First Amendment Supreme Court Cases: Tinker v. Des Moines and Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier Article & Review

Do students have constitutional rights in the classroom? This First Amendment Supreme Court Cases: Tinker v. Des Moines and Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier Article & Review introduces students to two pivotal Supreme Court rulings on student rights and the First Amendment. Students read an informational text on Tinker v. Des Moines and Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier, demonstrate their understanding in a comprehension review, and finish with a short essay reflection. Perfect for middle and high school students studying the First Amendment and Landmark Supreme Court Cases in Civics, American History, or American Government!

Aligned to the following Florida State Standards for Middle School Civics (and easily applicable to other states’ curriculum):

• SS.7.CG.3.11: Analyze the effects of landmark Supreme Court decisions on law, liberty and the interpretation of the U.S. Constitution. 

This Landmark Supreme Court Cases: Tinker v. Des Moines and Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier Article & Review includes:

✯ The Tinker v. Des Moines and Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier: Students’ Rights and the Supreme Court Article. This two-page reading passage breaks down both of these landmark cases and how they interpreted students’ First Amendment rights in schools. 

Topics include:

• The First Amendment
• Tinker v. Des Moines
• Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier
• Examples of speech not protected by the First Amendment (hate speech, speech that incites violence, character defamation, etc.) 

Students can read this article independently, or you can read through it as a class, encouraging students to highlight key concepts and challenging vocabulary!

✯ A two-page comprehension review. Students answer ten review questions on the article’s main ideas and compare and contrast the facts of Tinker and Hazelwood. 

Sample questions include:

• Which Constitutional Amendment did the rulings of Tinker v. Des Moines and Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier revolve around? (First Amendment)
• Which war were the students in Tinker v. Des Moines protesting? How did they plan to protest? (Vietnam) 

✯ Finally, a one-page student reflection is included! Students answer three questions about the lesson, using evidence from the text and expressing their own opinions. This would make a great exit ticket or homework assignment to cap off the lesson! 

This activity is ideal for Civics, American Government, and American History students studying the United States Constitution and Landmark Supreme Court cases. It’s flexible for grades 7–12 and works well as a lesson, emergency sub plan, or print-and-go review!

This resource comes as a non-editable PDF and includes Answer Keys. There is also a digital version available through TPT Easel, which can be assigned directly to Google Classroom or shared with your students via a link!

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