As we prepare to learn the results of the 2024 elections, educators are also thinking about how to support students in processing the election results. This Illinois Civics Hub recently published this blog sharing strategies and resources from Facing History and Oursleves, the News Literacy Project, and more, to navigate these conversations. You might want to start with this mini lesson for grades 6-12 from Facing History and Ourselves.

A new report by the News Literacy Project, News Literacy in America: A survey of teen information attitudes, habits and skills (2024) reports some surprising findings, and at times troubling, about how young people think about news literacy, view the news media and engage with information online.

The survey of more than 1,100 young people aged 13-18 highlights the urgent need for systemic news literacy instruction in America’s schools. An overwhelming majority of teens surveyed — 94 percent — want their schools to teach media literacy, although just 39 percent reported having had any such instruction during the 2023-24 school year.

READ THE REPORT

Since 2005, Street Law has honored extraordinary classroom teachers through its annual Classroom Champion award. The select few educators given this award represent the best of the best in civic and law-related education. This includes teachers like you who build civic agency and advance justice in their classroom every day.

Nominate yourself for this prestigious award, and help Street Law showcase how you use our materials to engage students in civic and law-related education. The winner (and one guest) will receive a FREE trip to Washington, DC, to attend the Street Law Awards Gala on April 30, 2025.

Please consider nominating yourself (or a colleague). Doing so provides a window into your classroom, allowing others to see the impact of Street Law materials and strategies in action.

The application deadline is January 17, 2025.

Nominate Yourself or a Colleague

With an election on the horizon, helping students evaluate facts and opinions—and deliberate deception—within the complex world of online news has never been more critical. Your role as teachers in shaping the next generation of informed (digital) citizens starts with discussing media and giving them the tools to think critically.

So how do we equip students to navigate the news on social media?

Common Sense Education has curated lessons in their Essential News & Media Literacy Skills for Students collection, which offers lessons on news and misinformation as well as social media and AI's impacts. Here are some of the key elements we can address, along with paired resources to do just that:

Differentiating between facts, opinions, and misleading information.

• Here is a helpful list of fact-checking tools for tweens and teens.
• If you're wondering what are some of the best news sources for kids, they got you covered!

Recognizing bias and sensationalism (aka clickbait) in news coverage.

• Check out the lesson "You Won't Believe This!," which introduces students to the concept of clickbait and managing our natural desire to figure out missing information.

Making informed decisions as future voters who can sift through the many hoaxes and fakes.

• The lesson "Hoaxes and Fakes" introduces students to key media literacy skills like corroboration, lateral reading, and how misinformation is spread!
• If your discussions about the election are getting heated, don't forget to consult the article "Learning from Conflict: Discussing Controversial Issues in the Classroom."
• The News Literacy Project knows that info can spread quickly online, so they created a dashboard to track misinformation, especially during this election season.



Join Retro Report for two evenings of professional learning in November. Register now for the webinar "Sovereignty and Self-Determination: Contemporary Indigenous Histories." Participants will meet on Tuesday, Nov. 12, and Wednesday, Nov. 13, from 6–7:30 p.m. CT. Attend both nights to receive a $75 stipend.

Objectives:

✅ Learn from an Indigenous history scholar.

✅ Preview engaging short films.

✅ Explore free ready-to-use lessons and new interactive resources.

Register



Just in time for Veteran's Day, Path to Honor from the Congressional Medal of Honor Society provides timely lesson plans for grades 6–12.

Path to Honor is a free interactive platform that allows students to explore these important concepts. Designed to be self-directed or teacher-led, this resource will help you:

• Nurture connections with your students
• Lead students in personal development and character self-exploration
• Supplement civics and U.S. history courses easily and effectively

Check out Path to Honor TODAY



• Saturday, November 16, 9:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m.
• Earn 3 PD hours; recommended for teachers of grades 6–12
• Free; advanced reservation required

Social Justice artist Tonika Lewis Johnson’s Folded Map Project visually connects residents who live at corresponding addresses on the North and South Sides of Chicago. Johnson investigates what urban segregation looks like and the impact it has on Chicago residents. From a photographic study to a multimedia exploration with video interviews, the Folded Map Project now also includes student curriculum.

In this interactive session, you will discover how to center your student’s experiences in Chicago to explore and understand the historical and contemporary forces that created and perpetuated racial segregation. The Folded Map Project curriculum provides a tool for discussing big systemic issues with your students in a way that is personal and inspires action.

Starting with Johnson’s 30-minute animated movie about her childhood experience with Chicago’s segregation, students are guided through a series of reflections and activities that culminate in an action plan to help disrupt the cycle of segregation in their own lives.

The session will include free copies of the Folded Map Project curriculum, related resources from the Chicago History Museum, and time in the exhibition titled Designing for Change: Chicago Protest Art of the 1960s–70s.

Register Here

November is Native American Heritage Month. The National Archives, Library of Congress, and the Smithsonian have curated resources and lesson plans to enhance your classroom practice. Keep this site bookmarked to find ways to integrate Native American History throughout the year to meet the new Illinois Native American History mandate.

For more resources to teach inclusive history per the Illinois mandates, check out our Inclusive History Toolkit.



Are your students ready for a history adventure? It's 1774 in Williamsburg, and tensions in the British-American Colonies are rising. In our newest game, Uncovering Loyalties with Colonial Williamsburg, students are invited to engage with young people around the city to see if independence is in the air. 

Lord Dunmore, the last British governor of Virginia, suspects rebellion is brewing in pre-revolutionary Williamsburg. Your students will practice engaging across multiple perspectives and applying critical-thinking skills as they talk to people from all walks of life and decide: Are the colonists loyal to Britain or are they turning against the crown?

Ready to take gameplay to the next level? Our Uncovering Loyalties Extension Pack is filled with activities, a mini-quiz, and ideas for applying your new skills. Dive deeper with your students as they explore how political, religious, and economic ideas and interests led to the American Revolutionary War.

Start Playing

The National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS) is partnering with the Library of Congress to develop digital resources for use in teacher candidate programs to demonstrate the effectiveness of teaching with primary sources and the College, Career, and Civic Life ("C3") Framework Inquiry Arc. The centerpiece of these resources will be five online methods publications.

Using Inquiry to Prepare Students for College, Career, and Civic Life was released in 2023, differentiated for elementary methods courses and 6-12 secondary methods courses. Due for release in the 2023-2024 school year is a three-volume K-12 methods text, Teaching with Primary Sources to Prepare Students for College, Career, and Civic Life, co-branded with the Library of Congress.

Click here for more information

Join the Illinois Civics Hub in 2025 for professional development to enhance you classroom practice. Presented in partnership with the North Cook Intermediate Center, each offering is aligned with the Illinois course mandates and standards. These workshops will be in person at

• Friday, January 17, 2025, 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM CST: Let's Talk! Creating Conditions for Civil Dialogue in Our Schools- Join colleagues from across all academic disciplines in an engaging and outcomes-based professional learning experience. Learn and practice strategies to foster productive civil dialogue in our classrooms and school communities, both face-to-face and online. This learning model will allow you to share and teach these strategies to your colleagues
• Tuesday, February 4, 2025, 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM CST: Engaging Student Voice for Inquiry (K-5)- Is responsiveness to student voice related to academic success? Research from the University of Chicago declares YES! In this interactive session, experience strategies to engage student voice to support inquiry as the primary mode of learning. Get connected to FREE resources to harness student voice in formative and summative assessment to enhance your practice.
• Thursday, April 10, 2025, 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM CST: Engaging Student Voice for Inquiry (6-12) - Is responsiveness to student voice related to academic success? Research from the University of Chicago declares YES! In this interactive session, experience strategies to engage student voice to support inquiry as the primary mode of learning. Get connected to FREE resources to harness student voice in formative and summative assessment to enhance your practice.
• Monday, May 5, 2025, 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM CST: Let's Talk! Creating Conditions for Civil Dialogue in Our Schools (6-12)- Join colleagues from across all academic disciplines in an engaging and outcomes-based professional learning experience. Learn and practice strategies to foster productive civil dialogue in our classrooms and school communities, both face-to-face and online. This learning model will allow you to share and teach these strategies to your colleagues.

The Illinois Civics Hub is also offering a virtual Administrator Academy on Teaching Inclusive American History - Implementing the New Illinois History Course Mandates (AA3931). Participants can take the academy for academy credit or PD hours. Three hours will be asynchronously in advance and three hours will occur in person on Thursday, April 17, 2025 from 8:30 AM - 3:30 PM.

In 2026, the United States will mark our Semi-quincentennial: the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Today’s young people are the leaders, innovators, and thinkers who will shape the next 250 years—and it’s important their voices are heard as we commemorate this historic milestone.

America’s Field Trip is a new contest that invites students across the country in grades 3–12 to be part of America’s 250th anniversary by sharing their perspectives on what America means to them—and earning the opportunity to participate in unforgettable field trip experiences at some of the nation’s most iconic historic and cultural landmarks.

Students may submit artwork, videos, or essays in response to the contest’s prompt: “What does America mean to you?”

Twenty-five first-place awardees from each grade level category will receive free travel and lodging for a 3-day, 2-night trip to a select historical or cultural site where they will experience one of the following:

• Tour of the Statue of Liberty in New York
• Tour and hike at Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming and Montana
• Weekend at Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado
• Unique tours at the National Archives or the Library of Congress in Washington, DC
• Special tours at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, National Museum of African American History and Culture, or the National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC
• Exploration of America’s iconic financial capital, New York City, with private tours of Federal Reserve Bank of New York Museum and Learning Center and The Bank of New York Mellon, the country’s oldest bank
• Trip to the National Parks of Boston with a special visit to the USS Constitution and a sunset cruise to Spectacle Island
• Candlelight tour at Fort Point at the base of the Golden Gate Bridge
• Costumed roleplaying experience at American Village in Alabama

Second-place awardees will receive a $500 cash award. The teacher associated with the top scoring student submissions in each grade level category will receive a $1,000 cash award.

Visit the America's Field trip Site for more details and complementary lesson plans.

How can you build engagement around civics and foster a proper understanding of American citizenship? Introduce your students to the MyImpact Challenge!

MyImpact Challenge is a civic engagement contest and curriculum provided by the Bill of Rights Institute to create a robust understanding of citizenship and incentivize students to become active in their communities now! To participate, students must have an active civic engagement or service-based project. Students will learn how their projects align with constitutional principles through the contest. To submit a project, students must:

• Write an essay detailing how their project furthers a BRI Civic Virtue or Founding Principle
• Complete a report describing how their project works
• Provide photographic or visual documentation of their project

Each MyImpact Challenge submission has the potential to win up to $500 in teacher prizes. Students can win up to $10,000 in student prizes.

The deadline to enter MyImpact Challenge is May 18, 2025, 11:59 PM. 

Share MyImpact Challenge



The Civics Hive is a NEW podcast that takes you on a journey through the intersection of civics and technology, preparing students for active civic engagement in the 21st century.

In each episode, hosts MJ Warden and Mary Ellen Daneels will explore essential questions with expert guests, including leading educators, tech innovators, and passionate advocates, all sharing their wisdom and experiences to empower you with the knowledge you need to make a difference.

This month's episode features features in-depth conversations with Dr. Leah Bueso, Assistant Professor of Urban Education at the University of Illinois Springfield, to discuss, "How can we provide civic equity for students with disabilites?" We explore the current challenges that students with disabilities face in terms of civic equity and how educators and policymakers can work together to create environments that prioritize the civic engagement of students with disabilities. Dr. Bueso also shares with us wisdom in building community engagement that improves civic equity for students with disabilities.

If you missed our past episodes, it's not too late to catch up on our thought-provoking discussions with:

• Kei Kawashima-Ginsberg from the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE) at the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life at Tufts University addresses the question, "How can we engage youth in a meaningful way in the 2024 election?"
• Award-winning author and EdTech Teacher Shawn McCusker who discusses the essential question, "Is AI good for Democracy?"
• Dr. Joseph Kahne from the Civic Engagement Research Group who discusses the question, "What does it mean to educate for a diverse democracy?"
• Joel Breakstone from the Digital Inquiry Group (formerly Stanford History Education Group or SHEG) who address the essential question, "How can students practice civic online reasoning?"

The News Literacy Project (NLP) recently debuted their Misinformation Dashboard: Election 2024. This free online resource collects examples of viral rumors, doctored images, conspiracy theories and AI-generated fakes. Election misinformation poses an existential threat to democracy, and individual fact-checks are not adequate to counter this danger.

The dashboard goes above and beyond by doing the following:

• Highlighting of-the-moment data
• Analyzing common trends and topics within a larger context
• Featuring dynamic visualizations that quickly illuminate information
• Providing educators with real-time examples for the classroom and enhancing the understanding of journalists and researchers diving into election misinformation

Everything on the dashboard is interactive. Click on the two options at the top of the dashboard to explore election misinformation by theme or type. You’ll find examples of fabricated or manipulated content, false or misleading, context and many forms of AI-generated deceptions. NLP is tracking the trends regarding election integrity, party platforms, and the candidates themselves.

Check out the dashboard!

The Constitutional Democracy Project’s Professional Development Conference for Teachers in Civics, Law, and Government is a one-of-a-kind working conference that brings together teachers, professors, lawyers, judges, civic leaders, cultural institution scholars, civic education specialists, and others to highlight best practices for teaching young people awareness of the law, the legal system, and their rights and responsibilities as engaged citizens.  

This year’s Annual Conference for Teachers in Civics, Law, and Government will focus on the theme of “Navigating Controversy: Empowering Educators in Challenging Times.” The keynote speaker for this event is Dr. Diana Hess, former dean of the University of Wisconsin's School of Education and the leader of The Discussion Project, which has, since its founding in 2017, provided intensive professional development on how to create more engaging and inclusive classroom discussions.

Visit the CDP website for more information.

The Illinois Civics Hub has partnered with the Lou Frey Institute at the University of Central Florida to provide educators the opportunity to earn microcredentials in the proven practices of civic education embedded in the middle and high school civics course requirements in Illinois. Courses include:

• Current and Controversial Issue Discussions—Learn from academic experts Dr. Diana Hess & Dr. Paula McAvoy as you explore the purpose, role, and function of discussion strategies as pedagogical tools to equip young people to be engaged citizens. This course will enhance the practice of educators with strategies and resources to create a classroom climate in which there are equitable opportunities for ALL students to engage in dialogue about essential questions across the curriculum.

• Simulations of Democratic Processes—Learn from academic experts Dr. Walter Parker & Dr. Jane Lo as you explore how democratic processes and procedures occur as part of the regular functioning of government, in each of the three branches of government, and at each level of government. This course will guide you through the purpose, planning, and implementation of three simulations: town hall meetings, legislative hearings, and moot courts.

• Informed Action through Service Learning—Learn from academic experts Dr. Joseph Kahne and Jessica Marshall as you explore the purpose, role, and function of informed action through service learning as a pedagogical tool to equip young people with the knowledge, skills, and dispositions to be active members of their community. In this course, you will interact with strategies and tools you can use in your classroom to support student-centered informed action through service learning.

• NEW: Constitutional Democracy as Content and Practice—Learn from academic experts Dr. Kei Kawashima-Ginsberg, Dr. Shawn P. Healy, and Dr. Bonnie Laughlin Schultz as you explore how the Educating for American Democracy Roadmap can help teach constitutional democracy as both content and practice across disciplines K-12.

Registration information is available on the Guardians of Democracy homepage. Those who successfully complete the 5-week online course will earn a Bronze Certified Guardian of Democracy Educator badge via Badgr and the University of Central Florida Center for Distributive Learning.

Participants can earn 15 PD hours through the DuPage Regional Office of Education. Please note that due to some changes in our funding, the Democracy School Network will no longer be offering a stipend to participants.

There are three strands of courses for each proven practice of civics education. Graduate credit is available through the University of St. Francis for completing all three courses. For more information, please visit the Guardians of Democracy homepage.