U.S. Presidents and Voting Activities

If your curriculum includes teaching about the U.S. Presidents and/or voting, then this is the product for you. If you are teaching about one, but not the other, then you get a bonus set of worksheets and activities. Either way, it’s a big win, especially for your 8th graders, 8th graders, and 9th graders. Learners in those grades will be fully engaged in several U.S. History, Civics, ELA, and research assignments. Concepts presented meet the requirements of current state standards. But the best part is that learners will not simply memorize facts for a test and quickly forget them. Instead, they will research, create, and use reasoning skills while learning about topics which they can use throughout their lives. They will be introduced to the requirements of being U.S. President, fun facts about previous presidents and First Ladies, and the history of our country’s two major political parties. Then, learners will move on to learn about campaigning with slogans and political ads. Finally, they’ll focus on the timeline of voting, crucial issues, and whether voting is a right, privilege, or responsibility. In all of these activities, learners will research, design and draw, poll/interview peers and adults, as well as effectively use three different types of writing. The product is rounded out with a set of task cards in which learners will answer questions regarding U.S. Presidents. You simply cannot go wrong with this product. Use it in November while teaching about voting. Then, in February, use it again for Presidents’ Day. Many of the activities can be used in large or small group settings. They also work well for individual or homework assignments. Many pages are available in a color version, while all are available in black & white. This product also contains a set of full color Power Point slides to correspond with the political party assignment. Below are the details of each activity found within this product.

PAGE 1: learners will read the requirements to be U.S. President and answer questions about their eligibility and reasons for wanting to hold this office.

PAGE 2: learners will read clues about 10 First Ladies and use research skills to determine which of the presidents’ wives is being described.

PAGE 3: learners will learn about attack ads and write an opinion piece as to whether or not they think attack ads should be used in political campaigning.

PAGES 4-5: stationery for the opinion writing piece

PAGE 6: learners will read 5 newspaper headlines and facts about U.S. Presidents. Then, they will research whether the information is true or false.

PAGE 7: learners will choose to write a newspaper article on the resignation of Richard Nixon or the assassination of John F. Kennedy.

PAGE 8: learners will read unique campaign slogans from former U.S. Presidents. Then, they will create their own slogan.

PAGE 9: learners will create a television commercial, social media feed video, or campaign flyer to get their message out about running for office.

PAGE 10: learners will fill-in the blanks of the last names of 10 former U.S. Presidents and then find said names in the wordsearch.

PAGE 11: learners will complete a crossword puzzle using clues about former U.S. Presidents.

PAGE 12: learners will use the Power Point slides to learn about our country’s two major political parties. They will use the information to answer 8 questions.

PAGES 13-14: lists of U.S. Presidents and their political party to be used with various activities.

PAGES 15-19: learners will research and list the pros and cons of three given topics to focus on becoming a responsible voter. They will also complete reflection questions about the assignment.

PAGE 20: learners will complete a WebQuest about presidential fun facts.

PAGE 21: learners will read the names of three people on a ballot. They will cross out the name of the person who was not an actual nominee and circle the name of the candidate who won that particular voting year.

PAGES 22-33: learners will work with a partner to research and present information on “hot topics” during specific election campaigns. They will choose from 4 types of final presentations.

PAGES 34-40: learners will complete a voting timeline by researching significant points in the process to vote in our country. Then, they will interview peers and adults to gain perspective on whether voting is a right, privilege, or responsibility. Finally, learners will write a persuasion essay about the necessity to vote, using the information learned from the voting timeline and interview assignment.

PAGES 41-46: learners will use information learned throughout the various activities to answer questions about U.S. Presidents presented in a set of 20 task cards.