Teaching Civics after Election Day
We Declare! Challenge: Civic Learning, History, and Student Voice Amplified
As the birthplace of the American Revolution, Massachusetts has a unique opportunity to mark the 250th anniversary of our nation’s founding with a bold, statewide civic event. iCivics invites every 8th grade student and educator in Massachusetts to take part in the We Declare! Challenge, a dynamic opportunity to perform a dramatic reading of the document that sparked it all: The Declaration of Independence.
Students will engage with this founding document and step into history by uniting their voices to read, interpret and perform this powerful text on video. To participate, create a video of students from your class reading from the Declaration of Independence. Submit your video to earn a $100 gift card for your class, and the potential for exciting prizes including scholarships and an appearance at the Boston Pops July 4th celebration.
Ten videos will be selected as finalists by a committee of educators and iCivics team members. The finalists will then be judged by a panel of prominent Massachusetts citizens who will select a winner and two runners-up. Judges include General Joseph Dunford, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Keith Lockhart, Conductor of the Boston Pops; and Pedro Martinez, Commissioner of the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. See our full list of prestigious judges.
Submission deadline is May 15. Additional details below.
We Declare! Challenge Details & Rules
The goal of this challenge is to have as many 8th-grade students across the state as possible engage with the Declaration of Independence by reading and understanding this important foundational document.
Eighth graders are encouraged to bring the Declaration to life in short and creative school-managed videos that feature students reading from the document.
Please see the official Terms and Conditions.
Rules and Guidelines
- Any number of students from the class can read from the Declaration and appear in the video. Not all students appearing in the video must read.
- Students should read from the first two paragraphs of the Stone Engraving version of the Declaration of Independence (for consistency).
- The full two paragraphs or any portion of them can be read in the video, as long as the video meets the time requirements.
- Video submissions will be scored against a rubric. Points will be given for creativity, clarity, enthusiasm, and originality, but the text of the document must stay intact, e.g., the exact words of the Declaration cannot be changed.
- Student commentary and dialogue can be included at the beginning or the end of the video, but must not interrupt the text of the Declaration.
- Videos must be vetted and submitted by an educator and feature conduct appropriate to a school setting.
- Videos can be filmed in any number of locations appropriate to the content of the Declaration.
Timeline
2/26: Challenge opens
4/19: Public announcement of challenge during Patriot’s Day Weekend.
5/15: Submission Deadline
5/22: First round judging closes
5/26: Semi-finalists handed off to distinguished judges for final selection
6/1: Second round judging closes and winner plus two runners up are selected
6/3: Winners are notified
Judging Rubric
See the judging rubric here.
Featured Judges
Honorary Judges: Governor Maura Healey and First Lady Joanna Lydgate.
General Joseph Dunford, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Pamela Everhart, Senior Vice President and Head of Regional Public Affairs and Community Relations for Fidelity Investments.
Deborah Glasser, Head of Specialty Care, North America, and US Country Lead, Sanofi S.A.
Reverend Gregory Groover, Chair of the Black Ministerial Alliance and Pastor, Charles Street AME Church.
Lisa Krassner, President of the Massachusetts Historical Society.
Reshma Kewalramanni M.D., President and CEO, Vertex Pharmaceuticals.
Keith Lockhart, Conductor of the Boston Pops.
Pedro Martinez, Commissioner of the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
Rhonda Pacheco, President, U.S. Business Unit and U.S. Country Head, Takeda.
Lee Pelton, President and CEO of The Boston Foundation.
The Chair of the panel is Rob Waldron, Chairman, Curriculum Associates.
How to Enter
- Gather the proper Consent and Release Forms and retain them.
- Create the video with your students. Make sure it is no longer than 250 seconds.
- Follow your school or district’s rules for informing your principal and administration about participation.
- Upload your video to YouTube or Vimeo with private viewing. Videos must be submitted by the classroom teacher or an adult school-approved representative.
- Complete the entry form with a link to your video and verify that you have met the other requirements.
We Declare! Challenge Interest Form
Fill out the form below to let us know you’re interested in submitting a video.
Implementation Tips & Student Handout
Prizes
Each class that submits a video will receive $100 in the form of a gift card.
The winning video and two runners-up will receive the following prizes:
Two runners-up
$1,500 to the school.
$250 to the submitting classroom teacher.
$250 to the submitting classroom for class materials or a celebration.
Winning video
$2,500 to the school.
$1,000 to the submitting classroom teacher.
$2,500 scholarship for each 8th grade student in the submitting class.
A spirit event with a presentation of prizes at the school on a mutually agreed-upon date.
Planned broadcast of the video at the Boston Pops July 4th celebration on the Esplanade.
Opportunity for the submitting teacher each student in the class plus one guardian to attend the Boston Pops July 4th celebration.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is eligible to enter?
All Massachusetts 8th graders in public, private, and parochial schools.
Is there a cost to enter?
No, the challenge is free to enter.
Is there a limit on how many times our school can enter?
No, enter as many times as you'd like.
Is there a minimum or maximum number of students required to be in the video?
No, but the challenge is to have as many students reading the Declaration as possible, so your video will score higher if more students appear reading.
Does every student in the video need to read?
No. Videos will get points for spirit, enthusiasm and participation, but remember the challenge is to get students to read the Declaration. A good rule of thumb is at least 50% of the students appearing in the video should read.
Can we invite students from other grades in our school building to participate?
Yes, their participation may count toward spirit points. However, the classroom and scholarship prizes are for the 8th grade class that submits the video.
Can we add comments about what the Declaration means?
Yes, student interpretation and commentary on the Declaration is encouraged, but it must be done in a way that does not disrupt the reading of text.
Who is running the We Declare! Challenge?
Private funders have partnered with iCivics to bring this opportunity to eighth graders in Massachusetts.
Find the We Declare! Challenge
Terms and Conditions here
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