The lesson plan ideas presented here are meant to serve as a starting point for teachers interested in exploring the theme of individual freedoms with their students. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights lists many freedoms that should be granted to individuals around the world. Although most civil societies endorse freedoms such as these, they do not do so without debate and controversy. Members of civil societies often engage in animated debates about the limits of different freedoms, including the boundaries of free speech and the limitations of freedom of expression. The answers to such questions are complex and hardly straightforward.
Some governments limit individual freedoms with time, place, and manner restrictions.
For example, they may govern when, where, and how an individual may speak but not what that individual may say. The challenge faced by such governments is in finding the proper balance between individual freedoms and the rights and interests of society at large.