This Issue:

Table of Contents

Cover Story

Cover Story - Spanish Version

Mini-Lesson

Comprehension Quiz

Teacher's Guide and Worksheets

A Justice Like No Other

Spanish Translation

Sonia Sotomayor made history on September 8. She took her place on the U.S. Supreme Court. Sotomayor is the first Hispanic American to serve on the nation's top court. President Barack Obama nominated Sotomayor to be a Supreme Court Justice last May.

Sotomayor took the judicial oath in a packed courtroom. "We wish you a long and happy career," Chief Justice John Roberts said.

On the Job

Nine Justices make up the Supreme Court. They decide if laws agree with the U.S. Constitution.

Sotomayor heard her first case the day after taking the oath. She says she never dreamed she would sit on the Supreme Court.

Life Lessons

Sotomayor's parents moved from Puerto Rico to New York City. Her father died when she was 9. Her mother raised two kids on her own.

Sotomayor and her brother studied hard. He is a doctor. She became a lawyer and a judge. "[My mother] taught us that the key to success in America is a good education," Sotomayor said after her nomination. It is a lesson she and her brother learned well.

Next: The Three Branches of Government