Rights and Responsibilities Learning Lab Pre-visit Activity

Weighing the Evidence

About this Activity

Created by:National Archives Education Team
Historical Era:Across Eras: Civics & Government
Thinking Skill:Historical Comprehension
Bloom's Taxonomy:Applying
Grade Level:Upper Elementary

This activity prepares students for the Rights and Responsibilities learning lab at the National Archives Museum in Washington, DC. Students will explore primary source documents and decide whether each document is about American citizens' rights or responsibilities. Next, they will define the two terms and connect them to their own lives.

https://www.docsteach.org/activities/student/rights-and-responsibilities-sorting-challenge

Suggested Teaching Instructions

This activity can be used during a unit on citizenship or civil rights. It was designed to prepare students for the Rights and Responsibilities learning lab at the National Archives. Conduct this activity in class or as a homework assignment. Appropriate for grades 2-4.

Before students begin this activity, discuss the concepts of rights and responsibilities. Explain what their rights and responsibilities are as members of their home and school communities.

Divide the class into six groups. If they are participating in the Rights and Responsibilities learning lab, ask them to brainstorm possible rights and responsibilities related to a group of people or themselves.

Discuss how to begin looking at historical documents. Instruct them to look for key words, topic sentences, dates, and names as a strategy for understanding a document's content. Students can complete this activity in pairs, by themselves, or as a large group.

After completing the sorting activity, review the answers as a class. Remind students that some things, like voting or attending school, can be both rights and responsibilities. If a dispute arises, both students can be correct as long as they can explain their thinking.

Ask them to click the "When You're Done” button and answer the assessment questions to complete the activity.

Documents in this activity

To the extent possible under law, National Archives Education Team has waived all copyright and related or neighboring rights to "Rights and Responsibilities Learning Lab Pre-visit Activity".

Rights and Responsibilities Learning Lab Pre-visit Activity

Weighing the Evidence

About this Activity

Suggested Teaching Instructions

Documents in this activity

The National Archives