Presidents Day is a federal holiday celebrated each February. Presidents Day was enacted in 1968. The legislation consolidated two existing February national holidays. One of these was Washington's Birthday on February 22nd, and the other was Lincoln's Birthday on the February 12th. Combining these into one holiday created another three-day holiday on the third Monday in February, and also provided an opportunity to honor all the Presidents who served our country.
February is also Black History Month. Barack Obama, the first African American President in our history, took office in January 2009. During the first year of his presidency, he has been in charge of solving more serious problems in this country and world than any other President in history: two wars in progress, a ballooning deficit, a major financial collapse, a deep recession, global warming, and a health care crisis.
Even Franklin Delano Roosevelt didn't face such massive challenges in his first year in office. Can President Obama display the leadership to solve these problems over the next three years? Can President Obama win the necessary bi-partisan support of Republicans to help in these efforts?
BookCart Learning Activity
How much do students know about the life and experience of President Obama that prepared him to be President and address these major challenges?
ProQuest editors have created a BookCart that will help your students learn more about President Barack Obama. The BookCart learning activity provides the resources and directions that your students will need to address the essential questions for critical thinking included with the BookCart. You can also include call numbers for print resources.
Click the BOOKCART ADMIN link of the Teacher Edition.
Click the PROQUEST CARTS tab.
Type "President Barack Obama" in the SEARCH box to locate it quickly.
Click the COPY icon in the ACTIONS column to the right of this title.
Click RETURN TO MY LOCAL CARTS.
To edit and customize the BookCart learning activity for your students to use:
Click your new BookCart TITLE—it will have the prefix "COPY OF".
Delete "Copy of" and then type your name in the AUTHOR boxes and your initials in the EMAIL box (required filler).
Option: Edit STUDENT DIRECTIONS and type PRINT call numbers in the DESCRIPTION box.
Scroll down and click SAVE.
Click RETURN TO MY LOCAL CARTS.
Note: Students will be able to open this BookCart by clicking the BookCart tab on the search page.
Traditional Learning Activity
ProQuest recommends that students use the BookCart learning activity outlined above because editor-selected resources, student directions, and essential questions are already provided for students in one place. This saves valuable classroom/library time usually lost in searching and selecting. The time saved can be invested in more reading, writing, and critical thinking.
Students should write a report of at least 100 words or a presentation of at least five slides that addresses the following essential questions for critical thinking (you can create or substitute others):
What was Barack Obama's life as a youth like?
What experiences in leadership did Barack Obama have as an adult?
What do you like about what President Obama is trying to do and why?
How did President Obama overcome the objections and prejudice of his being African American?
How has Michelle and President Obama's family life helped him succeed?
Pathfinder
Click the Topics tab > Type "Barack Obama" in the SEARCH box (students will find five topic branches to click and open; note the recommended list of websites above the Results list)
Use our custom ProQuest models for written or PowerPoint reports written and PowerPoint-style reports.
