court system and be prepared to go to court.. It is provided in four languages: English, Hmong, Somali, and Spanish. Each video is subtitled in English. The program features judges, court employees, and community advocates explaining various aspects of the judicial process and cultural differences.  

Going to Court curriculum, designed for use with the video by teachers in English Language Learner classes and produced in conjunction with the Minnesota Literacy Council, is available in PDF.