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- Subject Area: English Language Arts, Science
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John F. Kennedy’s inaugural address inspired children and adults to see the importance of civic action and public service. The letter included in this activity, written by a third-grade student, is one of thousands housed at the Kennedy Presidential Library.
Lesson Plans & Activities
Subject: Civics and US Government, English Language Arts, US History
Grade: 3, 4, 5, 6
Time: 1-2 hours, 2-3 hours
Students examine primary source material to learn how the tools of democracy have been used to challenge racial discrimination in voting. Includes "The Most Powerful and Precious Right": A Voting Rights Photo Book and a research activity on current voting rights.
Lesson Plans & Activities
Subject: Civics and US Government, English Language Arts, US History
Grade: 5, 6, 7, 8
Time: 2-3 hours
Students consider the rhetorical devices in the inaugural address. They analyze suggestions made by advisors and compare them to the delivered version of the speech.
Lesson Plans & Activities
Subject: English Language Arts, US History
Grade: 9, 10, 11, 12
Time: 1-2 hours
Kennedy challenged every American to contribute in some way to the public good. After analyzing the "ask what you can do" quote, students draw and write about their own contributions to their families and communities.
Lesson Plans & Activities
Subject: Civics and US Government, English Language Arts
Grade: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
Time: 1-2 hours
Students learn about gender discrimination in space exploration by analyzing a letter to President Kennedy from a female aviator training to be an astronaut.
Lesson Plans & Activities
Subject: English Language Arts, US History
Grade: 5, 6, 7, 8
Time: 0-1 hour, 1-2 hours
Students conduct historical research on individual and collective efforts to achieve gender equality in the United States by reading and discussing a nonfiction picture book, analyzing an historical photograph, and researching and taking action on the current gender pay gap.
Lesson Plans & Activities
Subject: Civics and US Government, English Language Arts, US History
Grade: 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Time: 0-1 hour, 1-2 hours
Students read, listen to, and summarize excerpts of President Kennedy's June 11, 1963 speech on civil rights. They reflect on its resonance today and create images of a better future.
Lesson Plans & Activities
Subject: Civics and US Government, English Language Arts, US History
Grade: 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Time: 0-1 hour, 1-2 hours
In this lesson, students analyze "Sea Joy," a poem Jacqueline Kennedy wrote when she was a young girl, and then write their own poems using sensory imagery.
Lesson Plans & Activities
Subject: English Language Arts
Grade: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
Time: 0-1 hour
Students learn about ancient symbols and ornamental and architectural elements to identify some symbols of American democracy in the White House as an introduction to the origins of common symbolic representations of the United States and its values.
Lesson Plans & Activities
Subject: English Language Arts, US History, World History
Grade: 5, 6, 7, 8
Time: 0-1 hour, 1-2 hours
Adapted from the longer lesson plan, "What if Laws are Unjust?", this activity asks students to consider young people’s rationales for participating in civil rights demonstrations in Birmingham, and the risks and rewards of their inclusion.
Lesson Plans & Activities
Subject: Civics and US Government, English Language Arts, US History
Grade: 7, 8, 9, 10
Time: 1-2 hours
On October 26, 1963, President Kennedy delivered a timeless speech at Amherst College about the importance of public service and the role of the poet in a democratic society. In this activity, students analyze the meaning of a significant portion of this speech, and then write a brief poem about the role of the poet in civic life.
Lesson Plans & Activities
Subject: English Language Arts, US History
Grade: 9, 10, 11, 12
Time: 0-1 hour
Students investigate historical letters to public officials, including several to President Kennedy, and then write their own letters of concern.
Lesson Plans & Activities
Subject: Civics and US Government, English Language Arts, US History
Grade: 3, 4, 5, 6
Time: 2-3 hours
Students examine the persuasive techniques in President Kennedy's "June 11, 1963 Radio and Television Report to the American People on Civil Rights" and evaluate the effectiveness of the speech.
Lesson Plans & Activities
Subject: English Language Arts, US History
Grade: 9, 10, 11, 12
Time: 1-2 hours
Lesson Plans & Activities
Subject: Civics and US Government, English Language Arts, US History
Grade: 4, 5, 6
Time: 1-2 hours
Simplified text, large images with captions and questions, a glossary, and activities make these booklets accessible to elementary readers.
Lesson Plans & Activities
Subject: English Language Arts, US History
Grade: 3, 4, 5
Time: 1-2 hours, 2-3 hours
Using primary source materials, students investigate the use of metaphor in presidential oratory and apply it to a piece of persuasive writing on a current national or global issue.
Lesson Plans & Activities
Subject: Civics and US Government, English Language Arts
Grade: 7, 8
Time: 1-2 hours
President Kennedy signed a bill authorizing the establishment of the Cape Cod National Seashore in 1961. By learning about the creation of the Seashore, students reflect on the importance of land conservation and the role of the federal government in preserving natural and historical resources.
Lesson Plans & Activities
Subject: Civics and US Government, English Language Arts, Geography, Science, US History
Grade: 3, 4, 5, 6
Time: 1-2 hours
Students use a letter of advice from a young student to President Kennedy to learn about the "Space Race.”
Lesson Plans & Activities
Subject: English Language Arts, US History
Grade: 2, 3, 4, 5
Time: 0-1 hour, 1-2 hours