This year, dozens of teachers in Cambridge, Boston, and Springfield piloted Children Discovering Justice (CDJ) 2.0, the organization’s new K-2 standards-based civics curriculum,
Working with the Commonwealth’s youngest students, teachers engaged students in rich conversations about justice and fairness with CDJ’s culturally responsive curriculum and activities.
Fabiane Noronha, a veteran kindergarten teacher at the King Open School in Cambridge said, ‘“My biggest takeaway from Children Discovering Justice is that this curriculum is actually a framework for empowerment; an opportunity for educators and scholars to engage in a transformative human experience.”
Starting the Fall of 2022, Discovering Justice will make this curriculum available to all districts in Massachusetts, leading the way in making high quality civic education accessible to our youngest students. The curriculum is open source and available for free through Discovering Justice. . Every lesson plan is easy to implement with accompanying slides as well as printable, online, and seesaw versions of lesson activities.
Check out sample lessons: Kindergarten Module 1, Lesson 3: Injustice and Second Grade Module 3, Lesson 2. In the lessons you can click into accompanying slides, activities, extra practice, and ongoing tools including our 4 Steps: Justice Advocates Cycle (pictured below).

Over the first two weeks of June, twenty-four mock appeal teams of Massachusetts middle school students presented their First Amendment cases in front of a panel of judges and attorneys as well as friends and family.

Grappling with the complexities of a case addressing a controversial speaker brought to a high school campus, student attorneys delivered oral arguments and fielded panelists’ questions – a difficult task for even the most experienced lawyer. In many cases, the panels were divided on whether to side with the petitioner or the respondent, a telling sign that both sides were balanced in their presentations and theory of the case.

“The time that the legal mentors and judges spend with the middle schoolers over the semester is invaluable. I never tire of seeing first time student attorneys make their case in front of the bench,” said Mock Appeal Program Manager Luke Matys. “Thanks to the courthouses and staff who partnered with Discovering Justice to open their doors to the volunteers, students, educators, and families.”

Working with courthouse staff, Discovering Justice hosted ten mock with more than 600 attendees at appeals at nine courthouses across the Commonwealth. Thanks to the Moakley Courthouse, the Lowell Justice Center, the Donohue Federal Building and US Courthouse in Worcester, the Taunton Juvenile Court, the Framingham District Court, the Springfield Federal Courthouse, the Brockton District Court, the New Bedford Superior Court, and the Brookline District Court for supporting these events.

On February 16th, Discovering Justice Staff celebrated the opening of its new remodeled office space on the first floor of the Moakley Courthouse. After 23 years, working out of Judges Chambers on the third floor, we are excited to move into our spacious new digs which will be much more accessible to the public.

We invite Discovering Justice supporters to stop by the Moakley to see the new space and meet the staff.

After a hiatus due to COVID-19, Discovering Justice is reopening its Field Trips to high school teachers and students this spring.

Field trips with Discovering Justice invite students to explore the workings of the courthouse as well as the themes and ideals of justice and democracy. While on a guided tour featuring interactive courtroom activities, students are encouraged to view, analyze, and discuss key features of the courthouse and the operations of the justice system.

High School Field Trips can include a tour of the Moakley Federal Courthouse, a Q&A session with a Federal Judge, and/or an opportunity to observe a live trial and judicial proceedings.

Through the program, students increase their understanding of the functions, roles, and structures in the American justice system, expanding their justice-related vocabulary and participating in activities both in the courtroom and the classroom. Field trips help students to cultivate their identities as active members of our democracy and to see the justice system not as a stagnant institution, but something they can utilize and engage with through civic action.

If you are a High School teacher who is interested in bringing your class for a Field Trip at the Moakley, contact Program Manager Henry Schunk at hschunk@discoveringjustice.org

Middle & Elementary School Field Trips will be available later this spring. If you are interested in Middle & Elementary School Field Trips to the Moakley Courthouse, contact Henry Schunk at hschunk@discoveringjustice.org

For more than two decades, Discovering Justice has helped students make sense of the nation’s justice system and explore the question: “What is justice, and how do I use my voice to advocate for it?” You will see in Discovering Justice’s 2021 Annual Report, that with the support of hundreds of legal mentors and dedicated educators, our students continue to grapple with this simple, yet complex, question.

Starting as early as Kindergarten, our programs help students examine “Little J” justice issues: how to look at micro-level fairness, and how to practice justice with friends and family at school, at home, and on the playground. The programs then pivot to help students explore the “Big J” justice issues embedded in the framework of our nation’s justice system and how these institutions impact our communities.

Take a look at the Annual Report to see how our programs help students identify injustice and inequalities in their daily lives and connect them to macro-level democratic systems. This approach encourages students to embrace their roles and responsibilities, bring justice and fairness to their communities, and engage in civic activity and potential careers.

How can we cultivate our young students’ civic identity, knowledge, skills, and dispositions so they are prepared to be active and thoughtful members of our democracy?

On April 6, as part of the Massachusetts Civic Learning Coalition webinar series, Discovering Justice Education Program Director Laura Brenner will lead the interactive workshop, Civic Knowledge, Skills, and Dispositions in the Elementary Classroom. Participants will engage with the history and social science practice standards and Discovering Justice’s new Children Discovering Justice Curriculum. The webinar, geared to teachers and administrators, aims to deepen understanding of, and practice with, integrating civic knowledge, skills, and dispositions into social studies and across the school day. The webinar will also highlight concepts such as perspective taking and issues of equity and justice.

You can register here.