“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.”

— Bill of Rights, ratified Dec. 15, 1791

The First Amendment guarantees freedom of expression in this country. It was developed and drafted two centuries ago in reaction to an authoritarian government that restricted the freedom of its citizens. What does it mean to you as an individual? What does it mean to modern society?

Here’s what to do …

Submit an individual original project that reflects YOUR interpretation of “freedom of expression” from a personal and/or a societal perspective. The project may take the form of a thoughtful essay, poem, song, video, short story, play, artwork, collage, Doodly, PowerPoint — but in all cases, the theme must be based on the First Amendment, and its content must be original. For example, if you opt to do a photo essay/montage, you must have taken all the photos used.

This final project is worth 100 points!

<<PLEASE READ THROUGH EVERYTHING BEFORE ASKING QUESTIONS!>>

NOTE: A short written explanation of its First Amendment theme should accompany all non-written projects (so if you’re doing a video or performance, write a paragraph about what you did and how you did it!).

Essay length MUST range from 500 to 700 words. Points will be deducted if less than 500 words. If longer than 700 words, that’s okay!

If it is performance-based, it MUST be at least 3 minutes long! It can be longer, but points will be deducted if shorter than 3 minutes in length.

If it is a PowerPoint, then it must be at least 12 slides in length.

If it is a Poem, it MUST be at least 300 words long! AND meaningful!

Other project forms should be creative as well as meaningful, and substantive for the particular medium. If you have ideas for other creative project forms, please check with Ms. Earley for approval. Note that all written projects must be typed.

This project is due: DECEMBER 11, 2020 (or sooner of course!)

Here are SAMPLES of past student’s project:

1. Maddison Trester (5:42): https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=whKSyQHgo8Y (Links to an external site.)
2. Michaela Clupny (4:06):First Amendment Song (Links to an external site.)
3. Taylor Stroud (2:54): https://vimeo.com/158587947 (Links to an external site.)
4. Teresa Gaines (4:31):Teresa Gaines (Links to an external site.)
5. Andrew Pajes (5:00):First Amendment Project – Andrew Pajes (Links to an external site.)
6. Monica DeCampo (2:48): Poem/PP | Who Am I?Monica De Ocampo First Amendment Project (Links to an external site.)

FIRST AMENDMENT PROJECT EVALUATION PROCESS

PROJECT FORMAT: _____ essay _____ short story _____ play

_____ poem _____ song _____ video

_____ art _____ photo montage _____ other

This project will be evaluated using the following criteria:

1. INTERPRETATION: Does it reflect a view of freedom of expression from either an

individual or a societal perspective?

1. PRESENTATION OF THE WORK: Is it substantive for its particular medium? For example,

does the essay meet the length requirement, and is it grammatically correct and stylistically

appropriate? Were sources attributed if appropriate? If it was a non-written project, was it

accompanied by a brief written explanation of its First Amendment theme?

1. PRESENTATION: Was the message clearly explained to the class? Was it organized? Did you use a clear speaking voice?

1. THOUGHTFULNESS: Is it meaningful? Serious? Creative? Original? (It can be humorous, BUT it MUST have a serious message to it.

1. DEADLINE: Was the project submitted on time?

FIRST AMENDMENT PROJECT RUBRIC

PROJECT FORMAT: _____ essay _____ short story _____ play

_____ poem _____ song _____ video

_____ art _____ photo montage _____ other

(no cut-and-paste poster collages; no haiku or couplets)

_____ 1. Interpretation of the First Amendment: 20 points

Does it reflect a view of freedom of expression from an individual or a societal perspective?

Strongly reflects Reflects Weakly reflects No reflection

_____ 2. Quality of the work: 50 points

_____ Is it substantive for its particular medium? For example, does the essay meet

the length requirement and is it written at the college level? Is talent displayed in the art? Are photos properly exposed and technically sufficient?

_____ Thoughtfulness: Is it meaningful? Serious? Does it display depth?

_____ Originality: Is it creative and/or original?

_____ Accuracy: Is the information, perspective accurate?

_____ Grammar and style: Is written work grammatically correct and/or stylistically

appropriate? Are sources attributed if appropriate?

_____ If project is non-written, is it accompanied by a brief typed explanation of its

First Amendment theme? Is explanation written at the college level?

_____ 3. Deadline: 10 points

Was the project submitted on time? _____ Yes _____ No

_____ 4. Presentation of the work: 20 points

_____ Was the message clearly explained to the class?

_____ Was the presentation organized?

_____ Did you use a clear speaking voice and project so all could hear you?

_____ TOTAL: 100 points