ABOUT (OUT)LAWS & JUSTICE

(OUT)LAWS & JUSTICE brings to life connections between the past and the present through a distinctive and focused interdisciplinary curriculum where the history of the West illuminates today's culture and values. Students confront and compare the contested grounds of the frontier and the contested grounds where they live today, helping them explore their own lives in a meaningful way and understand their own pasts. Through this dynamic process, we strive to improve literacy and develop critical thinking, which are the foundations of a just and civil society as well as the foundations of a well-lived life.

(OUT)LAWS & JUSTICE is a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting students ages 11 to 14 discover their role in creating a just and civil society by examining the roots of violence and conflict-resolution skills to deal with disputes.

Our multidisciplinary history, language arts and theatre arts curriculum is structured to learn and reflect about violent events resulting from westward expansion, and the American legal doctrine of “no duty to retreat,” its origins in the American frontier, and its influence on their own lives today.

Students in (OUT)LAWS & JUSTICE do not just attend history and language arts classes, they become part of the action. Taking a cue from the educational maxim that children learn better by doing, (OUT)LAWS & JUSTICE brings theatre arts into the history and language arts classrooms. Through drama students become involved in historical situations, or situations they bring from their own lives. Through study of primary source documents, discussion, writing and role-playing, they explore difficult issues, which motivates their critical-thinking, decision-making and social skills. Students step into dramas they have written and take responsibility for solving problems, defuse conflicts and investigate issues.

Students tell us they feel a new confidence in themselves. They've made new friends. They now trust their classmates. They say that now they like history. In their plays they connect history to public polices and individual behavior, and to their own lives today.

Students emerge from (OUT)LAWS & JUSTICE better equipped to make positive choices and take constructive action on their own behalf, and on behalf of the community.

If you're interested in teaching (OUT)LAWS & JUSTICE in your school, please email Lisa Citron.

Print Designer:
René Neri

(OUT)LAWS & JUSTICE is a project of Community Partners, a 501(c)(3) whose mission is to assist organizations in effectively addressing the complex social, economic and policy issues.).

“You can't just read it, you have to know it!”
—Student

An assumption of (OUT)LAWS & JUSTICE is that a link exists between literacy and violence such that improving literacy can be associated with reducing violence. We believe a link exists between the ability to communicate effectively and reduced youth violence. The measurable objectives are to increase achievement in literacy by meeting select California State Standards in history-social science, language arts and theater arts, to enable students to comprehend alternatives to violent behavior by equipping them with the tools to analyze sources and consequences of violent conflict, and by learning conflict resolution skills through using drama to create learning and change. Finally, (OUT)LAWS & JUSTICE provides a forum for students to become leaders by initiating a dialogue with their audiences about their plays.

There are four components to (OUT)LAWS & JUSTICE:

1. The (OUT)LAWS & JUSTICE student work-textbook of ten chapters. Over sixty percent of the contents are 19th century primary-source documents. These narratives attract learners-even those with poor reading skills.
2. The companion (OUT)LAWS & JUSTICE Teacher's Guide. Each of the ten chapters is introduced with specific learning objectives, focus questions, historical and social science analysis skill standards, and historical background. Each chapter includes suggested performance tasks scaffolded into each lesson. The tasks provide explicit connections between new material and students' prior knowledge and experience. The Theatre Residency Sequence Outline shows how to implement theatre and playwriting. An annotated bibliography is included.
3. A resident theater artist for each classroom. The theater artist assists students to create their own dramas from what they learn in the classroom about history and themselves.
4. (OUT)LAWS & JUSTICE Professional Development Institute. A 3-day Institute, and in-class mentoring once monthly. Provides time for teachers and teaching artists to understand, organize and teach the subject matter. Teachers learn how to document students' learning and make both learning and teaching visible. The goal is to offer all students a rigorous and aesthetic curriculum that is culturally pertinent and linguistically responsive to their unique learning needs.