Courthouse and Classroom Visits
Courtrooms & Classrooms is OJEN's signature program, focused primarily on schools. Courtrooms & Classrooms facilitates visits in courts and in schools, providing opportunities for students to have question and answer sessions with judges, Justices of the Peace, lawyers, Crown counsel, managers of court operations, duty counsel and others. Tens of thousands of students, and hundreds of justice sector volunteers participate in Courtrooms & Classrooms each year.
While students have been visiting local courthouses for years, Courtrooms & Classrooms enhances the level of interaction and exchange between students and law-related professions in their community. Rather than just being passive observers of court proceedings, students now have the opportunity to have their questions about the justice system answered by those involved in the process.
Aspects of Government in Canada (Grade 5)
Civics (Grade 10)
Career Studies (Grade 10)
Understanding Canadian Law (Grade 11)
Canadian and International Law (Grade 12)
Local courthouse personnel schedule visits and 'book' justice sector volunteers to meet with classes. Teachers can arrange visits by submitting an online request to their chosen courthouse, proposing a date, and the type of justice sector volunteers they would like students to meet with.
Toronto schools visiting the Ontario Court of Justice at Old City Hall, please note: The Courtrooms & Classrooms program offers access to the courts for student groups who wish to experience the justice system in action. However, the operation of the courtrooms takes priority so please be on time. If your group is late, court staff cannot guarantee that the judge will still be available to speak when you arrive. Old City Hall does not offer guided tours. You are responsible for your group while they are in the building.
- A Brief History of the Justice of the Peace Bench
- A Snapshot Sampling of Childhood, Age and Consent Restrictions- Jeffrey Wilson (SLI 2007)
- An American Visitor to A Canadian Court
- Cases That Have Changed Society
- Civil Law Mock Trial Scenario: Fadey v. Ketkluane High School
- Civil Law Mock Trial Scenario: Opolsky v. Jaswal and Pasha
- Court Cases Illustrating Some Key Values of the Justice System
- Courtroom & Classroom Visits Lesson Plans
- Courtrooms & Classrooms Manual
- ESL Student Justice Education Series - Civil Law
- ESL Student Justice Education Series - Criminal Law
- ESL Student Justice Education Series - Employment Law
- ESL Student Justice Education Series - Human Rights Law
- ESL Student Justice Education Series - Immigration Law
- Handout: Roles in the Criminal Justice System
- Handout: Structure of the Courts in Canada
- Handout: The Courts of Ontario - Flowchart
- Handout: The Jurisdiction of Ontario Courts
- Handout: Traditions of the Courts
- Justice and the Media
- Keeping Tabs on Courtroom Neckwear
- Law and the Ontario Curriculum: Elementary Version (Kindergarten to Grade 8)
- Law and the Ontario Curriculum: Secondary Version (Grades 9 to 12)
- Making the Case: Mock Hearing Toolkit
- So You Want To Be a Judge?
- The Bow
- The Coat of Arms
- The Judicial Sash
- The Oath
- The Office of Crown Attorney
- Why are we interested in robes and other remnants of the past?
- Working with Students: A Speaker’s Guide for Judges, Crowns, Lawyers, and Other Members of the Justice Sector
