Classroom Activities
Lesson 1: JFK and Obama Lesson
This unit can be taught in several different ways depending on the approach, overall goal of the educator, content area and teaching style. If the educator would like to approach the content from a more historical lens, I recommend that they look at how campaigns had been run in the past. I highly recommend using John F. Kennedy’s election of 1960. John F. Kennedy’s was similar to Barack Obama’s in terms of youthful energy and strategizing. Kennedy and his campaign team made every effort to create a narrative that connected with the American People’s sense of hope and idealism with the nation. Kennedy wanted to “get the nation moving again” and he and his team would showcase that sense of moving by how they rallied their supporters in a ground game that covered every state in the country. (49)
As you have students compare and contrast the two campaigns, I highly recommend that you have students look at how the two candidates crafted speeches that spoke to principles, struggles, and the promise of America and its people. For instance, you could have students read and listen to Obama’s “Iowa Victory Speech” where he spoke to the promise of America, what Americans want out of their country and what is possible for the future if the nation chooses to support him as their president. It’s important the text is printed for every student so that they can both read and hear the president’s words as he says them. Have students pull out 10-12 ideas as it pertains to change, the future and the potential of America.
Once they have that completed, present them with another transcript from Kennedy’s 1960 campaign speech at the Democratic National Convention. (50) Once the students have read and heard the words of JFK, have them compare those words, ideas, and promises to that of Barack Obama speech. How are they alike and how are they different? How are some of the same ideas, expectations and principles echoed in each of the speeches and what about the two speeches is very different? Present these ideas to the class as a whole and then have each student write their own individual analysis of the two speakers.
Lesson 2: Close-Up Washington D.C: The Fundraising Project
One of the keys to any election is the ability to raise enough money to keep your election going. In this activity, students will be in charge of their own fundraising campaign. Their goal will be to get to Washington D.C. strictly on money from donors. They cannot use any of their own money. The program they’ll be raising money for is Close Up Washington D.C.. This will be an experience of a lifetime as students are taken to Washington D.C. for a trip where they’ll tour the nation’s capital buildings, monuments and historical museums. Depending on the length of the package you decide, the trip can cost anywhere from $900-$1,500. While these may seem like an overwhelming cost at first, if the trip is properly planned it’s an entirely achievable goal. Students should begin to plan for the trip in the spring of their sophomore year and they should plan to take the trip the following spring. It’s important that they have parent volunteers that serves as chaperones for one fundraising initiative each month.
Encourage students to be creative. They can put together car washes when it’s warm or Chick-Fil-A breakfast sandwich drives when it’s colder. Students can mow lawns, work concession stands, sell cookies, pretty much anything that can make money in an efficient manner. The last strategy I’d recommend is a Go-Fund-Me campaign. I think these are good but if your students use this a strategy, I think they should have a goal that is a fraction of their entire cost of the trip. It’s good that they work with their peers on the other parts of their fundraising campaign to build team comradery instead of relying completely on online donations. You’ll have a smaller number of disparities among the students in terms of who raised what as well.
What’s important to note about this project is that the students will be invested in it for over a year. Once they’ve accomplished their overall goal they’ll be taken to D.C. where they’ll have a chance to build relationships with one another and their teacher. For many of these students, it will be their first time to Washington D.C. This is a great opportunity for them to gain a real life and up-close perspective in regards to how government works, what it looks like and how they’re representatives conduct themselves on a day-to-day basis. Close-Up has been in operation for decades and has several partnerships with government affiliates. This will be a well-organized trip and it will also be one that your students will never forget.
Lesson 3: The School Campaign
Educators should try to get their classes into a classroom runoff where every section/class and teacher has runs against other classes. The educator should come up with a series of questions that they present to each class that have to deal with world, local and/or school policy. Students in each class should be empowered to come up with their own campaign. They should break up the class empowering their classmates with different roles. If it’s easier for the teacher to put the students in roles, that’s ok too. These roles can range from Data Collector, Phone Bank Captain, Social Media Consultant, Canvasser, Speech Writer, Classroom Debate Speakers, Poll Workers, Political Poster Illustrator, etc.
Students should lobby their classmates throughout the entire school for their votes. The teacher should have an assembly and during that assembly, a spokesman for the class should debate around things such as school policy, educational reform, social justice, and education reform. There should be a moderator for these debates that keeps students on task and makes sure every student speaker has the same amount of time to answer the questions as they others. The next day at lunch, there should be a supervised ballot boxes, and ballots with that are representative of each class. Votes should be taken, and the winning class should get a pizza party sponsored by the PTA.
Lesson 4: Dinner and a Movie
The idea of Dinner and a Movie is something that brings classrooms together and allows teachers to spend some time with their students in a less stressful environment. The idea is for the film to have a drive-in/ movie on the lawn type of feel. For this Dinner and a Movie, I recommend that the teacher have it on a Friday night. They should bring the projector outside of their school and wait for the sun to go down. The movie should be broadcasted on the side of the school on a flat area. I think it’s a good idea to invite school administration, parents and other students to see the film. They don’t have to be part of your class but I would give students that attend who are in your class extra credit as an incentive for their participation. The movies that I’m recommending that go along with this unit are following: “The Way I See It” tells the story from Obama’s photographer’s prospective. It highlights his time before, during and after the campaign. Another film is “By the People: The Election of Barrack Obama.” This film focuses on what went into electing Obama to the presidency and his election was, in fact, an election by the people. Lastly, “Obama’s Pursuit of a More Perfect Union.” I wouldn’t recommend that you show all three movies, just one film that the students pick. It could be a good idea to show the class all three trailers and let them pick which one they think is the most interesting. That will empower them and hopefully lead to a greater level of collective participation.
Lesson 5: Book Club
While the main focus of this unit is on the organizing of the campaign, if time permits and the teacher believes it’s a worthy investment of time and energy, they should have their administration purchase the following books the summer before the students enter the class: Dreams of My Father and The Audacity of Hope. These two books will provide some context in regards to who the candidate was and his story before the presidency. They should read these books prior to coming to class.
Lesson 6: John McCain “What If?”
Have students watch the film “Game Change” in class. Have them compare and contrast McCain’s approach to the presidency to the prior knowledge they’ve already consumed both in and out of class about Barrack Obama. Once they’ve finished the film, ask them to reflect on the following questions in individual responses or in a five-paragraph essay- 1. Do you think John McCain’s campaign was run well? Why or why not? 2. Why do you think John McCain lost? 3.How was his campaign different than Obama’s? 4. Is there one political party that is inherently bad or good? Explain.
Lesson 7: Independent Writing and Reflection Prompts
As you study the unit, have your students work through the different parts of the campaign. Use the provided content as a resource for the lesson in leadership, organization and politics. Then have your students write individual answers to the following questions. You should use an argumentative rubric provided by your ELA or History department as a resource to guide your grading. This will most likely look different depending on the school system.
- What is teamwork and how does it show up in the 2008 campaign? Would success have been possible if people worked as individuals and not a collective?
- What does leadership look like? Where could be seen in the form of people and decisions in the 08 campaign? What are the benefits and consequences of great or poor leadership?
- Do you believe that money is an essential part of winning in campaigns? Explain your answer citing the resources provided.
- What was more important to the overall success of the candidate, his overall narrative, platform and appeal or the candidate’s campaign team?
- How will campaigns continue to change in the future? What strategies will stand the test of time and which ones will become obsolete in the coming years?
- How has the internet changed things when it comes to everyday politics and campaigns? Is our ability to get news from a variety of different outlets a good or bad thing when it comes to making a more informed opinion about how we feel about our politicians and the platforms we are personally invested in?
- What do you think of the slogans “Hope” and “Change?” Are these merely slogans by themselves and should be seen as such or are they more than that? Do you feel like you can create change in American society? Explain.
- What are three overarching ideas that you will take from this unit? Why do they resonate with you and how and what will you apply them to in the future?
Lesson 8: Photographic Narrative- https://drive.google.com/file/d/1lD678wH3T0ixpEb86vAK77GwgnuJx_2q/view - I’ve placed a photographic narrative for teachers and their students that gives a brief account of my time during the campaign. I’d welcome additional conversations or zoom meeting with them if interested. My contact is seanmeans1@gmail.com
Comments: