Social Studies Lesson Plan

Overview:Open government is the very heart of democracy. Citizens have the right to know what their elected and appointed officials are doing and access the records that will tell them. Citizens who don’t have the time or expertise to dig for information then rely on journalists to find out for them. That’s the theme of the annual Sunshine Week. In 2007, a wide range of resources are available to use for story ideas, projects and lesson plans. Let the sun shine in!

Suggested time allotment: Three days to read about open records and how to access them. Three days to read articles that have come from digging through such records. An additional day to suggest what reporters in your community (school or commercial) should investigate.

Objectives

Students will:

1. Read background material about accessing open records, including how to file a Freedom of Information request. (A state-by-state letter generator is available on the Student Press Law Center Web site. See link below.)
2. Read links to investigative stories that required digging through open records, sometimes without the blessing of the governmental officials.
3. Discuss the kinds of information available and stories they could help explain.
4. Develop a list of investigative stories that should be uncovered around the school and/or community.

Curriculum Standards from the National Council for the Social Studies: Thematic Strands, from “Expectations of Excellence: Curriculum Standards for Social Studies.”
• VI — Power, authority and governance. Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of how people create and change structures of power, authority, and governance…. High school students develop their abilities in the use of abstract principles. They study the various systems that have been developed over the centuries to allocate and employ power and authority in the governing process. At every level, learners should have opportunities to apply their knowledge and skills to and participate in the workings of the various levels of power, authority, and governance.
• X – Civic ideals and practicies. Social studies programs should include experiences that provide for the study of the ideals, principles, and practices of citizenship in a democratic republic….High school students increasingly recognize the rights and responsibilities of citizens in identifying societal needs, setting directions for public policies, and working to support both individual dignity and the common good. They learn by experience how to participate in community service and political activities and how to use democratic process to influence public policy.

Resources and materials:
Web sites with information:
• “USING OPEN RECORDS: Local restaurant health inspections provide story ideas, service to readers,” by Brian Hudson, SPLC staff writer, March 12, 2007, on the SPLC Web site. Hudson explains the process and gives an example of what he found near his office.
|view website |

• Is it difficult to access this sort of information? First get more background about what is available. Links to everything from the “FOI Law Primer to and FOI Letter Generator are posted at
|view website |

• For last year’s event, the SPLC posted the following: “Sunshine Week: High school journalists dig through public records to get the real dirt,” March 13, 2006. This article tells about stories student journalists uncovered because they were willing to dig.
|view website |

• What other topics are possible? Check out the Sunshine Week Web site and, in particular, “Bright Ideas.” One downloadable pdf shows what teens and college students have already accomplished.
|view website |