Roles and Responsibilities – Ranking the Presidents
Learning Objective: you will be able to explain the roles and responsibilities of the president,
and will evaluate the successes and failures of past presidents based on those important roles.
Skills practiced: internet and print research, analytical writing, public speaking, evaluation of
historical data, collaborative skills
Presidents
The Early Leaders
George Washington (1789-1797)
John Adams (1797-1801)
Thomas Jefferson (1801-1817)
James Madison (1809-1817)
James Monroe (1817-1825)
Growth and Sectionalism
John Quincy Adams (1825-1829)
Andrew Jackson (1829-1837)
Martin Van Buren (1837-1841)
John Tyler (1841-1845)
James K. Polk (1845-1849)
Zachary Taylor (1849-1850)
Millard Fillmore (1850-1853)
Franklin Pierce (1853-1857)
The Civil War and Reconstruction
James Buchanan (1857-1861)
Abraham Lincoln (1861-1865)
Andrew Johnson (1865-1869)
Ulysses S. Grant (1869-1877)
Rutherford B. Hayes (1877-1881)
The Modern Economy and Reform
James A. Garfield (1881)
Chester A. Arthur (1881-1885)
Grover Cleveland (1885-1889)
Benjamin Harrison (1889-1893)
William McKinley (1897-1901)
Summary of Requirements
1. Roles and Responsibilities Handout:
This two page handout should be
completed with your president’s
information and handed out to every
member of the class the day of your
presentation.
2. “Top Two” Poster: This will be
presented and hung on the wall as a
visual reference the day of your
presentation.
3. Oral Advocacy: Using a presentation
such as Prezi or Google presentation,
you and your partner will have 10
minutes to persuade the class why
your president is the best president of
the 19th century.
4. Argument essay: As an individual, you
will submit a written essay making the
argument that your president was the
best president during the 19th century.
5. A bibliography or works cited page is
required for both your presentation
and your essay.
6. Successful, on task collaboration with
your partner, to be evaluated both by
yourself and by me.
Detailed requirements
1. Roles and Responsibilities Handout:
This two page handout should be completed with your president’s information and
handed out to every member of the class the day of your presentation.
This handout should include the following information:
 President’s name
 Years he was in office
 Paragraphs about the economic, social, and political climate of the nation during
his tenure
 A chart that identifies and explains his achievements and failures in each of the
presidential roles we took notes on
 Two quotes from speeches or public statements given by the president while in
office
 One quote from a historian about the president’s legacy
 a summary statement identifying the two roles the president most effectively
fulfilled
A draft will be due before your presentation. I will proofread it and give it back to you for
revisions prior to your presentation to the class.
2. “Top Two” Poster: This will be presented and hung on the wall as a visual reference the
day of your presentation.
This is due the day of your presentation. The poster should be clearly divided in half and should
identify and explain the president’s top two successes and top two failures. It should be clear
and simple: this is meant to be a visual that supports your oral presentation. Visuals could
include drawings, pictures, charts, and graphs. Keep it small – no more than 12” x 18”!
3. Oral Advocacy: Using a presentation program such as Prezi or Google presentation, you
and your partner will have 10 minutes persuade the class why your president is the best
president of the 19th century.
This is your presentation in front of the class. In your presentation you should address the
following: Did the president leave an especially important legacy? Did he take an extraordinary
risk? Did he go beyond his constitutional limits? This is the time for you to convince the class
that your president is the best of all, and why. You need to include a bibliography or works
cited slide.
4. Argument essay: As an individual, you will submit a written essay making the argument
that your president was the best president during the 19 th century.
This essay will be due prior to your presentation. This is a formal essay, typed and written in
MLA format. Your purpose as an author is to argue that your president is the best present of
the 19th century. Your audience is the class, whom you are trying to convince. Your audience
will expect well reasoned arguments and appropriate details to support those arguments. You
must include a bibliography or works cited page, in MLA format. (Three sources minimum, at
least one non-web based)
5. A bibliography or works cited page is required for both your presentation and your
essay.
You may use a bibliography generator online, such as Easybib. Remember it is a tool, but you
are the one in control of the information. Required: three sources; at least one of them a nonelectronic source.
6. Successful, on task collaboration with your partner, to be evaluated both by yourself
and by me.
In the world today, you are expected to be able to work well both independently and
collaboratively. I am providing time in class for your project, and it’s up to you to use your time
well. I will be grading you in this area, in addition to the work you produce.
Proposed Schedule
Jan 5
Jan 6
Jan 7
Jan 8
To the library
To the library
Jan 12
Jan 13
Jan 14
Jan 15
To the library
To the library
Jan 19
Draft of
handout due
Jan 20
Jan 21
Jan 22
(holiday)
Jan 26
presentations
Start
presentations
Jan 9
Note check (30
bullets and
sources)
Jan 16
Final handouts
due
Jan 23
(Short day)
Jan 27
Jan 28
presentations Argument essay
due
Jan 29
Jan 30
presentations
Expert panels
Review/ vote
Review/
vote