So You Want to Run a Presidential Campaign...
A Web Quest for 3rd Grade Social Studies
Designed by
Katie Hickey Snyder
The
Process
Now for the
fun work begins! Follow the steps below to earn Electoral College
Votes--remember the team with the most electoral college votes will win the
election!
Together
with your team, you will...
1.
Research the Presidential Election Process using these websites:
http://www.congressforkids.net/Elections_electionpres.htm
http://www.pocanticohills.org/election/president.htm
http://bensguide.gpo.gov/3-5/election/president.html
http://www.timeforkids.com/TFK/election04/fact.html
As a
group, print this graphic organizer to take notes. Each team member will take
their own notes, then as a team, compile into one graphic organizer to turn to
earn electoral college votes. Your categories should include: Candidate
Qualifications, Primary Process, Campaign and Electoral College.
http://www.graphicorganizers.com/Free%20Downloads/Hierarchical%20Frames_Webs/c4MIsemwb.pdf
Your
group can earn up to 50 possible electoral college votes for this assignment!
Your teacher will use the rubric below to grade you.
Rubric can
be found at http://rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php
Rubric # 1597807
It is
important that everyone on your team works together. Please rate each team
member (including yourself!) based on cooperative work skills. Your teacher
will randomly compile one team's scores a day, so you can work together to
raise your cooperation scores every day.
Rubric can
be found at http://rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php
Rubric # 1597732
2. Write a position paper
based on the beliefs of your political party.
LEAD TEAM MEMBER- Campaign
Manager
Campaign Manager will
divide up the work for the completion of the Position Paper and will make sure
a final copy is turned into your teach by the due date.
Your position paper will
cover your candidate's views on Education, The Economy and The Environment.
Presenting your candidate
to the public is, in a way, selling your candidate to the voters. Voters want
to know what your candidate's ideas are about the issues. These ideas should be
based on your party's positions. They also want to know who your candidate is
as a person. They want to know how the candidate is similar to them, they also
want to know that he/she is someone they can trust.
USE THE FOLLOWING WEBSITES
TO RESEARCH YOUR PARTY'S POSITION ON THE ISSUES (Education, The Economy, The
Environment)
Democrats:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Democratic_Party
http://www.democrats.org/agenda.html
http://www.csus.edu/org/democrat/beliefs/index.html
Republicans:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republican_Party_(United_States)
http://www.americo.net/luso/njpar/beliefs.htm
Libertarians:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libertarian
http://www.crwflags.com/FOTW/FLAGS/us%7Dlib.html
Green Party:
http://muaddib_csg.tripod.com/CSGANDSEC/id1.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Green_topics
http://www.gp.org/tenkey.shtml
Use the following graphic
organizer to lay out the framework for your final group paper.
http://www.graphicorganizers.com/Free%20Downloads/Hierarchical%20Frames_Webs/5sideMIfrm.pdf
Your group paper will
contain the following:
Candidate's Resume: Please include the candidate's name (this
should be a made up name, not the student's real name), home state, job he/she
had before running for president (should be job that would be related to being
in political office), what college she/he attended and what he/she studied,
past political experience, military service (if any) and marital
status/children. Please make your candidate realistic. If your party is strong
on defense, your candidate might have a military record to show he/she would
know how to lead the nation on defense. If your party feels the government
needs to better organized or more accountable to the people, your candidate
might have significant political experience such as being the mayor of a big
city or a governor. If your party is big on family values, you might talk a lot
about your candidate's family and religious affiliation. In short, make your
candidate's background reflects the values and positions of your party.
Positions on Key Issues
(Education, The Economy, The Environment): Please briefly describe the issue/problem. State your
party's position on the issue. How does that position relate to your party's
philosophy? What does your party think should be done to solve the issue? How
does your party plan to make that happen? Make sure your solution is both
concrete and realistic. In this section:
-State
your party's position on each issue (Education, The Economy, The Environment)
-State
the candidate's qualifications and experience that show how they understand the
issue and have experience solving these kinds of problems.
-State
what the candidate will do to solve the problem. Make sure it is a realistic
solution.
The
Position Paper is worth 50 possible Electoral College Votes. You will be graded
with the following rubric:
Rubric can
be found at http://rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php
Rubric # 1597871
Once again, it is time to
rate yourself and your team members on group cooperation.
It is
important that everyone on your team works together. Please rate each team
member (including yourself!) based on cooperative work skills. Your teacher
will randomly compile one team's scores a day, so you can work together to
raise your cooperation scores every day. Did your team improve their
cooperation skills today?
Rubric can
be found at http://rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php
Rubric # 1597732
3. Candidate's Speech on the Key Issues
LEAD TEAM MEMBER: Speech Writer
An important way that
voters learn about a candidate is through campaign speeches. You have already
researched your party's position on the key issues and decided on the
background of your candidate through the Position Paper--now you get to use
your new found knowledge to introduce your candidate and his/her views on the
issues to the public. In the Position Paper you explored three key issues,
Education, The Environment and The Economy. As a group, choose one of these
issues and write your campaign speech.
Before you write your own
campaign speech, listen to these real presidential campaign speeches from the
past. Was it the words, or the way the speech that was delivered that led these
men to victory? Can you use these examples to make your candidates speech a
"winner"?
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/nfhtml/nfexpe.html
And read these real
presidential campaigns of the past. What made these men capture the attention
of the nation? Can you find a way to make your speech just as persuasive?
http://www.teachingamericanhistory.org/library/index.asp?document=85
http://www.teachingamericanhistory.org/library/index.asp?document=584
http://www.ibiblio.org/nii/econ-posit.html
http://www.jfklink.com/speeches/rmn/aug60/contents_rmn_aug60.html
http://www.jfklink.com/speeches/jfk/sept60/contents_jfk_sep60.html
Use the following OUTLINE
to draft your speech. Write the speech about ONE key issue (Education, The
Economy, The Environment) Use what you have heard in the speeches of the past
to help you define your candidate as a potential leader. How did previous
politicians show themselves in a favorable light?
Campaign Speech- 1-3 minutes when read aloud
Introduction
State the issue briefly in one or two sentences. Talk about what
is going well, or what needs to change in terms of the issue.
Write a sentence or two that tells the candidates position on this
issue, based on your party's beliefs.
Body
Restate the issue--go into details about what is currently going
well, or what needs to be changed.
Explain the problem--why is it wrong, dangerous or unacceptable?
If you think things are going well with the issue, what can you do
to keep it on the right track?
Expand on the candidate's ability to help with issue by further
explaining his/her qualifications and past work experiences that are directly
related to issue.
Realistically and specifically explain exactly what candidate
proposes to change or correct problem, or if you think things are going well,
how specifically candidate will keep things progressing.
Conclusion
Briefly restate the issue but make sure you rephrase your message
to include what you think should be done.
Summarize the candidate's relevant qualifications and the actions
that he/she will take to deal with the issue.
The
written draft of The Key Issue Speech is worth 50 possible Electoral College
Votes. You will be graded with the following rubric:
Rubric can
be found at http://rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php
Rubric # 1597871
Once again, it is time to
rate yourself and your team members on group cooperation.
It is
important that everyone on your team works together. Please rate each team
member (including yourself!) based on cooperative work skills. Your teacher
will randomly compile one team's scores a day, so you can work together to
raise your cooperation scores every day. Did your team improve their
cooperation skills today?
Rubric can
be found at http://rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php
Rubric # 1597732
4. Presidential Campaign Posters/Bumper Stickers
LEAD TEAM MEMBER - Publicity Manager
Before you design your own
campaign poster, take a look at some of these posters from the past. How have
posters changed throughout the years? What kind of poster do you think will
appeal to the modern voter?
http://www.jfklibrary.org/Historical+Resources/JFK+in+History/Campaign+of+1960.htm
http://teachpol.tcnj.edu/amer_pol_hist/thumbnail196.html
http://teachpol.tcnj.edu/amer_pol_hist/thumbnail227.html
http://teachpol.tcnj.edu/amer_pol_hist/thumbnail228.html
http://teachpol.tcnj.edu/amer_pol_hist/thumbnail420.html
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/i?pp/PPALL:@field(NUMBER+@band(cph+3a07421))
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/i?pp/PPALL:@field(NUMBER+@band(cph+3a09830))
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/i?pp/PPALL:@field(NUMBER+@band(cph+3a09825))
Before you design your
bumper sticker, take a look at these bumper stickers from the past. Notice how
they make an impact and a point with very few words.
http://www.4president.org/ocmi1960.htm
http://www.4president.org/ocmi1964.htm
http://www.4president.org/ocmi1968.htm
http://www.4president.org/ocmi1972.htm
http://www.4president.org/ocmi1976.htm
http://www.4president.org/ocmi1980.htm
http://www.4president.org/ocmi1984.htm
http://www.4president.org/ocmi1988.htm
http://www.4president.org/ocmi1992.htm
http://www.4president.org/ocmi1996.htm
Campaign Posters have
changed over time. As you may have noticed when viewing some of the online
sources, in the past many details were included. Today, posters and bumper
stickers are viewed quickly as a person drives down the street (rather than
read in a newspaper) and should therefore contain a catchy slogan or message to
take action. Sometimes they can be as simple as "Vote for (Candidate's
name) or simply (Candidate's name) in (Election year).
Each team member can feel
free to design a poster and/or bumper stickers. These will be used as a
backdrop for your party on Political Rally Day! The materials you produce will
be seen and read by the public. They represent your candidate. It is therefore
important that the posters and bumper stickers be visually appealing, neat and
use proper spelling. Be sure to use the party's logo and/or mascot to show your
candidate's political affiliation. You may also include a link to an imaginary
website (example www.mrssnyderforpresident.com)
Your team can earn up to 50
electoral college votes for their combined posters and bumper stickers. Your
teacher will use the following rubric to grade your work:
Rubric can be found at http://rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php.
Rubric
# 1598079
Once again, it is time to
rate yourself and your team members on group cooperation.
It is
important that everyone on your team works together. Please rate each team
member (including yourself!) based on cooperative work skills. Your teacher
will randomly compile one team's scores a day, so you can work together to
raise your cooperation scores every day. Did your team improve their
cooperation skills today?
Rubric can
be found at http://rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php
Rubric # 1597732
5. Television Commercial
(30 seconds-2 minutes)
LEAD TEAM MEMBER
: Publicity Manager
Before you begin to create your own television commercial,
check out these famous commercials from candidates of the past! Why do you
think these ads were so effective? As you review the commercials, try to
identify which of the following advertising techniques were used:
Bandwagon: Invitation
to follow the crowd, to join because others have joined. Convince public that
one side is the clear winner and they should get on board.
Emotional Words: Uses words that cause people to have immediate and strong feelings
for or against something or someone
Generalities: similar to Emotional Words but generalities always have positive
connotations. Some examples are honor, glory, love of country, democracy,
freedom, family.
Plain Folks: Used to show the public that the candidate thinks about the issues
in similar to the common person, or the voter. Speaking plainly and directly
addressing the audience is used. Convinces the public that the candidate is
just like them, or that he/she could be a neighbor or friend.
Testimonials: Quotations or endorsements that connect a famous or respected
person to the candidate.
Transfer: Links
two subjects to either a positive or negative concept. By linking candidate to
something people enjoy or feel good about, positive feelings will be linked to
the candidate. By linking something perceived as negative to the candidate's
opponent, negative feelings can be linked to the opponent.
http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/1996/candidates/ad.archive/
http://www.4president.us/tv/tv1952.htm
http://www.4president.us/tv/tv1960.htm
http://tv.4president.us/tv1964.htm
http://www.4president.us/tv/tv1976.htm
http://www.4president.us/tv/tv1980.htm
http://www.4president.us/tv/tv1988.htm
http://www.4president.us/tv/tv1992.htm
http://www.4president.us/tv/tv1996.htm
In recent years, many
political campaigns have resorted to negative campaigns where the message is not
to lift up their candidate but rather to degrade the opposition. While negative
campaigning can have some short term effects, many experts feel that it does
not have long term effects and does not do anything to inform the voters of the
qualifications of either candidate. For the purposes of our project, we are
going to decide to run a clean and positive campaign. Look at the Advertising
Techniques above and think about the commercials you viewed. How can you get
your message across to the viewers in a positive light?
Commercial (things to consider)
Time frame (30 seconds- 2 minutes)
Is this an issue oriented spot (based on one of the key issues)
or
A personality oriented spot (highlighting candidate's great
qualities and experience)
Who is your Target Audience (Families, Women, Men, Working
Woman, Laborers, etc.)
What simple props might you need?
What simple set might you need?
Is your message clear,
concise and to the point?
After you are done writing
and practicing your commercial, it is time to rate yourself and your team
members on group cooperation.
It is
important that everyone on your team works together. Please rate each team
member (including yourself!) based on cooperative work skills. Your teacher
will randomly compile one team's scores a day, so you can work together to
raise your cooperation scores every day. Did your team improve their
cooperation skills today?
Rubric can
be found at http://rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php
Rubric # 1597732
YOUR TEACHER WILL NOT GRADE YOUR COMMERCIAL, YOU WILL BE GRADED
BY THE AUDIENCE MEMBERS ON POLITICAL RALLY DAY!