Do your students love to tell the class exactly what they think!? Are they reading Fault Lines in the Constitution by Cynthia and Sanford Levinson? Then, we have a competition just for them—and you!
How does it work?
First, students, teachers, and librarians should look at Fault Lines in the Constitution (Peachtree Publishers/Listening Library) and the authors’ blog. Then, they write a blog post relating a current event or issue to a topic in the book or to a flaw they see in the US Constitution.
Entries can take a stand, propose alternatives or raise questions for discussion. They should not be politically partisan.
Three winning blog posts will be featured on www.faultlinesintheconstitution.com, and each winner’s school will receive a free 20-minute Skype visit with co-authors Cynthia and Sanford Levinson!
How to enter:
- Teachers, librarians or students must subscribe to faultlinesintheconstitution.com.
- Then, submit student- and teacher-written blog posts to clevinson@austin.rr.com by April 16, 2018.
Guidelines:
- Contest is open to students ages 10-18 and to teachers and librarians.
- Each blog post should be a maximum of 550 words.
- Winning entries may be edited by Cynthia and Sanford Levinson and by Peachtree Publishers, with edits approved by the entrant, before publication.
Prizes:
- Three sets of prizes will be awarded—one for students ages 10-13, one for students ages 14-18, and one for teachers/librarians.
- Each winner’s school will receive a free 20-minute Skype visit with the book’s co-authors.
- The winners’ blogs will be posted on faultlinesintheconstitution.com.
Fault Lines in the Constitution 
I’m not eligible to enter this contest but hopefully I can follow the results, for those eligible are our future. At age 87, I remain an optimist for America and our planet, despite the continuing political dysfunction in America.
On the lighter side regarding the contest, I’m reminded of political jokes of contests on less serious subjects with punchlines such as: First prize is one week in Philadelphia and second prize is two weeks in Philadelphia.
More seriously, I understand civics is no longer taught in public schools and wonder if those youngsters who are eligible have enough background to respond, considering the oldest eligible (18) came to the age of reason during the Bush/Cheney Administration.
But good luck.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you for your comment–and humor! In response to your inquiry, we hope that our book will help young people acquire the civics background they need not only to enter the competition but also be active and informed citizens. The point of Fault Lines in the Constitution, after all, is that our Constitution continues to affect everyday politics.
LikeLike
I don’t know if “Fault Lines” addresses Halberstam’s “the best and the brightest,” but if it does, the NYTimes today (Halloween) features an essay by Jonathan Kirshner titled “When the Wise Men Failed” LBJ. The “wise men” continued to fail under Nixon regarding the Vietnam War and Watergate. We are a nation of laws, not of men. But sometimes the men abuse the laws. Those eligible for the contest have the benefit of Ken Burns’ documentary on PBS to understand what the Vietnam War did to our democracy. [I realize that “men” should be expanded to include “women,” but other events in the news keeps the emphasis on “men.”] And there was no Declaration of War by Congress regarding Vietnam, which suggests “Fault Lines” with both the Executive and Legislative Branches.
LikeLike
No. The book does not mention Halberstam. You might be interested to know that Brookline Booksmith has two copies.
LikeLike