The First Amendment allows citizens to express and to be exposed to a wide range of opinions and views. It was intended to ensure a free exchange of ideas even if the ideas are unpopular. Freedom of speech encompasses not only the spoken and written word, but also all kinds of expression (including non-verbal communications, such as sit-ins, art, photographs, films and advertisements).

The First Amendment protects the free press, including television, radio and the Internet. The media are free to distribute a wide range of news, facts, opinions and pictures.

The Fourth Amendment protects people against unreasonable searches and seizures by government officials. A search can mean everything from a frisking by a police officer to a blood test to a search of an individual's home or car. A seizure occurs when the government takes control of an individual or something in his or her possession

The Sixth Amendment provides rights and protections to people accused of crimes. These include the right to a speedy and public trial by an impartial jury; the right to be informed of the charges; the right to confront adverse witnesses, and the right to counsel.

The Sixth Amendment guarantees a criminal defendant the right to have an attorney defend him or her at trial. That right is not dependent on the defendant's ability to pay an attorney; if a defendant cannot afford a lawyer, the government is required to provide one. The right to counsel is more than just the right to have an attorney physically present at criminal proceedings. The assistance provided by the attorney must be effective.

The Sixth Amendment right to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusationâ is another protection meant to ensure that the accused receives a fair trail. A speedy, public trial that is heard by an impartial jury is meaningless if a defendant is left in the dark about exactly the crime with which he or she is charged.

Without this right, criminal defendants could be held indefinitely under a cloud of unproven criminal accusations. The right to a speedy trial also is crucial to ensuring that a criminal defendant receives a fair trial. If too much time elapses between the alleged crime and the trial, witnesses may die or leave the area, their memories may fade, and physical evidence may be lost.

The Sixth Amendment provides many protections and rights to a person accused of a crime. One right is to have his or her case heard by an impartial jury — independent people from the surrounding community who are willing to decide the case based only on the evidence.

In this lesson, students will explore the fundamental reasons for the confrontation clause of the Sixth Amendment. Students will engage in a simulation, identify the history and evolution of the confrontation clause from the Annenberg Classroom video The Confrontation Clause: Crawford v. Washington, and then apply this knowledge to the simulation. This lesson covers one 50-minute class period.

This discussion guide is for use with the video âWhat Are the Challenges to Judicial Independence?â which features a lecture by Charles Geyh, professor at the Indiana University Maurer School of Law, at the Fair and Impartial Judiciary Symposium on October 26, 2019, at the University of Pennsylvania Law School.

This lesson will allow students to use primary sources, the Bill of Rights, and Supreme Court cases in conjunction with the game âThat's Your Rightâ and the Annenberg Guide to the Constitution. Students will be able to understand the meaning and importance of the Bill of Rights as well as how it safeguards freedoms and protects citizens from government intrusion in everyday life. Students will focus on primary sources, the Bill of Rights and real-life scenarios to prepare them to play the game âThat's Your Right.â Afterward, students can extend learning by exploring real Supreme Court cases that affect students in schools.

This lesson is based on the Annenberg Classroom video âThe Right to Remain Silent: Miranda v. Arizona,â which explores the landmark Supreme Court case that made law enforcement the protectors of individual liberty where people are most vulnerable – in the interrogation room.