National Constitution Center: Explore the Constitution
Understanding the significance of the U.S. Constitution requires more than simply reading its text. This website provides context and tools designed to historically contextualize the U.S. Constitution and help users assess its lasting impact. An interactive Constitution lies at the heart of the website, providing line-by-line commentary by current scholars alongside excerpts from contemporary primary sources. Users can also search the Constitution in connection with specific court cases, topics, and keywords.
An interactive timeline in the exhibit "Centuries of Citizenship" provides useful background information. Additional contextual information is available in the form of a set of "fast facts"; descriptions of "basic governing principles," such as the rule of law, Federalism, and judicial review; detailed biographical information on all delegates to the Constitutional Convention; and audio discussions with scholars and pundits on topics ranging from voting to prominent court cases to women in the Early Republic. Three scholarly essays provide different "perspectives on the Constitution," reminding users that the success of the Constitution in uniting a group of diverse territories was far from assured in the late 1700s. Related primary sources in the "Founding Documents" section allow users to trace the relationship between the U.S. Constitution and the Magna Carta, the Mayflower Compact, and the Virginia Declaration of Rights.
New editions include the interactive experience "Lincoln's Crossroads," in which students face some of the choices Lincoln faced during his presidency; "A More Perfect Union," an exhibit on Barack Obama's 2008 speech on race at the Constitution Center; " and "Seize the Vote," a 4-player game testing voting rights' knowledge.
I have used SurveyMonkey for numerous projects. While completing a Teaching American History (TAH) grant proposal, I needed to collect information about the education background and professional development activities of my colleagues. I created a 10-question survey and sent the link in an email. My students have used SurveyMonkey to collect data for use in a National History Day project. The students created a survey and posted the link on their 
In DIHR? the player manages a legal firm specializing in constitutional law. The player first selects whether to do the "Full Edition" of rights throughout the Constitution or "Bill of Rights" which focuses on rights within the first 10 Amendments. He or she then customizes their lawyer and chooses a partner lawyer who specializes on a right. The game takes place over seven rounds, each representing a day. In each round the player tries to earn as many prestige points as possible for the firm by taking on clients and winning their cases. This involves a three-step cycle.
George Sayit, for example, begins with freedom of expression. The player can, through successful gameplay, unlock George's ability to plead cases on the freedom of religion, right to vote regardless of race, and, finally, right to vote regardless of gender. The player can ultimately hire six lawyers, each of whom can have four areas of expertise. As a result increasing numbers of different constitutional scenarios can be brought up in each successive round of gameplay.
At the end of each round, the player gets a summary of his or her performance. This takes the form of a newspaper that includes descriptions of the cases and relevant constitutional issues from the round. After the summary, the player can spend any earned prestige points to improve the firm—an important motivator since success at matching clients and lawyers leads to tangible gameplay bonuses. New lawyers can be hired, allowing the player to handle a greater variety of cases and win more prestige. In addition, each lawyer's desk can be enhanced with bonus items. These increase that lawyer's speed in handling cases, likelihood of learning a new area of constitutional law, or the prestige gained for a successful case. Finally, improvements can be made to the waiting area to increase the number of clients it can hold and the amount of time they will wait before storming off in rage—a feature that becomes especially important in later rounds as the number of clients increases.
The ease of the control system and the core gameplay are important features of the game, adding to its suitability as a classroom tool. At the start of the game, onscreen hints helpfully label important areas of the firm and the screen—these hints can be left on or turned off at the player's discretion. All decisions are made through clicking on the relevant button or area in the game with the mouse. For those who still would like more guidance, there is even a teacher's guide that provides a detailed description of the game written for those less familiar with game motifs.
