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Welcome to The Judicial Learning Center 2026 Student Art Competition! Entry in the competition is free and open to all students in grades 1-12 within the Eastern District of Missouri.

Teaching about juries can be difficult and abstract, especially for younger students. These lessons are designed to support your work as a social studies or an art teacher.

Each lesson plan is color-coded so you can quickly jump to what you need:

Red - MO Learning Standards

Blue - Material for your students to watch, read, or explore

Green - Practical and engaging learning activities to help your students to explore jury service

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After learning about juries, students will create an artwork representing a jury using one of the techniques approved for the competition.  Art works will be judged based on the following criteria:  originality, design, technique, content, and appeal to the theme of “Juries.”

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This competition is about “juries”, so students must have a working understanding of what a jury is, what it does, how they look, etc. If the art teacher is in need of resources regarding “juries”, he/she should consult with the social studies teacher. The same situation exists if the social studies teacher is in need of assistance with the art techniques. Though not required, the ideal situation is the two teachers working together to reinforce both jury content and art techniques.

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A signed "Student Entry and Release Form" must be attached to each work of art.

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All artwork and entry forms are due by 4:00 PM on March 30, 2026!

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Classroom teachers can contact us about bulk submission options.

Email: programs@judiciallearningcenter.org

Call: (314) 244-2412

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1-5.SS.1.A Role of citizens and governments in carrying out constitutional principles

1-5.SS.2.C Processes of government systems in decision-making

1-5.SS.2.D Functions of government systems

1-5.SS.7.B Use visual tools to communicate information and ideas

1-5.ELAR.2.C Develop and apply skills and strategies to comprehend, analyze, and evaluate drama (Mock Trial activities)

1-5.MA.Cr2A Organize and develop artistic ideas and work

1-5.MA.Cr3A Refine and complete artistic work

1-5.MA.Cn10A Synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences to make art

1-5.MA.Cn11A Relate artistic ideas and works with societal, cultural, and historical context to deepen meaning

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6-8.AH.2.1.A Analyze laws, policies, and processes to determine how governmental systems affect individuals and groups in society.

6-8.AH.2.3.E Apply the principles of rule of law, representation, separation of powers, checks and balances, and federalism to explain the purposes and functions of the Constitution.

6-8.AH.2.3.F Describe the origins and purposes of the Bill of Rights and evaluate the enduring significance of these concepts to the preservation of individual rights and liberties.

6-8.AH.2.3.G Examine elections, issues, laws, and events of this time period to explain how the concepts of judicial review, elastic clause, and an amendment process were established or used to meet challenges.

6-8.AH.2.5.B Analyze federalism and popular sovereignty to explain peoples’ expectations of the role of government and their place in governance.

6-8.MA.Cr2A Organize and develop artistic ideas and work

6-8.MA.Cr3A Refine and complete artistic work

6-8.MA.Cn10A Synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences to make art

6-8.MA.Cn11A Relate artistic ideas and works to societal, cultural, and historical context to deepen meaning.

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9-12.GV.2.1.A Analyze laws, policies, and processes to determine how governmental systems affect individuals and groups in society.

9-12.GV.2.3.C Analyze the unique roles and responsibilities of the three branches of government to determine how they function and interact.

9-12.GV.2.3.E Explain how the Bill of Rights and subsequent amendments limit the power of government, protect individual liberty, and provide for equality under the law.

9-12.MA.Cr2A Organize and develop artistic ideas and work

9-12.MA.Cr3A Refine and complete artistic work

9-12.MA.Cn10A Synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences to make art

9-12.MA.Cn11A Relate artistic ideas and works to societal, cultural, and historical context to deepen meaning.

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Have your students complete this activity sheet as they watch the video. Discuss their answers as a group.

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This video is an excellent introduction to juries, but may provide too much detail for younger students. Preview this video in advance to select the clips that fit your students' level of understanding and interest.

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Complete the webquest for this online module

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The Judicial Learning Center | An online companion to the Judicial Learning Center in St. Louis, Missouri.

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How Courts Work | The Judicial Learning Center

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An online companion to the Judicial Learning Center in St. Louis, Missouri.

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Participate in a mock trial about Susan B. Anthony. Exhibits/evidence for the trial can be downloaded here.

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If your whole class needed to agree on one game to play at recess, could you? A jury is a group of people who all need to agree on a difficult decision. One way for a group to make a decision is for the members to find common ground. Try this game to practice.

Instructions:

1. Divide the class into pairs. Give each pair two minutes to identify as many things that they have in common as possible.

2. Combine two sets of pairs into a group of 4. Give them two minutes for them to identify as many things that they have in common as possible.

3. Continue to combine groups until there is just one large group. See if the whole group can find something that they all have in common.

4. Discuss. Is it easy for two people to find something they can agree on? Maybe they both like French fries or both wear green shoes. What happened when your group got larger? Did anyone think this was easy? What made it difficult? What was the strangest thing that you had in common? How big was the group before it got really hard?

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Watch the video with your class. Assign students the task of interviewing someone who has served on a jury (parent, neighbor, other relative). As a group, brainstorm 5 interview questions. Questions might include:

1. How were you chosen to be a juror?

2. What happened in the case?

3. What surprised you the most?

4. How difficult was it to reach a verdict?

5. What do you think is important for students to know about jury duty?

Build in time on the due date to allow students to report back to the group about their interview.

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Knowledge Seminar - Jury Duty Experience - People on the Street Interviews

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Watch the video and then examine this webpage about juror experiences. Write 7 - 10 questions (focus on how and why questions) that you might ask someone who has served on a jury. Then interview an adult about their experience serving on a jury.

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Knowledge Seminar - Jury Duty Experience - People on the Street Interviews

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Complete all or part of this 2-day lesson plan on jury trials

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Give your students the chance to participate in a mock trial using this Reader's Theater of an actual court case. Use random selection to decide who will play the part of the jury.

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Give your students the chance to participate in a mock trial using this Reader's Theater of an actual court case. Use random selection to decide who will play the part of the jury.

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Why is all this free?

AnnenbergClassroom.org is a project of the Leonore Annenberg Institute for Civics, a nonprofit, nonpartisan program of the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania, in partnership with the Annenberg Foundation Trust at Sunnylands.

Our founder, Leonore Annenberg, believed that engaged and well-informed citizens are vital to making our government work at the local, state and federal levels. AnnenbergClassroom.org strives to help develop citizens who demand and support a functioning democracy, realizing Mrs. Annenberg's vision of generations who will go out and fulfill their civic calling.

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Annenberg Classroom's free resources include over 65 videos on constitutional concepts and Supreme Court cases as well as games, lesson plans, timelines, downloadable books, a glossary, and a Constitution guide.

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The Bill of Rights Institute has produced classroom-ready content for over 20 years. Our library of 4,000 resources, including 650 lessons, 300 essays, and more than 300 videos can all be found here!

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Resources Library - Bill of Rights Institute

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Our library of 4000 resources, including 650 lessons, 300 essays, and more than 300 videos can all be found here!

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Learn about the text, history, and meaning of the U.S. Constitution from leading scholars of diverse legal and philosophical perspectives.

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Street Law's Resource Library is full of great resources (including mock trials) for students. Create a free account!

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Hi, we're Street Law. Since 1972, we've been hard at work in communities and schools across the country and around the globe, developing programs and teaching materials that educate people about law and government.

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Trial by Jury was not invented by our Founding Fathers. Listen to this podcast to explore where this right comes from and why the framers thought it was so important. Explore the LOC to find more about its origins.

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Trial by Jury - Magna Carta: Muse and Mentor | Exhibitions - Library of Congress

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The right to a trial by jury, one of the most time-honored inheritances from Magna Carta in United States law, refers to the guarantee that courts will depend on a body of citizens to render judgments in most civil and criminal cases.

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How is someone selected to serve on a jury? Participate in this activity to learn how voir dire works.

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Who can serve on a jury? Test your knowledge with this quiz on juror qualifications.

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Use this activity to explore landmark Supreme Court cases about how race and gender are considered in the jury selection process.

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Learn about two Supreme Court cases that dealt with jury selection, relating to the Sixth Amendment.

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Try your hand at assembling an impartial group of 12 with this engaging game!

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Law Focused Education, Inc. | Student Outreach