Curated OER
Cartoons for the Classroom: Presidential Candidates
Build critical analysis skills with this cartoon for the classroom. Upper graders answer three critical thinking questions to help them analyze a political cartoon, which depicts how Presidential Candidates are judged and chosen. Put...
PBS
Analyzing the Candidates in the 2008 Presidential Election
High schoolers research the 2008 presidential candidates and the required process for becoming an American presidential candidate. The class discusses both the process and the candidates, and some of the reasons someone might want to run...
Classroom Law Project
Who are the major candidates and where do they stand?
Who were the candidates in the 2008 US Presidential election and where did they stand on important issues? Use a resource that offers an opportunity to go back in time and examine candidates and issues involved in that election year.
Curated OER
Fighting The Horse Race: Creating Ads Which Explore 2008 Presidential Candidates & Issues
What is advertising? What role does it plan in an election? Middle and high schoolers discuss advertising and its purpose by sifting through different magazines and discussing the products they find. Then they relate advertisements to...
Curated OER
Cartoons for the Classroom: 2008 Presidential Primaries
Take a trip back in time with this political cartoon analysis activity, which has scholars reading background information on the heated 2008 primary campaign to help them approach two political cartoons. Three talking points (or writing...
Museum of the Moving Image
Evaluating Information: Focus on the 2008 Election
Just how true is the information contained in political ads? Determining the veracity of campaign ads from the 2008 presidential race is the focus of a instructional activity that introduces class members to several fact-checking resources.
Classroom Law Project
What is a class hearing and youth summit and what do they have to do with the presidential election?
After researching the presidential election process, class members develop questions and interview voters about their choice of candidate and the issues that concern them.
Curated OER
Election Issues '08
Students research the presidential candidates of 2008. In this election instructional activity, students research both candidates and identify where they stand on major issues. Students choose a presidential candidate.
Curated OER
Analyzing the Language of Presidential Debates
Scholars assess how word choice and linguistic patterns affect a presidential debate. They examine candidates' words for repetition and analyze what this repetition means. Then they locate countries that fit the expression free world. In...
Curated OER
Cartoons for the Classroom: Campaign Fundraising
Although this political cartoon analysis assignment has your scholars glancing back at the 2008 presidential campaign, its message is relatable anytime. Background information provides context, giving learners access to the cartoon,...
Curated OER
Cartoons for the Classroom: Tooning into the Candidates - Fred Thompson
In this current events activity, students analyze a political cartoon about about 2008 presidential candidate Fred Thompson. Students then respond to 2 short answer questions.
C-SPAN
Presidential Birth Requirement
Every president of the United States must be a natural-born citizen, but the definition of natural-born is not as straightforward as it seems. Secondary scholars examine two points of view surrounding the constitutional requirement and...
Curated OER
Bill of Rights in the News: Election Issues 2008
Students consider First Amendment rights. In this Bill of Rights lesson, students complete an activity guide regarding constitutional rights issues raised in the 2008 presidential election. Students respond to discussion questions...
Curated OER
Cartoons for the Classroom: The Veepstakes!
Take a step back in time with this political cartoon analysis worksheet, which features editorial cartoons from the 2008 presidential campaign. Background information allows pupils to "read between the lines" in their analysis, and three...
Curated OER
Presidential Debate Primer
Students examine the function of presidential debates. In this civics activity, students view segments of presidential and vice presidential debates. Students analyze the answers given in the debates and identify the platforms of the...
Curated OER
Cartoons for the Classroom: Charisma vs. Experience
For this current events worksheet, students analyze a political cartoon about the 2008 Presidential election and respond to 3 talking point questions.
Curated OER
All Eyes on Iowa
Guid your learners as they become informed members of our community. They'll consider each of the seven questions as they read the New York Times article "All Eye on Iowa." This article relates topics dealing with the 2012 presidential...
Curated OER
The Presidential Election Process
Students examine the presidential election process and discover that presidential elections are decided by the electoral college and not popular votes. They see that each state has a number of electors, and understand how this number is...
Curated OER
Presidential Election One Year Away
Students identify political parties, then read a news article about the 2008 election. In this current events lesson plan (written prior to the 2008 election), the teacher introduces the article with a discussion and vocabulary activity,...
Curated OER
Where Do They Stand?
In this presidential election worksheet, students research the 2008 presidential candidates and create a booklet of candidate profiles that clearly differentiate each one. They also assume the identity of one of the candidates and hold a...
Curated OER
Cartoons for the Classroom: Charisma vs. Experience
Which is more important for a president: experience or charisma? Scholars consider this as they analyze 2 political cartoons in this analysis handout. Background information gives context through a quote from The Telegraph, and 3 talking...
Curated OER
Presidential Election 2008:Making Decisions about Political Candidates
Students think critically about political candidates. In this election lesson, students research candidates and use information sources to explore their stands on issues.
National Constitution Center
Address America: Your Six-Word Stump Speech
Stump speeches are the focus of this exercise that combines politics and language arts. After learning about this type of speech, the class listens to Obama's 2008 presidential campaign stump speech and answers a series of questions that...
C-SPAN
Debates
How do the presidential debates of 2016 compare to the debates from the 1980's? What about the 1960's? Evaluate a chosen candidate or issue from the 20th and 21st centuries with a lesson plan focused on political debates. Middle and high...