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  Executive Branch

Introduction The President President's Job, Part I President's Job, Part II President's Cabinet President and Congress Impeachment President Has Fun

  

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Books & Reading

Books & Reading

What is the president's relationship with the armed forces?

Which president desegregated the armed forces?

Are public expectations of U.S. presidential leadership unrealistic?

It appears like the daily life of a United States President is a lot of work and intense stress, without a hugely rewarding salary, or—often—the ability to effect the changes they hoped for upon entering office. What do you think is the draw for a politician to want to be president? Do you think many presidents actually enjoy the job while doing it? Did any recent president, whom you are aware of, regret getting elected?



The Presidency of the United States

 

Impeachment President and Congress The President President's Job, Part I President's Job, Part II President's Cabinet President Has Fun

 
The President's Job, Part II

The Decision to Drop the Bomb
http://oncampus.richmond.edu/academics/education/projects/webquests/wwii/
WebQuest - Imagine it is 1945 and World War II has just come to a conclusion. Just before the end of the War, the Atomic Bomb was dropped on and Nagasaki. Many wonder whether dropping the bomb was necessary but others think it was in order to limit the amount of Allied casualties and bring the long arduous war to an end. A community in California is getting together to discuss the reason for dropping the bomb. Four teams of people representing a Japanese citizen, President Truman's advisor, the Secretary of Defense, and a nuclear physicist will congregate to debate this controversial issue. Your role as one of these people is to research your particular point of view and decide whether dropping the Atomic Bomb was necessary or not.

Foreign Policy and Defense
http://www.glencoe.com/sec/socialstudies/govciv/usgov2002/
quiz.shtml?BOOK=009&CHAPTER=22&TITLE=
Foreign+Policy+and+Defense
Self-check quiz

Foreign Policy and Defense
http://www.glencoe.com/sec/socialstudies/tutor/govciv/usgov2002/
puzzles/usg2002_22.html
Interactive crossword puzzle

Help Wanted
http://www.education-world.com/a_lesson/TM/WS1_lp254-01.shtml
What characteristics should a good candidate for president possess?
What schooling and work experience are required? What are the demands of the job? Use the printable worksheet to write help wanted ads that describe the position of president of the United States.

President for a Day
http://www.education-world.com/a_lesson/01-1/lp223_03.shtml
Lesson Plan - Learn general information about the duties of the president of the United States. Create a schedule for one day as president. If you were president of the United States for a day, what would you do and what would your day be like?

The President Has Many Roles
http://americanhistory.si.edu/presidency/5a2c.html
Hands-on presidential activity.

Presidential Powers
http://www.education-world.com/a_lesson/01-1/lp223_04.shtml
Lesson Plan - Study the section of the Constitution that refers to the executive branch and write a proposal for a new power for the president of the United States.

The President's Seal: A Symbol of Presidential Roles
http://americanhistory.si.edu/presidency/5a2a.html
The seal of the president contains objets that represent some of the president's roles. Explore the symbols on the seal, color the seal, and create a new presidential seal. Click on "The Presidential Seal."

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President Gerald Ford once worked washing dishes in a restaurant kitchen to make ends meet.

Surf with Uncle Sam
Surf with Uncle Sam

Word Spy
Word Spy

Projects You Can Do

Work through the interactive online activity "President for a Day!" from The PBS Kids Democracy Project, available through the EDSITEment-reviewed resource Great American Speeches. This is a simulation of a typical day on the job as president, in which you make choices about which duties to perform. You can do this activity in small groups around a few computers, or individually at a computer, depending on your ability and access to technology (computers with Internet connections). If no Internet connection is available to use, you can go through the activity and print out all of the pages for a low-tech version.

 

Awards

 

The Dirksen Congressional CenterCopyright 2008