Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/230370
"We the People" Constitution Tour and Classroom Challenge N ovember 4th marked the kick-off of our ninth season of the We the People Constitution Program, which spans the 2013-2014 school year. This tour and classroom program brings the U.S. Constitution to life for eighth graders in D.C. public and charter schools. One of our Students learn how the configuration teachers related that of the Capitol reflects our bicameral "the tours have liter- Congress. ally made D.C. a school without walls for me and my students." Since the program began in 2005, it has offered more than 12,000 students an insight into their government, history, and home city. The tour educates students about the first three articles of the Constitution through visits to the U.S. Capitol, Lafayette Park (the White House), the Lincoln Memorial, the Supreme Court, and finally the National Archives, where students view the original documents— the Constitution and Bill of Rights—they have spent the day discussing. Pre- and post-tour resource materials, teacher lesson plans, student activities, and a Constitution Challenge of interdisciplinary activities extend the Freedom of speech in action outside the White House. lesson into the classroom. The program meets educational goals of informed citizenship and increased understanding of the Constitution. The We the People Constitution Challenge supplements and reinforces the lessons of the tour in the classroom. Participating teachers continue to build upon the tour throughout the school year through a wide variety of Constitution-related activities. The school that demonstrates the highest quality of such activities wins the Challenge and receives a plaque and a $1,000 grant; honorable mention plaques also are awarded. Maya Angelou Public Charter School (MAPCS) won the 20122013 Challenge. The Challenge award recognition was included as part of MAPCS's student advancement ceremony held at Howard University in June 2013. The Challenge is sponsored by the Brown Rudnick Charitable Foundation. Al Wallis, executive director of the Foundation, wrote to teachers: "In our fast-paced world, it is critical for students to understand that the U.S. Constitution is a living document that has guided America throughout its history and that continues to be relevant to their own lives today. As a teacher in our nation's capital, you daily instill the rights and responsibilities of citizenship in your students so they will be engaged, knowledgeable adults. D.C. is the perfect WTP consortium members attended the MACPS ceremony. From left, Steve Livengood, USCHS; Dee Hoffman, Children's Concierge; Courtney Speaker and Katie Munn, White House Historical Association; and Abe Burgos, Old Town Trolley. Principal La'Mont Geddis and Social Studies Department Chair Gerald Duncan accept the $1000 award given by the Brown Rudnick Charitable Foundation. teaching environment to do this and we want to help you in any way we can." USCHS's program partners are D.C.'s foremost institutions that communicate the federal city and the three branches of government to the public: the National Archives, National Park Service, White House Historical Association, the federal courts, Children's Concierge, and Old Town Trolley. We the People is the first cooperative action of organizations around the Mall to reach out to D.C. public and charter school students and make the monumental city a real part of their lives. We are grateful to the Brown Rudnick Charitable Foundation, the Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation, Verizon, and International Paper for their generous support of the We the People Constitution Program. For more information about the program, please visit our website at www.uschs.org. USCHS's Livengood awards a plaque to Duncan recognizing MAPCS's win. 7 THE CAPITOL DOME FALL 2013