Igniting Civic Engagement: Project Ideas for Empowering Students

Civic education is more than memorizing facts about government. It’s about empowering students to become active, informed, and responsible citizens who can shape their communities and the world around them. Yet, in reality, how much of our class time is dedicated to allowing students to participate? Probably less than we’d care to admit, right? No, shame! I think that’s the biggest misunderstanding about PBL-style learning-that one project, thus one topic, takes up weeks you simply don’t have. This article explores a variety of civics learning project ideas designed to spark student interest, develop essential skills, and foster a lifelong commitment to civic participation. These projects range from quick, in-class activities to more in-depth investigations, catering to diverse learning styles and time constraints.

Fostering Civic Identity and Goal Setting

Preamble-Inspired Goal Setting

Begin by analyzing the Preamble to the Constitution with your students. As you analyze it with your students, spend a few minutes looking at it from this goal-setting angle. Have students follow the Preamble’s structure or simply take inspiration from it. Then, encourage them to post their goal somewhere as a reminder. This activity encourages students to think about their own goals and how they can contribute to the common good, connecting historical principles to their personal lives.

Exploring Personal Identity and Civic Roles

Encourage students to reflect on their own identities and how they connect to their roles as citizens. A "Lesson on Identity and Belonging" engages students in reflecting on their own identities in order to better understand their own civic identities. In this lesson, students can reflect individually and share with peers what they are comfortable discussing. Similarly, a "Lesson on Diversity & Inclusion" engages students in reflecting on concepts of diversity and inclusion in order to better understand their own civic identities.

Understanding the Electoral Process

Voter Registration Drives

One of the most direct ways to engage students in the democratic process is by facilitating voter registration. Every state allows teens to pre-register to vote. Pencil in 20 minutes one day to give students time to do so. Typically, it can be done online or with a paper form. Procedures and deadlines differ by state, so look into this well before Election Day if you’re doing it in the fall. Colleges receive tens of thousands of applications from academically talented students. However, only a fraction of those applicants demonstrate initiative and impact that extends beyond the classroom. Want to get your generation involved in democracy? Organize a voter registration drive at your school or local community center. This form of civic leadership shows your commitment, character, and readiness to contribute to a vibrant campus culture.

Preparing Sample Ballots

To help familiarize students with the voting process before participating in a real election, high school government teacher Kendra Parker has them research and prepare a sample ballot. After walking the class through their state’s online voter registration process, students use the voter portal to identify which candidates and issues will appear on their ballot. In lieu of an active election, you can use a sample county ballot from a previous election. “I model for them how I find information and explain some of my thought process for positions,” Parker told Edutopia, recommending to students resources such as Ballotpedia, Vote411, and their local library’s online civic engagement offerings. Students next record their selections on a handout and complete reflection questions evaluating “how simple or complex they thought the system was and identifying their key factors in determining how to vote.” The handout doubles as a tool they can bring with them to the polls.

Read also: Understanding PLCs

Candidate Forums and Interactions with Elected Officials

Find at least one small way to connect with an elected official during class. During odd-year elections, it’s just local races. You better believe my students decide which candidates they support based on the answers we receive. Your legislative branch unit also is an easy way for students to connect with elected officials. Candidate Forums by G. Edward Fielder in Harford County. Created for high school. HistoryLevel of Service: IndirectProject Description: Our service-learning project informed Harford County voters, especially younger voters, about the 2002 election's local candidates.

Analyzing Political Platforms and Addressing Misinformation

Platform Comparisons

Instead of relying on potentially biased quizzes, empower students to analyze party platforms directly. First, students usually don’t have background knowledge of the topics being asked about. Second, no quiz itself is going to be wholly unbiased. Instead, it’s much more impactful, real-world, and, frankly, easier for students to create their own. We make them by going directly to the sources-the party platforms themselves. I have students read and compare the platforms’ preambles. They’re only a few paragraphs, so easy to make connections and inferences about.

Combating Fake News

False information is all over the internet-that’s nothing new-but “now that anyone with access to a phone or computer can publish information online, it’s getting harder to tell,” writes former editorial director of Common Sense Sierra Filucci. Students can play a role in helping their family and friends think a bit more critically before believing everything they read online by creating a media literacy guide. After compiling resources from trusted sources-the College Board suggests using Newseum, Media Literacy Now, or PBS NewsHour-on how to best approach new media outlets, kids can lay everything out using design tools like Canva, record short videos using Flip, or create PowerPoint presentations.

Exploring the Three Branches of Government

Mock Government

This is a great project to do when covering the three branches. Decide if you want to do them all at once after covering the three branches or focus on the officers of one branch at a time.

Touring Local Government Buildings

An in-person tour at a government building allows students to see how systems they’ve learned about actually work in practice. Burrows likes to first understand “where students came from” and what they know, and then focus on “how you can build on that and extend it.” For example, eighth-grade students had learned about the criminal justice system, so a field trip to the courthouse to meet a judge was particularly resonant.

Read also: Learning Resources Near You

Engaging in Civic Action and Service

Small Acts of Civic Participation

You likely have a standard or two that involve a civics service project or civic participation, which, of course, sounds amazing but also a little unrealistic. However, that’s the ultimate PBL for a Civics & Government class, isn’t it? So, challenge students to do small things that don’t require instructional time.

Interviewing Community Members

This is one project I especially carve a few class periods out for. Students pick someone to interview who has a unique perspective on it-a veteran, a person of a different political leaning, a government worker, or a business owner. And their write-ups are true treasures. Just a few months after this project one year, a student’s grandfather passed, and if it weren’t for her interview, she and her parents would have never known certain details about his immigration story.

Expressing Views Through Art

This is a great project to complete when covering civil rights and the Bill of Rights. First, we do a short deep dive into the details of how the First Amendment applies within the walls of public schools. Then, students create a button expressing their views on an issue. Talk about an authentic PBL project! I love seeing their buttons pinned to their backpacks for the rest of the year. Your creativity can be a powerful civic tool. Use art to amplify unheard voices or tell important stories.

Citizen Action Campaigns

The College Board suggests having students create a citizen action campaign-creating a blog, flyer, or video public service announcement using YouTube or Flip “to inform or persuade others.” Topics can range from environmental conservation to gun violence prevention-anything that motivates your students to take action. They can take things one step further and pound the pavement, spreading the message around the school, at the local library, or at other places where people congregate.

Community Improvement Projects

Several projects in this category prepare students to become leaders in a variety of service-learning activities.

Read also: Learning Civil Procedure

Community Gardens and Food Drives: You can take action by starting a community garden, building a seed library or organizing regular food drives. Consider partnering with local food banks or nonprofits to distribute your harvest.
Environmental Initiatives: Lead an environmental initiative, such as organizing community clean-ups, starting a recycling drive or launching a school composting program.
Health Fairs: Host a health fair in partnership with local clinics or universities. Distribute hygiene kits, offer wellness workshops or create educational materials on basic health topics such as nutrition, hygiene and disease prevention.

Addressing Specific Community Needs: Project Examples

Hallmark School Parking Proposal: Students at Hallmark Charter School in Sanger felt that the current parking lot poses several hazards and is in need of expansion or revision.
Mentalica Mondays: Kings River High School started a Mental Health club to motivate and inspire students to believe in themselves and in doing so they also spread positive messages and events through the school. So what exactly does that mean? It means showing that you care. That you take initiative. That, as a high school student, you’re someone who doesn’t just study hard but also works to make a difference in the community around you.
Homeless Animal Awareness: We will create club/group to help raise awareness for homeless animals, help neuter stray animals for free, and overall create a safe environment for our furry friends. hopefully with the help of the SPCA.
Stress Ball Creation: Our group decided to make stress balls for students who are not feeling well and need work of some anxiety.
Graffiti Removal: Our group spent several days out at lost lake to remove graffiti from the Native American grinding holes.
Cyber Crime Education for Seniors: Our group trained seniors at Vineyards senior living facility on cyber crimes and how to personally prevent them.
Legacy Video: Project: Legacy Video.

Developing Essential Skills

Peer Tutoring Programs

Create a peer tutoring program for your high school or offer free academic support to younger students. You can work with local libraries, after-school programs or English as a Second Language (ESL) students in your area.

Financial Literacy Initiatives

Start a financial literacy club that covers topics such as budgeting, saving, investing and understanding credit. Don’t go it alone. Work with local nonprofits, teachers or join our mentorship program for a 1-on-1 guidance.

Public Speaking and Debate

Participate in activities like mock trials or debates on current events to hone public speaking and critical thinking skills.

Civil Conversations

Democracy is a “system built upon civil discourse as the means to work out our differences peacefully,” educational consultant Tom Driscoll and former educator Shawn McCusker write, but this sort of conversation seems increasingly hard to come by. “According to Pew Research, 45 percent of Americans report that they have stopped talking to someone as a result of their political views,” the pair write. Create Space for Civil Conversations.

Each One Teach One

“One of the best demonstrations of mastery of a specific skill is to teach that skill to someone else,” writes high school English teacher Jason Abril. Students are often very proficient teachers, something Burrows uses to his advantage. He assigns students from each grade a different topic-local, county, state, and federal government, for example. “Students create a canned lesson about that, which they then present to each grade level,” he says. This is a great way to encourage students to engage in civics-related conversations that sharpen key skills like research, oral presentation, and reflection.

Exploring Global Citizenship

Learning About Other Governments

Many students might learn about our own government and stop there, but Burrows likes to encourage his students to expand their horizons. Learning about the governments of other countries provides interesting cultural perspectives, helping students develop a broader understanding of political dynamics globally.

International Collaboration

Burrows set up a joint project where his students and students from another country could teach each other about their respective governments. Embassy introduced him to a Croatian high school teacher who ended up being a perfect fit. Because of the time difference, finding a slot for the two classes to talk in real time wasn’t possible, but students recorded and replied to each other’s videos using Flip.

Overcoming Obstacles: The Importance of Pushback

What a tragedy when voting is arguably our most essential right in a representative democracy and requires know-how. If you have been given these directives, push back a little. This makes the process feel more official and demystifies it.

Learning from Real-World Scenarios

High school history teacher Nicholas Ferroni knows the answer to that question. “Think of five things that benefit the majority of students to make things better for you guys,” he said to his class. “School policies, page 32, section 7b of the school handbook states: ‘In order to establish a fair and balanced school climate, students may suggest and even petition for new school policies with 10 percent of the size of an actual class.’” Kids got to work brainstorming topics to advocate for and wrote a petition to amend the school’s dress code to be more equitable, add career-based and life skills classes, and set a later school start time. Students got up one by one to sign the petition, and Ferroni delivered it to the principal. Activities like this can bring civics to life, illustrating the importance of civic engagement and helping students identify their core values-as well as “how much they’re willing to sacrifice for what they believe in,” Ferroni says.

Resources for Project Implementation

Civics Project Artifacts Library

This library includes a curated collection of examples from educators and students across Massachusetts that can support the planning and implementation of high-quality, non-partisan, student-led civics projects across Massachusetts classrooms, schools, and districts. All of the resources included in the Civics Projects Artifacts Library align to one or more of the project stages and represent the many ways projects can take shape in both grade 8 and high school. To learn more about the six project stages and the student-led civics projects more generally, please see our Civics Project Guidebook.

Examples of Artifacts

A Civics Project Unit Packet for Students: This example resource is a unit packet to guide students through the full project process. This packet breaks the project down into actionable steps with specific skills laid out for students to ensure it is meaningful and accessible for English Learners and students on Individual Education Plan.
A Lesson for Cross-Classroom Project Collaboration: This example resource is a lesson developed to support students working on similar issues across classrooms to collaboratively develop an action plan.
Brainstorming, Narrowing, and Selecting an Issue Activity: This example resource prompts students during the early stages of their civics project to think and write reflectively as they build civic awareness and prepare for engaging more deeply in their civics projects.
Building Consensus Activity for Students: This example resource is focused on helping students build consensus within small groups around an identified topic.
Civics Project Playlist: A Project Outline and Process Guide to Support Students Work: This example resource provides students with an outline of the entire project process, including key milestones and check-in points, helping to keep them focused and on track throughout all six stages.
Collecting and Analyzing Research: Destigmatizing Periods: This project example is a Padet students created for a project about destigmatizing periods in school during the research phase. Students used Padlet to collect and share research materials for their project.
Identifying and Presenting an Issue Activity: This example resource provides an overview of the civics project with a particular focus on supporting students in preparing to identify an issue by pitching an issue to their peers in advance of a whole-class vote.
Memo to a State Representative: Mental Health: This project example is a written memo to a state representative outlining bill proposal by the whole class for improving students' mental health. It utilizes their research from Stage 3.
Participatory Action Research Teams Guide: This example resource takes the idea of a Participatory Action Team from Generation Citizen and modifies it by adding scaffolds to support students at each step. This resource includes examples and templates.
Planning for and Taking Action: A Class Compilation: This project example is a slide show presentation of a compilation of student work. It profiles various student-led actions aligned to project stages 4, 5, and 6. Project topics profiled include expanding voting rights and climate activism, and some of the profiled action steps include writing state government officials, launching a social media campaign, and making a speech at a town hall meeting.
Presentation & Reflection Process Guide for Students: This example resource features guiding reflection questions to support students in deep reflection about their civics project and, ultimately, the presentation of these reflections to their peers.
Presenting the Project: Cultural Representation: This project example is a slide show presentation in which a student showcases their final project related to more accurately representing the culture and history of Native Americans in local public spaces.
Presenting the Project: Inclusive Education: This project example is a slide show presentation in which students are advocating for a more inclusive educational experience, specifically in support of LGBTQ+ students in their district.
Presenting the Project: Land, Waste, and Cleanup: This project example is a slide show presentation of a compilation of student work. It profiles various student-led actions aligned to all six project stages. The profiled project topic is food waste.
Presenting the Project: Mental Health: This project example is a slide show presentation in which students reflect on their work across all six stages of their project focused on improving students' mental wellness.
Presenting the Project: Plastics & Recycling at School: This project example is a video of students showcasing their project about replacing school water fountains with water bottle fillers.
Presenting the Research and Action Plan: Styrofoam Pollution: This project example is a slide show presentation in which students identify a local community problem - Styrofoam pollution and its impact on wildlife - and then present their research and action plan.
Presenting the Research: Bullying: This project example is a slide show presentation in which students presented their research on bullying at their school and advocated for the passage of legislation related to suicide prevention.
Project Outline & Process Guide for Students: This example resource organizes the six stages of student-led civics projects into two manageable parts, each with check points for students.
Research & Investigation Process Guide with Rubric for Students: This example resource guides students through the investigation and research process, helping them to identify the root cause of their issue in order to create an action plan.
Research Process & Notes Guide for Students: This example resource is a graphic organizer to help students engage with the research process is a systematic way.
Selecting a Project Topic Process Guide with Rubric for Students: This example resource is a unit that takes students though the process of brainstorming, narrowing, and selecting a project topic in small groups.

Video Resources

Several video resources are available to guide students through different stages of civics projects:

Stage 1 in Action at Lunenburg High School: Supports students as they move through Stage 1 of the Civics Project, Examining the Self and Civic Identity.
Stage 2 in Action at Lunenburg High School: Guides students as they work on Identifying an Issue for Stage 2 of the Civics Project.
Stage 3 in Action at Bourne Middle School: Prepares students for Stage 3 of the Civics Project, Researching and Investigating, by supporting them in sorting into groups based on project topic.
Stage 3 in Action at Lowell High School: Students hear from guest speaker as they prepare to dive into root causes for Stage 3 of the Civics Project, Researching and Investigating.
Stage 3 in Action at Lunenburg High School: Works with students on Stage 3 of the Civics Project, Researching and Investigating.
Stage 4 in Action at Bourne Middle School: Guides students through beginning to develop their action plans for Stage 4 of the Civics Project, Developing an Action Plan.
Stage 4 in Action at Lowell High School: Works with students as they begin organizing for Stage 4 of the Civics Project, Developing an Action Plan.
Stage 4 in Action at Lunenburg High School: Works with students as they move into Stage 4 of their Civics Projects, Developing an Action Plan.
Stage 5 in Action at Lowell High School: Supports students in working through Stage 5 of the Civics Project, Taking Action.

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