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U.S. Government and Civics

Explore free resources that align with your U.S. Government and Civics curriculum.

Widen your lens on U.S. government, history, and civic learning with this curated list of videos, simulations, readings, and timelines. 

  • Understand why a country’s form of government determines whether citizens‘ voices are magnified or minimized.
  • Learn about the institutions and actors in the U.S. government who are responsible for shaping the country’s international agenda through foreign policy.
  • Unpack how specific U.S. policies have affected the lives of Americans and people all around the world. 
  • Dive into major moments in U.S. history that have shaped the United States since its founding.

Forms of Government

  • Readings

    What Are Different Types of Government?

    Learn about different forms of government—including democracy, authoritarian rule, and monarchy—and how their distinctions aren’t always so clear.

U.S. Government and Foreign Policy

  • Mini Simulations

    U.S. Arctic Policy

    Should the United States launch a new Arctic policy in response to climate change and investments from countries like China and Russia in the region? Explore this simulation.

  • Mini Simulations

    Trade Policy

    How should the United States leverage trade to respond when a rivalry between growing trade partners threatens regional stability? Explore this hypothetical simulation.

  • Mini Simulations

    Prisoner Swap

    How should the United States respond when an American citizen is unjustly detained? Explore this simulation.

  • Mini Simulations

    Armed Force

    Should the United States use armed force to address a conflict in another country? Explore this hypothetical simulation.

  • Readings

    What Is the National Security Council?

    Learn how the president’s advisors protect U.S. national security and help with foreign policy decision-making and coordination across the executive branch.

  • Readings

    Laws, Norms, and Democratic Backsliding

    Are countries less democratic than they used to be? Learn how democratic principles like checks and balances, free elections, and freedom of the press are under threat around the world.

  • Videos

    What Is Government?

    From direct and parliamentary democracy to authoritarianism, learn how rulers take power—and who decides.

U.S. History

U.S. Policies Now and Then