Government Information for Children (GIC)

American Presidency from the Smithsonian National Museum of American History has activities, resources, and teaching materials on the lives of the U.S. Presidents.

"Ben's Guide to the U.S. Government, a service of the Government Publishing Office (GPO), is designed to inform students, parents, and educators about the Federal Government, which issues the publications and information products disseminated by the GPO’s Federal Depository Library Program. It is our hope that Ben’s Guide to the U.S. Government fulfills that role." -- From Ben's Guide "About this site" web page.

BARD, the Braille and Audio Reading Download from the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS), is a web-based service that provides access to thousands of special-format books, magazines, and music scores from the NLS collection that are selected based on their appeal to a wide range of interests. There are more than 115,000 audio and braille fiction and non-fiction titles available and over ninety magazine titles available. BARD is password-protected, and all files are in an electronic downloadable form of compressed audio or formatted braille. BARD is a partnership between NLS and a network of cooperating libraries in the United States and its territories. NLS maintains the website, uploads titles, and supplies libraries with circulation statistics. Network libraries approve reader applications, respond to reader inquiries, and provide technical support.

The Catalog of U.S. Government Publications (CGP) is a finding tool for electronic and print publications from legislative, executive and judicial branches of the U.S. government. The CGP is produced and maintained by the U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO). The catalog is comprehensive from 1976 to the present and contains records for current and historical U.S. government publications. It also provides links to online versions when available.

Free resources: Campaigns and Elections; Congress; The Constitution; The Flag; How Government Works; The Judiciary; The Presidency; and The Story of the U.S.A.

Find primary source sets on dozens of historical topics. From Abraham Lincoln to World War I, the Library of Congress provides a rich set of resources for teachers. Included are the “Student Discovery Sets”.

The Condition of Education is a congressionally mandated annual report from the National Center for Education Statistics. The report includes key indicators on the condition of education in the United States from prekindergarten through postsecondary. It also includes labor force outcomes and international comparisons. The indicators summarize important developments and trends using the latest statistics, which are updated throughout the year as new data become available. In addition, the report includes Spotlight indicators that provide more in-depth analyses on selected topics.

The CyberCemetary was named by early users of the database and is an archive of government websites and publications that have ceased operation. The University of North Texas Libraries and the U.S. Government printing office, as part of the Federal Depository Library Program, created CyberCemetary through a partnership to provide permanent access to websites and publications from defunct U.S. Government agencies and commissions.

Available free (PDF format) from the U.S. Government Bookstore!

The Education Resources Information Center (ERIC) is an online digital library of education research and information. ERIC is sponsored by the Institute of Education Sciences of the United States Department of Education.

This collection of government comics includes digitized copies of individual issues of comics produced by United States government agencies. The collection is administered by Richard Graham at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln.

Govinfo provides free online access to official publications from all three branches of Federal Government. There is a "Features” section for special content as well as sections for recent publications and trending publications.

This is a primary source for information on U.S. colleges, universities, and technical and vocational institutions. Users can search by college, compare colleges, and use a variety of data tools.

This archived website includes links to Federal kids' sites along with kids' sites from other organizations. Site resources are divided by broad grade level: grades K-5, teens grades 6-8, and grownups. Within the grade levels the site is grouped by broad subjects: government, elections, organizations, online safety, arts, careers, geography, science, health, etc. Includes links to educational games and videos.

Includes several resources for educators including lesson plans for working with primary sources, professional development opportunities, and resources for distance learning.

Free ebooks from the National Archives! A few of the titles currently included: Putting the Bill of Rights to Test Workbook; What’s Cooking, Uncle Sam?; The Chinese Exclusion Act: Researching in the National Archives; The Meaning and Making of Emancipation, and Baseball: The National Pastime in the National Archives.

Free access to many government publications!

Provides information and resources to prevent and stop bullying and cyber bullying.

Print out this workbook full of full games, coloring pages, and historical information!

This interactive website was designed for middle-school children with the goal of explaining U.S. copyright law. A cast of characters joins Detective Cop E. Wright in discussing how the law works.

Understanding Taxes offers 38 lesson plans. Detailed lesson plans guide teachers’ instruction from the introduction of a given tax concept, through its development, to the lesson conclusion. Each lesson plan serves as an instructional guide on how to incorporate tax theory, history, and application into your classroom. This also gives teachers the freedom to choose lesson content and activities to use in the classroom.

Resources for Teachers includes section on Lesson Plans: Explaining Taxes to Kids, Government Jobs, How the Supreme Court Works, Three Branches of Government, Field Trip to the Money Factory, How a Bill Becomes a Law, How to Become President of the United States. Free posters are available to download.

Educational resources for students in Spanish.