Law Related Education Newsletter

Welcome to the 12th edition of LRE News! We hope this newsletter has become a useful tool to you. It was created to provide information on LRE news, programs and events for those involved with LRE programs. Suggestions and feedback are always welcome.

LRE is a “one-stop” shop for teachers, SROs, pre-service teachers and attorneys. Professional development trainings are provided throughout the year on programs such as:

2012 Law Day Theme Announced: No Courts, No Justice, No Freedom
The 2012 Law Day theme has been selected. Please be sure to visit www.lawday.org in the coming months for more details on the theme, as well as downloadable artwork, lesson plans, resources, the Dialogue and more.

The 2012 Law Day theme "No Courts, No Justice, No Freedom" provides the opportunity to highlight the role of the nation’s courts in our constitutional democracy and to foster public understanding about the judiciary.

Check back often in the coming weeks for the 2012 Law Day Planning Guide and Resource Catalog!

** NEW ** Coloring Sheets for Elementary Students
Need a creative way to introduce law to elementary students? LRE has several coloring sheets to be used independently or all together. They are great to use when discussing law as a career option as well. Click here to check them out!

** NEW ** Equal Justice: The Law, Lawyers and Civil Rights
Lesson Plans (and Video)
Equal Justice: The Law, Lawyers and Civil Rights lesson plans were created for elementary, middle and high school classroom settings. Each lesson plan packet teaches students the importance of the civil rights movement in South Carolina and the United States. In addition to FREE online access to the videos and lesson plans, there is a resource guide with much more information to reinforce students’ knowledge. Even better, the lesson plans include the standards! Click here for each level of the lesson plans.

** NEW ** Middle School Mock Trial Day Camp
The first Middle School Mock Trial Day Camp was held Saturday, August 27. The camp included students, teachers and attorney coaches throughout the state learning Mock Trial strategies from volunteer attorney and teacher coaches. The event was a huge success thanks to all involved.

** NEW ** Mock Trial Case Available in a Variety of E-Formats
The days of only having a print copy of the Middle School or High School Mock Trial case are over. The cases are now available in the following formats: pdf, Kindle, Nook, iPad, Google Books, and Blackberry OS & Playbook. This should increase case accessibility for students, teachers and attorney coaches alike. (Please note that electronic formats may not be used in the actual competition rounds. Hard copies of the case will be provided in each courtroom for purposes of cross examination, impeachment, exhibits, etc.)

The 2012 High School Mock Trial case will be released Friday, October 28, in the same formats.

Project Citizen National Showcase Results
Motorcycle safety, the health and environmental risks of bottled water, ethanol as a fuel source, and online harassment were among the topics tackled by classes participating in the 2011 Project Citizen National Showcase. Cosponsored by the Center for Civic Education and the National Conference of State Legislatures, the showcase featured portfolios created by students addressing public policy issues in their schools and local communities. State legislators attending NCSL's Legislative Summit evaluated the portfolios, and the achievement levels were recently announced.

Congratulations to Lonnie B. Nelson ACE program’s fifth grade class. These students received a Superior Level ranking by the Center for Civic Education and the National Conference for State Legislatures. “Superior” is the highest level of ranking that can be obtained in the national competition. The students proposed "Bullying is Cruel, Don’t Do It In School.” This was the second time this school represented South Carolina at the national showcase.

Project Citizen encourages students to research a public policy they believe should be revised or created. By doing so, students learn what it means to be effective citizens and are inspired to make changes in their communities. Project Citizen can be taught in upper elementary through 12th grade as well as with community groups and after school programs. Free trainings on Project Citizen are provided for teachers throughout the year. Contact lre@scbar.org for additional information and training dates.

2011-12 Competition Dates
We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution

The spotlight has stopped on…

Marc Turner
Social Studies Teacher
Blythewood High School
Richland School District Two, Columbia, SC

Marc Turner is a native of Portland, Oregon. He went to Boston University where he earned a Bachelor’s degree. He also has an MAT in History from the University of South Carolina.

Turner resides in Richland County and teaches Honors Global Studies and Honors U.S. History at Blythewood High School. He also serves as the Clinical Adjunct USC Social Studies professor. He has taught in Richland School District Two for 17 years, including stops at Spring Valley and Ridge View High Schools prior to his current posting. During his first year of teaching, he sponsored the High School Mock Trial program at Spring Valley High School and has been hooked ever since.

Turner believes that Mock Trial and other programs like We the People and Project Citizen add another dimension to student understanding of the legal system and government. What he likes most about Mock Trial is the perfect blend of problem solving, debate skills and knowledge of legal concepts. Further, this activity attracts a diverse cross-section of the student body. October 31 represents the beginning of one of the best periods of the academic year—when a new case can be read, dissected and argued.

This past school year marks the second competitive season for Turner’s U.S. History class competing in the We the People: The Citizen and the Constitution program. Turner notes that the curriculum and preparation for the hearings is an intellectually rigorous experience for his students. Spending more time looking at the Constitution has been important, particularly in helping his students establish substantive connections between American political and legal institutions and major historical events.

The Law Related Education Division is extremely appreciative of Turner’s efforts to increase civic education and action. He truly has made a positive impact on the citizens of Richland County and South Carolina as a whole. As such he was recently named the 2011 South Carolina Bar Law Related Education High School Teacher of the Year.

Description: Looking for a curriculum that teaches communication and problem solving skills? Community Works is a program targeting middle and high school students that can be implemented in the classroom, after school or in most any other setting. It provides students with a practical understanding of crime and crime prevention that is useful in their everyday lives. It can function as a stand-alone program, or it can be incorporated into a classroom curriculum. The curriculum includes 31 highly interactive session, involves community resource people and includes a service learning/action project component, if desired. This curriculum not only teaches teens to be resources for each other, but to interact positively with community members.

Description: Elementary Mock Trial is an excellent way to begin to introduce the concepts of justice and the judiciary through fairy tale trials. We all know the stories of Goldilocks, Paul Bunyan, The Three Little Pigs and others. Through materials from the American Bar Association supplied to elementary teachers by the South Carolina Bar LRE Division, upper elementary students can learn about the courts in an interactive fashion. For the majority of the trials, there are even puppets available for checkout from the S.C. Bar LRE Division.

Description: Foundations of Democracy is a character education curriculum created by the Center for Civic Education. The curriculum is available for grades K-12 and addresses authority, responsibility, privacy and justice. The Center for Civic Education's mission is "to promote an enlightened and responsible citizenry, committed to democratic principles and actively engaged in the practice of democracy in the United States and other countries." Students in South Carolina can benefit from this mission by becoming enlightened and active, responsible citizens while impacting the state through the implementation of this program. Through participation in this program, students will increase their basic skills of listening, speaking, writing, reading, problem analysis and awareness of the Constitution and how it is applicable to their daily lives.

Description: The High School Mock Trial Program is a hands-on exercise in learning about due process. It is most often conducted as an extracurricular activity but can also be incorporated into law, forensics or public speaking classes.

What’s New:Don’t let this year slip by without registering for High School Mock Trial. Complete and return the Mock Trial registration form for each team registering. With each registration, enclose a check for the nonrefundable $100 registration fee. (Checks should be made payable to S.C. Bar Law Related Education (LRE) Division.) All fees go toward competition expenses. (Don’t let payment prevent your team from registering on time. You may fax the application with a copy of the purchase order request showing payment is coming at a later date. The most important thing is to registering the team on time.) There is a limit of two teams registered per high school. All registrations without penalty fees are to be received by October 7, 2011.
Click here to register.

Last year, we introduced two new competition components for artists and journalists. Information about these elements of the competition are included in the application to compete.
Click here for more information.

“On a personal note, Mock Trial has been the greatest joy of my career, because it teaches young people leadership skills they cannot learn in the classroom, to love the law and to enjoy the spirit of competition and camaraderie that comes with it, win or lose.” —Denise Jackson, Strom Thurmond High School

Do your students have questions? Do they need answers? Don’t let the students go through life without knowing about this fabulous online program for kids. LawForKids.org is a Web site dedicated to teaching children about the law. It was created with the specific goal of educating South Carolina’s youth, parents, communities and schools about the law and to encourage lawful behavior. The site includes an interactive forum through which students may anonymously ask questions about the law and receive correct, factual information from volunteer attorneys.

Access to the Web site is free and adapted for South Carolina youth. There are quizzes, interactive games, cartoons, comics, law documents, links to other law related education Web sites and a searchable database on South Carolina law and how it affects young people. Students will find the Web site helpful for research projects and homework assignments, but can also use the site to play games and hear first-hand from their peers about law related incidents and how to best handle various situations.

To access the Web site, visit www.LawForKids.org. Click “other states” in the top right corner of the home page, and then select South Carolina on the U.S. map. Users will then have the option of making the South Carolina site their permanent home page.

Description: The Middle School Mock Trial Program is a hands-on exercise in learning about due process. It is a team activity program that is most often conducted as an extracurricular activity, but can also be incorporated into law, forensics or public speaking classes.

What’s New:If you thought that Mock Trial was only for high school, then you thought wrong! The current 2011 case is available in the following formats: pdf, Kindle, Nook, iPad, Google Books, and Blackberry OS & Playbook. This should increase case accessibility for students, teachers and attorney coaches alike. (Please note that electronic formats may not be used in the actual competition rounds. Hard copies of the case will be provided in each courtroom for purposes of cross examination, impeachment, exhibits, etc.)

Regional competitions are scheduled for Saturday, November 5, 2011, in Conway, Lexington and Greenville. The culminating state competition is scheduled in Lexington on December 9 and 10, 2011.

Description: We the People: Project Citizen is a curricular program for elementary, middle and high school students as well as youth groups that promotes competent and responsible participation in local and state government. The program helps young people learn how to monitor and influence public policy (a school rule or state law). In the process, they develop support for democratic values and principles, tolerance and feelings of political efficacy.

What’s New: Lonnie B. Nelson’s ACE Students in Columbia had the honor of representing South Carolina at the National Conference of State Legislatures' Project Citizen annual showcase event in August. The school’s project, "Bullying is Cruel, Don’t Do It In School,” addressed the importance of putting an end to school bullying. The national results are finally in, and we are proud to announce that Lonnie B. Nelson scored in the "Superior" Level, which is the highest level of ranking! This is a wonderful ranking, and we are very proud of the students and their teachers for representing South Carolina so beautifully.

The 2012 showcase of all complete Project Citizen entries is scheduled for April 20, 2012. In-school presentation dates can be scheduled any time during the school year leading up to the state showcase, which involves portfolio entries only (not students). Judging of in-school presentations can be arranged with Cynthia H. Cothran at (803) 252-5139 or ccothran@scbar.org.

Description: Street Law is a course in practical law. It was designed to provide students with knowledge of what to do when confronted with a legal problem. Information is presented through student-centered activities that enable teens to develop as effective citizens. Most often, Street Law, is taught as a one-semester social studies elective or in place of a government course. The curriculum can also be used by teachers of a practical business law class. The curriculum is correlated to the state standards and is on the SC textbook adopted list. The curriculum includes a teacher's manual as well as test banks.

Description: We the People is an in-depth study of American history with an emphasis on understanding the formation of the Constitution and its interpretation throughout history. Students compete in a mock congressional hearing and discuss critical issues regarding American government, the founding fathers and current events based on a constitutional perspective.

What’s New:The 2011-12 school year has started, and with it the beginning of a new We the People season! The 2012 High School State Competition is scheduled for Thursday, January 5, 2012, in Columbia. For registration information, contact Donald Lanier at dlanier@scbar.org. For teachers interested in the program, but not yet ready to compete, a Teacher Scholar program is available that allows teachers to attend the competition and observe students in action as they use knowledge obtained from the curriculum to answer questions throughout a mock congressional hearing. Competition Questions for 2011-12 are expected to be released on September 19, 2011.

“Great workshop! I can’t wait to use this program in my classroom.” —Teacher Participant

“Thanks for putting together such a great competition … we enjoyed ourselves very much.” —JJ Iagulli, Carolina Forest High School

Description: Do you know what one of the fastest growing youth diversion programs in the nation is? The answer is Youth Court. There are 35 separate youth courts serving many different communities and schools throughout South Carolina. In communities, Youth Court is a juvenile diversion option intended to keep young people with no criminal record out of the juvenile justice system, allowing them a second chance to maintain their clean juvenile records. In schools, Youth Court can handle actual criminal offenses in which the school resource officer is involved, or it can be inserted into the discipline code to handle violations of school rules. Youth Court functions like a traditional court with all the key roles in place. The difference is that all of those roles are played by youth.

What’s New:With the reinvigoration of the S.C. Youth Court Association, the S.C. Bar now serves as a clearinghouse for information and a resource for reaching the S.C. Youth Court Association. For a list of Youth Court publications held by the S.C. Bar, please e-mail Donald Lanier at dlanier@scbar.org.