United States Constitution
Session 7: Religious Freedom

Materials

• Texts of Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom, the Virginia Bill of Rights, and the First Amendment to the United States Constitution (available by searching the Internet and downloading)
• Class textbook
• Computer with Internet access

Instructional Activities

1. Display the following prompt on the board or overhead:
   
   How important is religious freedom to the United States? Can you think of an example of how religious freedom is threatened in America today?
   
   After students have had a few minutes to write about this, let them share their responses with each other in pairs and then share with the whole class.
   
   
2. Provide students with copies of the Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom, the 16th article of the Virginia Bill of Rights, and the 1st Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. Help them read and understand the Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom.
   
   
3. Place the students in small groups, and have each group complete a three-column chart listing the important elements of each document. When the groups have finished their work, construct a summary chart on the board, using the input from the groups.
   
   
4. Assign the students to write an essay comparing and contrasting these three documents.