Unique resources created by an experienced Secondary English and History teacher. These are academically rigorous resources that target children between 13 and 18 years of age.
Unique resources created by an experienced Secondary English and History teacher. These are academically rigorous resources that target children between 13 and 18 years of age.
My school runs a 10 Legal Studies elective designed to give students a taste of Senior Legal Studies.
This is for a unit designed to give students foundational knowledge about criminal law with a focus on an intimate partner homicide case from Brisbane, Queensland.
What is included:
Scope and Sequence – lays out the topics taught in each lesson across the 10-week term. There are 2 lessons a week. Some of these lessons are also available for sale at my store.
Learning Intentions and Success Criteria Handout – included on learning wall and printed in A5 for students to glue into their books and refer to throughout the unit.
Unit Plan – which contains:
• Unit description
• Assessment details (formative and summative)
• Suggested resources (textbooks, websites, videos etc.)
• Teaching and learning cycle
• Reflection questions for teachers at the end of the unit
A resource which I think Legal Studies teachers will find helpful. If you use it, and like it, please give me a positive star rating / review.
A 6 page end of term activity booklet for students to complete while some of their peers went on work experience.
It includes:
A match the definition activity for the following words: accessory, jury duty, summary offence, indictable offence, admissible evidence, white collar crime, burglary, bail, criminal intent (mens rea), prisoner and presumption of innocence.
A table for students to research the age of criminal responsibility for juveniles for each state and territory in Australia.
Some questions about driving laws for students to research the answers to.
An image of a courtroom with the various people labelled which students are to use to explain the key roles within a court.
Information about who can and cannot serve on a jury
A match the definitions for the following terms: doctrine of precedent, barrister, custodial sentence, prosecutor, non-custodial sentence, special order, concurrent sentencing, cumulative sentencing, the Penalties and Sentences Act 1992 (Qld), community service, recidivism, antecedent
Information about what bail is an da series of scenarios for students to read and decide whether they would grant bail in that case.
I have included a scan of my answers for the match the definitions pages.
NB: My lessons have been designed for use in Australian classrooms and will often feature examples from Queensland legislation.
This resource includes:
An exemplar written by a student who wrote their essay about ‘coercive control’ to an A standard
An exemplar written by a student who focused on ‘trial by media’ and got 24/25
A series of PowerPoints which were used in lessons to scaffold this task (as students are in year 10 and have only done legal studies in year 9 and this year)
NB: In my PPTs I typically underline the information that I want students to write. The rest I use as talking points / visual aids.
A resource which I think Legal Studies / Civics teachers will find helpful. If you use it, and like it, please give me a positive star rating / review.
NB: My lessons have been designed for use in Australian classrooms and will often feature examples from Queensland legislation.
Sources about the Baden-Clay case – 18 pages. A document with sources for various topics including coercive control and trial by media. It includes: a transcript of the Victim Impact Statement from Allison Baden-Clay’s mother, a UQ law journal article about the case, various news articles and an extract from the Cambridge Senior Legal Studies Textbook.
Scaffolding booklet which includes a section for students to define key terms, a place for them to store any additional sources they gathered, sections for them to plan how to address different criteria e.g. nature and scope, viewpoints,
PowerPoint to get students started on the planning booklet
Sentence Starters written to assist students with writing the various sections of their essay.
NB: In my PPTs I typically underline the information that I want students to write. The rest I use as talking points / visual aids.
A resource which I think Legal Studies / Civics teachers will find helpful. If you use it, and like it, please give me a positive star rating / review.
NB: My lessons have been designed for use in Australian classrooms and will often feature examples from Queensland legislation.
A 10 Legal Studies assessment (essay) which is modelled off the Senior Legal studies criteria from the QCAA.
Task sheet – explaining task conditions, the criteria and the checkpoints (deadlines). The task was to compile an argumentative essay to present a well-considered solution to a current legal issue which was included in the Baden-Clay case e.g. coercive control / trial by media.
PowerPoint – taking students through the assessment requirements and criteria, the scaffolding materials and an example essay {for a human rights law topic}.
Referencing guide.
A resource which I think Legal Studies / Civics teachers will find helpful. If you use it, and like it, please give me a positive star rating / review.
NB: My lessons have been designed for use in Australian classrooms and will often feature examples from Queensland legislation.
The third of a series of lessons I created about the Murder of Allison Baden-Clay using evidence from documentaries, news articles and the 2017 book authored by David Murray.
The PPT began with a warm up activity for students to copy the definition of ‘appeal.’ It included information about the Supreme court of Queensland and how it operates. There is also information about ‘natural justice’ (aka procedural fairness) and sentencing options including custodial sentences.
The lesson picked up where we left off with the 2014 trial. The defence had advised Gerard not to take the stand but he decided to do so anyway. There are excerpts from the court documents which I got students to read out (one person to be Gerard, the other to be the lawyer). Then information is provided about the prosecutions cross-examination of Gerard. Then a summary is provided about the Defense and prosecution’s closing arguments. Then the outcome of the case is explained including: the jury verdict, the delivery of victim impact statements and justice John Byrnes decision.
This is followed by information about:
Gerard’s appeal (August 2015)
Reactions to the outcome of the appeal (including protests in King George square in December 2015)
The prosecutions decision to appeal the Supreme Court’s Decision to the High Court
The outcome of the High Court Hearing (July 2016)
Information about how Allison’s daughters, sister and parents are faring including their advocacy work
Statistics regarding intimate partner homicide in Australia
NB: In my PPTs I typically underline the information that I want students to write. The rest I use as talking points / visual aids.
A resource which I think Legal Studies / Civics teachers will find helpful. If you use it, and like it, please give me a positive star rating / review.
NB: My lessons have been designed for use in Australian classrooms and will often feature examples from Queensland legislation.
The second of a series of lessons I created about the Murder of Allison Baden-Clay using evidence from documentaries, news articles and the 2017 book authored by David Murray.
The PPT began with a warm up activity for students to copy the definition of Manslaughter and Murder including information about the penalties for each offence under the QLD Criminal Code.
Following this – a key aspect ‘trial by media’ is introduced as the Baden-Clay case was highly publicised. There is an extract from an article that appeared in ‘The Conversation’ which suggests why it was so notorious. Information about the issues of posting information about cases on social media / the internet prior to the jury making a decision and the potential harm it can do to tainting a case is provided.
Info is provided about the police’s investigative process prior to arresting Gerard as well as how the arrest was conducted and what happened to his 3 daughters.
Also included are:
Details about the initial hearing on 14/07/2012
The lead up to the trial including the work performed by Dr Cordon Guymer at the Queensland Herbarium (regarding plant matter in Allison’s hair).
The defence’s ‘suicide theory’ and the prosecution’s rebuttal
The reasons behind the decision not to grant bail.
The prosecution’s strategy for the case 10/06/2014
How the jury was selected and cautioned
The order of evidence presented by the prosecution
The significance of Allison’s diary
A resource which I think Legal Studies / Civics teachers will find helpful. If you use it, and like it, please give me a positive star rating / review.
NB: My lessons have been designed for use in Australian classrooms and will often feature examples from Queensland legislation.
The first of a series of lessons I created about the Murder of Allison Baden-Clay using evidence from documentaries, news articles and the 2017 book authored by David Murray.
This resource includes a PowerPoint and a document containing ‘Witness Statements’ which I created using details from Murray’s book but turned into first person for the purpose of giving students a role to play during the lesson.
The PowerPoint begins by introducing Alison – her interests, skills, occupations etc. as well as how she met her husband Gerard Baden-Clay (and some contextual information about him). Then information is provided about her disappearance including what Gerard said happened as well as the 10 witness statements from residents who had heard noises on the night (2012). To progressively introduce information about the case, I have included snipped excerpts of Foxtel’s ‘Crimes That Shook Australia’ episode about Gerard Baden-Clay along with photographs, news story excerpts and information from Murray’s book.
NB: In my PPTs I typically underline the information that I want students to write. The rest I use as talking points / visual aids.
A resource which I think Legal Studies / Civics teachers will find helpful. If you use it, and like it, please give me a positive star rating / review.
NB: My lessons have been designed for use in Australian classrooms and will often feature examples from Queensland legislation.
A PPT designed for 10 Legal Studies to teach students about types of stakeholders and their responsibilities. It includes information about a person’s right to silence, the responsibilities of police when carrying out a physical search on a person, an explanation of the terms reasonable suspicion and search warrant. It provides information about how long a suspect can be detained for questioning according the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act (Qld). This is followed by 4 checking for understanding questions. The second part of the lesson is about DNA and other evidence which can be found at a crime scenes. It begins with an explanation of DNA and types of DNA evidence. Information is provided about how samples are collected and analysed. Information is provided about some of the limitations such as contamination, degradation and partial profiles. The purpose of the The National Criminal Investigation DNA Database (NCIDD) is explained as well as how long they hold DNA evidence for. This is followed by information about other types of evidence including: physical evidence and digital evidence.
For homework students had to research “Chain of Evidence” and find out the specific processes which must be followed in Queensland law when gathering evidence. Write a paragraph to demonstrate what you have learned.
NB: In my PPTs I typically underline the information that I want students to write. The rest I use as talking points / visual aids.
A resource which I think Legal Studies / Civics teachers will find helpful. If you use it, and like it, please give me a positive star rating / review.
NB: My lessons have been designed for use in Australian classrooms and will often feature examples from Queensland legislation.
A PPT designed to introduce 10 Legal studies students to criminal law. It begins with the Rule of Law pyramid and an explanation of the main principles of the legal system (fairness and equality before the law). Students are introduce to some key terms to write in their glossary (common law and doctrine of precedent). They are introduced to the Queensland Criminal Code Act 1899 as well as a list of some other Acts which deal with specific criminal offences, such as drug offences and traffic offences. They are then introduced to the investigation process after an alleged criminal situation is reported. The various potential stakeholders in a crime are explained. Students are introduced to the concept of evidence and the process required for collecting evidence (as outlined in the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act of Queensland). The difference between direct and circumstantial evidence is explained. There is a video for students to watch to understand their rights when engaging with police. Information is provided about what happens when you are charged with an offence. This is followed by information about the rights of Police. Information is provided about Legal Aid (legal assistance available to people from low socio-economic backgrounds in Queensland).
NB: In my PPTs I typically underline the information that I want students to write. The rest I use as talking points / visual aids.
A resource which I think Legal Studies / Civics teachers will find helpful. If you use it, and like it, please give me a positive star rating / review.
NB: My lessons have been designed for use in Australian classrooms and will often feature examples from Queensland legislation.
I made this worksheet for a viewing lesson for my 10 Legal Studies class who were studying criminal law at the time. There are 17 questions designed to go with the first episode of season 1.
The Twelve is an Australian television drama series available on streaming platforms including Binge and ClickView. Season 1 follows the story of Kate Lawson, who is on trial for the alleged murder of her niece. The series shows how the twelve jurors bring their personal lives and prejudices to the courtroom. The episode is 60 minutes.
My school runs a 10 Legal Studies elective designed to give students a taste of Senior Legal Studies. This is a scope and sequence for a unit designed to give students foundational knowledge about contract law with a focus on real estate (rentals). There are 2 lessons a week. Some of these lessons are also available for sale at my store.
Scope and Sequence – laws out the topics taught in each lesson across the 10 week term (minus two weeks for the exam block).
Learning Intentions and Success Criteria Handout – included on learning wall and printed in A5 for students to glue into their books and refer to throughout the unit.
Unit Plan - for a unit designed to give students foundational knowledge about rental contracts.
It contains:
• Unit description
• Assessment details (formative and summative)
• Suggested resources (textbooks, websites, videos etc.)
• Teaching and learning cycle
• Learning intention & success criteria
• Reflection questions for teachers at the end of the unit
A resource which I think Legal Studies teachers will find helpful. If you use it, and like it, please give me a positive star rating / review.
A resource which I think Legal Studies teachers will find helpful. If you use it, and like it, please give me a positive star rating / review.
Handout- sentence starters that I wrote to help students write their report introduction and conclusion paragraphs {as they are in year 10 and it is their first time writing a legal report}. I get students to write their body paragraphs first as this is where most of the criteria is demonstrated.
PowerPoint which I used in class to show this content visually and to send out to students who were absent on the day.
A template for students to write their report into
A resource which I think Legal Studies teachers will find helpful. If you use it, and like it, please give me a positive star rating / review.
Handout- sentence starters that I wrote to help students write their recommendations paragraph {as they are in year 10 and it is their first time writing a legal report}.
PowerPoint which I used in class to remind students of the Evaluate criteria + to explain the structure of this section of the report.
A template for students to write their report into
A resource which I think Legal Studies teachers will find helpful. If you use it, and like it, please give me a positive star rating / review.
Handout- sentence starters that I wrote to help students write their two legal alternatives paragraphs {as they are in year 10 and it is their first time writing a legal report}.
PowerPoint which I used in class to remind students of the Evaluate criteria + to explain the structure of this section of the report.
A template for students to write their report into
A resource which I think Legal Studies teachers will find helpful. If you use it, and like it, please give me a positive star rating / review.
Handout- sentence starters that I wrote to help students write their viewpoints paragraphs {as they are in year 10 and it is their first time writing a legal report}. It has options for students to write about the viewpoints of surrounding society or of specific political parties within Australia.
PowerPoint which I used in class to remind students of the Analysing criteria + to explain the structure of this section of the report.
A template for students to write their report into
A resource which I think Legal Studies teachers will find helpful. If you use it, and like it, please give me a positive star rating / review.
Handout- sentence starters that I wrote to help students write their nature and scope paragraph {as they are in year 10 and it is their first time writing a legal report}. It has two columns – one for if they are writing about bad renters and one for if they are writing about bad landlords.
PowerPoint which I used in class to teach students: How to quote in a report and acknowledge it via in text referencing; gave them a planning framework to go through their sources and work out where they could be used within the report; Tips for writing the Nature and Scope section of the report
A copy of the graphic organiser for planning their report (flower structure)
A PowerPoint designed for the first check in with students to see if they have selected their topic and located possible sources. It includes an example of the table they need to complete in their inquiry booklet and example dot points of why it is useful. It also includes a reminder that students will have to hit the analyse and evaluate criteria in their report.
Also included are posters explaining analyse and evaluate (cognitions) – not specific to legal studies.
A resource which I think Legal Studies teachers will find helpful. If you use it, and like it, please give me a positive star rating / review.
Scaffolding – a booklet which defines each of the cognitive verbs students need to use in the assessment (identify, define, search, collect, select, analyse, evaluate, organise, synthesise, communicate). There is a table of contents to take you to the specific section you need. The first section goes through what makes a good definition and some thinking prompts. The search section discusses BOOLEAN Search and how to determine if a source is reliable (CARS acronym). Select introduces students to the retrieval chart in their Inquiry booklet and what should go in each column. There are thinking prompts for analysing, evaluating and synthesising. There is a legal studies report structure. There is also a referencing guide for how to cite legal sources.
Inquiry Booklet – the e journal that students filled in during their research process. It includes retrieval charts for nature and scope, viewpoints and for gathering and evaluating sources.
Posters which I displayed on the word wall in my classroom
A resource which I think Legal Studies teachers will find helpful. If you use it, and like it, please give me a positive star rating / review.
Task sheet – explaining task conditions, the criteria and the checkpoints (deadlines). The task was to compile a report to present a well-considered solution to a current legal issue involving rental contracts in Queensland (or Australia as a whole) but also required students to keep an inquiry booklet to demonstrate their research skills.
PowerPoint – taking students through the assessment requirements and criteria, the scaffolding materials and an example report {for a criminal law topic}.
Exemplar - a word document version of the exemplar which was shown in the PowerPoint. It is an exemplar of a legal report for a different topic {Drug Possession Queensland}.