C-SPAN Classroom Deliberations is a good resource for teachers of U.S. history or civics. On the site you will find 34 lesson plans centered around issues currently debated in Congress and in U.S. political discourse in general. A few of the latest lesson plans deal with Electoral College reform, third party candidate participation in Presidential debates, and granting asylum to refugees from countries that sponsor terrorism.

Teachers visiting C-SPAN Classroom Deliberations can select any of the 34 lessons. Each lesson includes videos and background information sheets to share with students. Teachers will also find vocabulary sheets and note-taking templates for students to use during each lesson. The lessons are designed to facilitate civil discussion between students.

In addition to the 34 featured lesson plans, C-SPAN Classroom Deliberations offers templates for deliberation activities that can be used for almost any topic of political conversations in your classroom.

Applications for Education
Middle school and high school students often say that they want to debate a topic in a social studies classroom, but they sometimes think that just means yelling or making wild statements. C-SPAN Classroom Deliberations can help students learn about current issues while also learning the value of civil debate and discussion.