Worst+of+Friends+Reinforcing+Activity

Reinforcing Activity:

Objective: Students will be able to identify at least one accomplishment of a previous U.S. President and write a letter about the effects of that accomplishment on America today.

Procedure: Begin the activity by displaying the book to the students by standing it at the front of your classroom or projecting it on the SmartBoard with a DocCam. Ask a student to read the title aloud. Once the student is finished reading the book’s title, pose the following questions to the class: After engaging the students’ prior knowledge, read the book aloud. You may stand at the front of the room and read to the students at their desks, gather students on the floor and read from a chair, or read from the DocCam so students can easily see the illustrations.
 * 1) Has anyone ever heard of Thomas Jefferson or John Adams before?
 * 2) Where have you heard of them?
 * 3) What important role did they have in history?

Since Jefferson and Adams made up and wrote letters to each other congratulating one another on a successful presidency, the students will choose one president to write a letter to. Students will write these letters on their Chromebooks, so they can research presidents and their accomplishments if needed. Introduce the activity by:

1. Setting up a model letter for the student that says: Dear President _, I sit here in my class today in the year 2017 and your accomplishments have a big impact on my life as an American. I wish to congratulate you on... Because of this accomplishment, America _ and I _.

2. Begin the model letter together as a class. Students will choose a president to write to and will fill in the blanks based on their accomplishments. For example, the students may choose to write to President Washington. They could wish to congratulate him on being the first President of the United States. They could discuss how his leadership has lead America to have a strong government or democracy and that they will eventually be able to vote for their President.

3. Allow students 20-30 minutes to complete their own letter. The letter does not have to follow the exact format of the model letter, but must address one President, at least one accomplishment, and at least one effect on America or their personal lives. If students wish to go beyond these requirements, they may write goals for the country in the future.

4. Students will submit their letters and they will be printed and posted around the classroom for the rest of the unit.

Materials Needed: One copy of //Worst of Friends// DocCam <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Model Letter <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">1 Chromebook/student <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Printer


 * Other Strands:__** Government

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Tags: Suzanne Tripp Jurmain, Larry Day, friends, presidents, Jefferson, Adams, government, campaign, election, letters, independence