The Courts and the Schools. Bar/School Partnership Programs Series.

Court systems across the United States have become vital supporters of law-related education (LRE) in elementary and secondary schools. Judges and other court personnel have the substantive legal and procedural knowledge that students need in order to develop positive attitudes toward the law and the Constitution and understanding of the U.S. judicial system. Court officials can also help teachers identify other community resources on behalf of LRE programs. This handbook offers suggestions for developing and implementing partnerships between the courts and the schools. A narrative account is given of one judge's visit to a sixth grade class and of the impact that visit had on the class. Suggestions are provided for involving various court personnel in a middle school LRE program using role playing by the class members and culminating with an actual court visit. An account is given of teaching high school students about U.S. courts by using the statement of Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.: "A Constitution is made for people of fundamentally differing views." Lesson plans are also included for teaching secondary students about appellate courts using court personnel as resource people. (JB)