If you teach civics, you know the textbook problem. The books in the closet are ten years old, half the class left theirs at home, and the online version needs a login nobody remembers. I got tired of it, so I built one.
The Civics and Government Online Textbook is free, and all 13 units are live today. Students click a reading and it opens right on the page. There's nothing to download, no account to make, and no app to install.
Open the Civics Online Textbook
What's in each reading
I wrote these the way I'd want to teach them. Every reading follows the same pattern, so students know what to expect by the second one:
- Key vocabulary up front. Students see the words before they run into them in the text.
- "Look for as you read." Three things to watch for, so reading has a purpose.
- Short sections with real photos. Historical paintings, primary documents, and photos of the places they're reading about, each with a caption.
- Check Your Understanding. Five questions at the end that work as a quick check, an exit ticket, or a warm-up the next day.
The readings are view only. Students can read them, but they can't download or copy them, which keeps the focus on the reading itself.
The 13 units
Each unit has its own page with 3 to 5 readings:
- USA Facts and Symbols: founding documents, the flag, the Great Seal, the Pledge, and government buildings
- Background to Government: what a state is, why we have government, types of government, and economic systems
- New Nation: the Articles of Confederation, the Constitutional Convention, the big compromises, and ratification
- The Constitution: principles, checks and balances, amendments, and citizenship
- The Legislative Branch: the House and Senate, committees, powers of Congress, and how a bill becomes a law
- The Executive Branch: the president, the Electoral College, the Cabinet, and federal agencies
- The Judicial Branch: the federal courts and how the Supreme Court decides cases
- Rights and Freedoms: the Bill of Rights and the First Amendment freedoms
- Citizenship: becoming a citizen, duties and responsibilities, and the rights of the accused
- American Law: where our laws come from, civil law, and criminal law
- Politics, Voting, and Elections: parties, primaries, campaigns, and paying for elections
- Interest Groups and Media: lobbying, public opinion, polls, and spotting propaganda
- Foreign Affairs: foreign policy, alliances, democracy around the world, and the United Nations
How I'd use it in class
Here's what has worked for me, both as a teacher and still today when I teach students online at night:
As the "we do" step. After you model a concept, read the section together. Stop at each photo and ask what students notice before you read the caption.
For students who are absent. Send the link. They read the same thing the class read, and the check questions tell you whether they got it.
For sub days. One reading and its five questions makes a solid, low-prep plan any sub can run.
Alongside your curriculum. The units match the Learned Lessons Civics curriculum, so the readings drop right into the guided notes, games, and activities you may already use.
Want more like this?
Civics is the first one. World Geography, Economics, U.S. History, World History, and Science are on the way. You can see what's live and what's coming on the Free Online Textbooks page, and if you sign up for email updates there, you'll hear when each new textbook goes up.
If this helps your classroom, pass the link to a teacher friend. Planning is easier with company.
Happy Planning,
Learned Lessons
