Teacher field guide
Social policy
“It’s our policy” is not the end
When a new building rule appears, who wrote it and who does it affect?
Housing rules decide whether people can work, gather and get in and out of their own homes, and renters often have less power than whoever posts the notice. Asking who issued a rule and how it lands on different residents is how neighbors protect each other without spreading rumors.
What students make
Rewritten notice, 60–90 words
The civic idea
Words that do the work.
- Housing as a needLa vivienda como necesidad
Stable, safe housing affects health, school and work, which is why governments make rules about it.
Sami’s building is also where she runs her workshop calendar. A rule change changes her week.
- AuthorityAutoridad
The power to make or enforce a particular rule, and where that power comes from.
The notice has bold type but no issuer. Caio says design isn’t proof of authority.
- JurisdictionJurisdicción
Which laws and bodies apply to a particular place or situation.
A rule from another city can be a comparison but can’t stand in for the rules that apply here.
- Fair Housing ActLey de Vivienda Justa
A federal law barring housing discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, familial status or disability.
The notice locks the step-free rear door at 8 p.m. Sami asks how residents with disabilities keep access.
- Reasonable accommodationAjuste razonable
A change to a rule a person with a disability can request so they have equal use of their home.
Sami can ask the building for an exception to the locked-door rule. Whether it’s granted depends on facts.
- DocumentationDocumentación
A record of what was said, done or posted, with dates.
Sami photographs the notice and keeps a copy before anyone argues about what it said.
I’m not canceling my workshop over an unsigned notice. I’m also not ignoring it. Who wrote it, and how do I get in after eight?
The evidence
Handle the case file.
Every artifact comes with a question. The captions are the lesson.
NOTICEFound Monday morning
Unsigned notice beside the common-room door
FORMDistributed at lease signing
Building house rules, last year’s version
FLOOR PLANFrom the lobby directory
Building entrance plan
The workshop
45 minutes, block by block.
5 min
Read the notice
TeacherProject the notice. Ask: who wrote this?
StudentsList what the notice tells you and what it doesn’t.
CheckLists include missing issuer, date and contact.
10 min
Compare the documents
TeacherHand out the older house rules excerpt.
StudentsMark what changed and whether the notice claims to replace the older rule.
CheckStudents identify the new 8 p.m. rear-door lock and business-use ban.
10 min
Map the effects
TeacherDraw a people map: Sami, other residents, guests, the manager.
StudentsAdd how each person is affected and what each needs.
CheckMap includes step-free access and workshop use.
10 min
The legal layer
TeacherIntroduce the Fair Housing Act and reasonable accommodation as questions, not conclusions.
StudentsWrite one question about access and one about authority.
CheckQuestions don’t declare a violation.
7 min
Rewrite or respond
TeacherOffer two options: rewrite the notice fairly, or write Sami’s question to the manager.
StudentsDraft 60–100 words.
CheckDraft includes issuer, scope and contact, or a precise question.
3 min
Exit
TeacherFrame: “One fact that would change my view is __.”
StudentsComplete the frame.
CheckAnswer names a missing document or fact.
Differentiated routes
One case. Seven ways in.
Each route changes what students read, make and prove, not only how long it takes.
Middle school
Grades 6–8: Rewrite the building notice so every resident knows who wrote it, what changed, when and who to ask.
- Sources
- The notice and a short excerpt from the older house rules.
- Product
- Rewritten notice, 60–90 words
- Raises the rigor
- Add one line about how residents who need the step-free door can get in after 8 p.m.
Supports
- Checklist: who, what, when, who it affects, who to ask
- Word bank: resident, policy, effective date, contact
- Model of a clear school notice
- Pair work
Success looks like
- Names who issued it
- States what changed and when
- Gives a contact
- Considers residents who need step-free access
High school
Grades 9–10: Write Sami’s message to the building manager asking about the rule and requesting access after 8 p.m.
- Sources
- The notice, the older house rules and HUD’s Fair Housing Act overview.
- Product
- Message, 90–130 words
- Raises the rigor
- Ask for the source of the rule without accusing the manager of breaking the law.
Supports
- Message template: what I saw, what I need, what I’m asking
- Model reasonable-accommodation request language
Success looks like
- Quotes the notice accurately
- Asks who issued it and what document it changes
- Makes a specific access request
- Stays factual and respectful
High school
Grades 11–12: Write a tenant-association briefing on the notice: what it says, whom it affects, which rules may apply and what to ask.
- Sources
- All case sources plus a local tenant-resource page chosen by the teacher.
- Product
- Briefing, 400–500 words
- Raises the rigor
- Separate the communication problem from the legal question and recommend a collective next step.
Supports
- Briefing template
- Distinguishing chart: notice / lease / law
Success looks like
- Separates notice, lease and law
- Considers several residents fairly
- States legal points as questions
- Recommends a feasible collective step
High school
Honors: Argue how a building should balance security and access when setting door rules.
- Sources
- Case sources plus HUD’s overview.
- Product
- Argument, 500–600 words
- Raises the rigor
- Propose a policy that meets the security concern and residents’ access needs.
Supports
- Values chart: safety, access, privacy, cost
- Counterargument frames
Success looks like
- Clear thesis with a proposed policy
- Weighs competing values
- Uses fair-housing concepts accurately
- Addresses the landlord’s perspective
AP English Language
AP Lang: Analyze how the notice uses visual and verbal choices to claim authority it never explains.
- Sources
- The notice image and text.
- Product
- Rhetorical analysis, about 450 words
- Raises the rigor
- Compare it with your own rewritten notice and explain what each choice does for readers.
Supports
- Visual rhetoric guide
- Commentary stems
Success looks like
- Thesis on how authority is constructed
- Analyzes visual and verbal choices
- Explains effects on residents
- Comparison sharpens the analysis
Middle Years
IB MYP: Investigate “What makes a rule fair in shared housing?” and produce a guide for new residents.
- Sources
- Case sources; global context: Fairness and development.
- Product
- Resident guide plus 150-word reflection
- Raises the rigor
- Include perspectives from at least three kinds of residents.
Supports
- Inquiry statement frame
- Guide layout
- Interview questions for a family member or neighbor (optional, with permission)
Success looks like
- Research question is focused
- Accurate legal concepts
- Represents several perspectives
- Reflection connects to fairness
Diploma
IB DP: Write a perspectives analysis: how do housing rules distribute power and risk between owners and tenants?
- Sources
- Case sources and HUD overview.
- Product
- Analysis, 700–900 words
- Raises the rigor
- Evaluate the idea of housing as a right versus a market good, using the case as a real-life situation.
Supports
- Perspective table
- Key concepts: power, equality, justice
Success looks like
- Represents owner and tenant perspectives fairly
- Uses key concepts precisely
- Connects case to broader debate
- Reflects on own assumptions
Access for every learner
- Provide the notice and older rule side by side with changes highlighted
- Read HUD’s overview summary aloud
- Spanish vocabulary: aviso, inquilino, administrador, ajuste razonable
- Offer a fill-in message template
- Reduce to the rewrite-the-notice task only
Extension
- Research what local tenant organizations exist in your area and what they offer
- Compare federal fair-housing protections with your state’s list of protected characteristics
Annotated student work
What a draft shows us.
Write Sami’s message to the building manager about the new notice.
First draft
Hi, I saw the notice about the common room and rear door. 1This is illegal and discriminatory against 2disabled people like me. You can’t just make rules like this without asking. Nobody signed it and nobody told us it was coming, so I don’t even know if it’s real. I’m going to keep using the room for my workshop 3because the old rules said I could. A lot of neighbors are upset too. 4Please take the notice down. Sami, 3B
- 1Gap That’s a conclusion the facts don’t establish yet. Ask the question first.
- 2Evidence Sami’s access need is real and relevant. Describe it concretely: the step-free door.
- 3Evidence Useful: quote the older rule so the manager can check it.
- 4Audience What does Sami actually need? A specific request is easier to grant.
Revised
Hi, I’m writing about the notice posted by the common room on Monday. It says the rear door will be locked after 8 p.m. and bans business use of the room. I use a wheelchair, and the rear door is the building’s only step-free entrance, so I need a way to get in after 8. I’d like to request an accommodation, such as a key fob for that door. Could you also tell me who issued the notice and whether it replaces the house rules from last year, which allowed resident workshops? Thank you, Sami, 3B
Assessment
One-page rubric.
Mark the evidence you see. Leave room for a comment and a next step.
| Criterion | Beginning | Developing | Proficient | Advanced |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Evidence | No specifics from the notice. | Mentions the notice generally. | Quotes the notice and older rule. | Quotes both and names what is still unknown. |
| Reasoning | Declares a legal violation. | Complains without a clear need. | Connects the rule to a concrete effect. | Separates the communication problem from the legal question. |
| Audience & purpose | Hostile or vague. | Polite but no request. | Specific request the manager can act on. | Specific request plus questions that clarify authority. |
| Revision | No change. | Tone edits only. | Replaces the conclusion with a question and request. | Explains how each change makes a yes more likely. |
Evidence I saw
Next step
Standards
What this case teaches, by the book.
CCSS 6–8 3
RI.8.8Students evaluate whether the notice gives reasons and evidence for the new rule.RH.6-8.6Students identify language that signals authority or point of view in the notice.W.7.1Students write a respectful question to the building manager, supported with facts.
CCSS 9–10 3
RI.9-10.1Students cite the notice and the older policy to identify what changed.RH.9-10.8Students assess whether the notice supports its claim to authority.W.9-10.1Students argue for a revision of the rule that considers different residents.
CCSS 11–12 3
RI.11-12.1Students cite the notice, the older policy and HUD’s overview precisely.W.11-12.1Students argue how a housing rule should balance safety and access.SL.11-12.1Students discuss the notice’s effects from several residents’ perspectives.
C3 Framework 4
D2.Civ.6.9-12Students critique the relationship between private landlords, tenants and public housing law.D2.Civ.12.9-12Students analyze how residents use fair-housing protections to address rules.D2.Civ.13.9-12Students evaluate a rule’s intended outcome (security) and unintended effects (access).D4.7.9-12Students assess options for individual and collective action as residents.
AP English Language 3
Rhetorical Situation (RHS)Students analyze how a notice with no author, date or contact positions its readers.Style (STL)Students analyze bold type and imperative verbs as authority signals.Claims and Evidence (CLE)Students separate what the notice claims from what the lease or law establishes.
IB MYP 3
Individuals and Societies B: InvestigatingStudents investigate which document actually governs the common room.Individuals and Societies D: Thinking criticallyStudents evaluate the rule from several residents’ perspectives.Language and Literature D: Using languageStudents rewrite the notice in clear, fair language.
IB DP 2
Global Politics — key concepts: power, equality and justiceStudents analyze power between landlords and tenants and who bears a rule’s costs.Language A: language and literature — Readers, writers and textsStudents examine how an unsigned notice creates authority through form.
Take it off the page
Ask who wrote the rule before you argue about it.
- When a new rule is posted where you live or at school, write down the date and take a photo
- Look for who issued it and what document it changes
- Ask a trusted adult to help you ask the building manager or office
- Find your city’s or county’s tenant or housing help page with an adult