How Many Of Us Have Ever Heard That Constitution Day Is A Mandatory Holiday That Comes With A Federal Felony For Not Observing This Holiday?

Commemorating Constitution Day and Citizenship Day

Source = https://www2.ed.gov/policy/fund/guid/constitutionday.html

September 17 is Constitution Day and Citizenship Day (Constitution Day). This day commemorates the September 17, 1787 signing of the United States Constitution.

Each educational institution that receives Federal funds for a fiscal year is required to hold an educational program about the U.S. Constitution for its students on September 17 (if it falls on a weekend; it should be held in the previous or next week).

This posting is intended to remind affected educational institutions of this responsibility and to provide examples of resources for them to consider using in developing their program. We are also offering examples of resources for students and learners of all ages.

To assist in planning Constitution Day programs, we are pleased to provide links to Web sites that contain materials that can be publicly accessed for general use or for use as teaching materials in the classroom. These links and materials are provided by the three branches of government in an exciting step forward of collaboration in sharing these resources.

The U.S. Department of Education does not direct or control particular curricula or lesson plans. The lists of resources below contain links to learning resources created and maintained by other public and private organizations, and the grade levels and target audiences cited are merely examples. This information is provided for your convenience and as examples of resources for Constitution Day that you might find helpful.

Constitution Day Resources

• General Constitution Day resources [National Archives]
•  Constitution Day remarks by Debra Steidel Wall, Acting Archivist of the United States [National Archives]
•  NEH Chair Constitution Day Remarks [National Endowment for the Humanities]
•  Remarks by Dr. Anthea Hartig, Elizabeth MacMillan Director of the Smithsonian National Museum of American History [Smithsonian National Museum of American History]
• Civic Engagement [Institute of Museum and Library Services]

PK-5 Teachers

• Reckoning Exhibit: Children’s Collection and Guide [Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture]

K-12 Teachers

• Constitution Popular Topics Page on DocsTeach [National Archives]
• First Amendment in 21st Century America [National Endowment for the Humanities]
• Commemorating Constitution Day [National Endowment for the Humanities]
• Courting Liberty: Slavery and Equality Under the Constitution [National Endowment for the Humanities]
• A More Perfect Union [National Endowment for the Humanities]
• Educating for American Democracy: Smithsonian Summer Sessions 2022 [Smithsonian Institution]

3-12 Teachers

• Visualizing Democracy [National Portrait Gallery]

6-12 Teachers

• Lesson Plan: Constitution Day Resources [Library of Congress]
• Voices of Social Justice [National Portrait Gallery]
• Revolution and New Nation (1763-1815) with the National Portrait Gallery [National Portrait Gallery]
• Ratifying the Constitution: A Digital Game Opportunity [National Endowment for the Humanities]

5-12 Students and Teachers

• American Experiments (Classroom Edition) [Smithsonian National Museum of American History]

6-12 Students and Teachers

• National History Day: Origins of the U.S. Constitution [Smithsonian Office of Educational Technology and EDSITEMENT]
• How the Court Works and Functions [Supreme Court Historical Society]
• Landmark Cases [Supreme Court Historical Society]
• Marbury v. Madison [Supreme Court Historical Society]
• We The Students – Supreme Court Cases For and About Students [Supreme Court Historical Society]
• Defining Freedom: Securing the Promise of the 13th Amendment [Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture]
• Reconstructing Citizenship (14th Amendment) [Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture]
• Make Good the Promises: 150 Years and Counting (15th Amendment) [Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture]

8-12 Students and Teachers

• Becoming US: Teaching Immigration and Migration History in the 21st Century [Smithsonian National Museum of American History]
• National Youth Summits (On Demand) [Smithsonian National Museum of American History]
• Join the Student Sit Ins [Smithsonian National Museum of American History]

9-12 Students and Teachers

• Northern Plains Treaties: Is a Treaty Intended to Be Forever? [Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian]

6-8 Students

• Independence Hall: International Symbol of Freedom [National Park Service]
• The Preamble to the Constitution: A Close Reading Lesson [National Endowment for the Humanities]
• Before and Beyond the Constitution: What Should a President Do? [National Endowment for the Humanities]
• We the People Virtual Field Trip [National Park Service]

6-12 Students

• Learning History Through Objects: The Founding Documents [Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture]

9-12 grade

• Protecting the Independence of the Judiciary from Disinformation [Supreme Court Historical Society]
• The Constitutional Convention of 1787 [[National Endowment for the Humanities]
• Analyzing the Constitution – Interaction Between the Three Branches [Supreme Court Historical Society]
• Supreme Court Cases and Women’s Rights [Supreme Court Historical Society]
• 100 Civics Study Questions for Naturalization [PDF, 303KB] [U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services]
• Preparing for the Naturalization Test: A Pocket Study Guide [PDF, 421KB] [U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services]
• Constitution Annotated, Analysis and Interpretation of the U.S. Constitution [Library of Congress]
• Constitution of the United States: Primary Documents in American History [Library of Congress]
•  Constitution USA [National Endowment for the Humanities]

Family Resources

• The Families Learning Civics Together Toolkit [U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services]
• A More Perfect Union: The USCIS Civics Test Guide to the Monuments and Memorials on the National Mall [U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services]

With regard to non-U.S. Department of Education websites, these are provided as examples of resources on Constitution Day that you might find helpful. There are many other resources available that may be just as helpful. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of these sites, nor does our inclusion here constitute an endorsement of the sites, the material on the sites, or the related products or services of the entity that provided the information.

We encourage Federal, State, and local officials, as well as leaders of civic, social, and educational organizations, to conduct ceremonies and programs that bring together community members to reflect on the importance of active citizenship, recognize the enduring strength of our Constitution, and reaffirm our commitment to the rights and obligations of citizenship in this great Nation.

U.S. Constitution