Stacey Goldberg

Stacey Goldberg Courtney Barker American History/ 11th grade The American Presidents

Lesson Topic: This lesson allows students to explore their own political beliefs and their beliefs about what qualities make up a good leader. Students will have an opportunity to use primary documents in order to create their own version of history of the American Presidency. In a previous activity, students would have worked collaboratively to determine what qualities they find desirable in a leader. We will review the activity and encourage students to use those criteria that they created to construct a valid argument for why their assigned president was the greatest American President.

Rationale: This lesson is crucial in assisting students in developing their values, identifying their political beliefs, and therefore choosing a political party in the future. It is the duty of a social studies class to assist in the development of citizens that can effectively participate in a democratic society.

Guiding Questions: - Who was the best American President and why? - What qualities make up a good leader? - What are some ways a citizen can participate in a democratic society? - What are the pivotal differences between the Democratic and Republican parties? - What are some things you should consider while deciding on whom to vote for president? - How does the media influence your political choices?

Lesson Objectives: - After students have completed their readings, they will be able to identify Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and John F. Kennedy through the aid of their presentations, notes, and group members. - After listening to their classmate’s presentations, students will be able to identify the two main political parties and choose which one they agree with most in a mock election. - After completing this lesson, students will be able to become active participants in the political process when they vote in the mock election.

Content: The main ides of this lesson are as follows: 1. Good leaders have certain qualities. 2. What qualities each citizen believes are important varies from citizen to citizen. 3. The beliefs that a person holds to be vital is what formulates that person’s political identity and party affiliation. In this lesson students will learn about five former presidents that many people hold in high esteem. Working collaboratively students will have to formulate an argument as to why their assigned president is the best former American President. This will help students learn how to devise an objective argument regardless of personal opinion. Also, by using the primary document that we will be provided to them, they will learn the necessary research and study skills that historian utilize on a regular basis. This lesson also touches on aspects of democracy and ranges over a large time span so that students will be able to get a more comprehensive feel for the changes in political climate. The lesson will touch upon such significant historical events as the Revolutionary War, the Louisiana Purchase, slavery, the New Deal and the Bay of Pigs through primary documents. Students will utilize these primary documents to convince their classmates that their presidents really were the best.

Methods and Activities: The methods that will be utilized in this lesson will include the jig-saw method, brainstorming, cooperative learning, and group discussion. The jig-saw method allows students experts to present various opinions, it can enhance discussion, and the frequent change in speakers keeps student attention from lagging. Brainstorming is a listening exercise that allows students to think creatively in order to come up with new ideas. It also encourages participation by all students because it draws on the groups’ prior knowledge and experience. Cooperative learning creates a stress free environment in which students can share their ideas, beliefs and opinions. Cooperative learning also allows students to take an active role in their learning. This method also keeps a large amount of work manageable. Group discussion allows all students to participate even if the class is very large. This method also creates a low stress environment in which students can share ideas. This lesson would take up two eighty minute class periods. The opening activities for this lesson will consist of a review of a prior activity in which the students created their own transparency containing their criteria for a good leader. This criterion would include honesty, education, morals, etcetera. The teacher would review these characteristics and discuss with the class why they are important. This activity will take ten minutes. After the opening activity, students will be given detailed instruction on how to complete the main activity and the procedures for how to present their group’s President. The students would then be broken into five groups of five. They would then be assigned a former President at random and given the primary sources for that particular President. Students would then read their primary sources and then discuss what facts they would include to convince the rest of the class that their President was the best President. This part of the main activity would take about seventy minuets. After the group has come to a consensus as to what facts to present they will then choose one group member to present their President to the class. This activity would take approximately twenty minuets. The closing activity would consist of a mock election in which they would vote which former President they would choose based on the information given to the class in the presentations. After this, while the ballots are being tallied, the students will fill out their peer evaluation sheets. This would be followed by a whole class discussion on why the class chose the President they did and then a question and answer session to ensure that the main points of the lesson were learned. This activity would take approximately sixty minuets.

Materials and Resources: 1. Previous activity overheads 2. Overhead Projector 3. Ballot 4. Ballot box 5. Primary sources about the presidents 6. Peer evaluation sheet

- George Washington - o Historic Valley Forge . http://www.ushistory.org/valleyforge/washington/profanity.ht ml o Bartleby.com – . http://www.bartleby.com/124/pres13.html o PBS – . http://www.pbs.org/georgewashington/timeline/index.html o TeachingAmericanHistory.org . http://www.teachingamericanhistory.com/library/index.asp? document=42

- Thomas Jefferson - o Bartleby.com – . http://www.bartleby.com/124/pres16.html . http://www.bartleby.com/124/pres17.html o American Memory – . http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r? ammem/mcc:@field(DOCID+@lit(mcc/028 o TeachingAmericanHistory.org . http://www.teachingamericanhistory.com/library/index.asp? document=45

- Abraham Lincoln – o Bartleby.com – . http://www.bartleby.com/124/pres31.html . http://www.bartleby.com/124/pres32.html o TeachingAmericanHistory.org . http://www.teachingamericanhistory.com/library/index.asp? document=50 . http://www.teachingamericanhistory.com/library/index.asp? document=424 . http://www.teachingamericanhistory.com/library/index.asp? document=781 . http://www.teachingamericanhistory.com/library/index.asp? document=33

- Franklin Delano Roosevelt - o PBS - . http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/presidents/32_f_roosevelt/ps ources/ps_inaugural1.html . http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/presidents/32_f_roosevelt/ps ources/ps_inaugural2.html . http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/presidents/32_f_roosevelt/ps ources/ps_inaugural3.html . http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/presidents/32_f_roosevelt/ps ources/ps_inaugural4.html . http://condor.depaul.edu/~history/webresources/usprimary/F DRoosevelt3.htm . http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1942roosevelt- sacrifice.html

- John F. Kennedy – o Bartleby.com – . http://www.bartleby.com/124/pres56.html o PBS – . http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/presidents/35_kennedy/psou rces/ps_natspace.html o USINFO.STATE.GOV – . http://usinfo.state.gov/usa/infousa/facts/democrac/66.htm o Modern History Source Book – . http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1962kennedy-cuba.html

Evaluation: - Peer Evaluation o This form will be handed out at the beginning of the group activity so that students will be aware of the expectations and the criteria on which they will be graded. o Each group member will fill out the peer evaluation for all the other members in the group based on a 1 to 5 scale, 5 being the best - Teacher Evaluation of the Presentations o Teacher will evaluate each group’s presentation and give the entire group one grade based on a rubric that will be handed out at the beginning of the group work activity. - The grades from both of these evaluations will be averaged together to create the final grade for this lesson