In this activity, students will analyze a letter written by third graders to President Gerald Ford asking for a "Kids Day." They will focus on details in the letter using guided questions to understand it, and finish by writing their own letter to the President in support of an issue they feel is important.
Suggested Teaching Instructions
Use this activity while teaching about community, letter-writing, petitions, civics, representative government, the Bill of Rights, or primary-source analysis. For grades 2-5. Approximate time needed is 30 minutes.
Divide the class into pairs or small groups, explaining that they are going to look at a primary source document and answer questions about it. (Do not share information about what the document is at this point – students will figure that out.) Alternatively, you can do the entire activity as a full class.
Begin by displaying the activity for the full class to see. Demonstrate how to click on the purple "i" information boxes to see guiding questions and additional information.
The information boxes embedded on the letter include the following questions:
- Why do you think the students chose to address this letter to Mr. Ford? What do you think may have been Mr. Ford's job? The students chose to address this letter to Mr.Ford because he had an important job – he was the President of the United States (in 1975, the year this was written).
- What were the children requesting in this letter? Did they support their question with facts? The children were requesting that President Ford create a Kids Day. They supported their request by citing what they thought were similar examples of special days for adults: Mother's Day and Father's Day.
Ask students to begin the activity in their groups. As directed in the activity, they should look closely at the letter, click on the information boxes, and answer the questions provided, backing up their answers with facts and details.
After students have completed the questions, hold a class discussion about their answers and the details they observed in the document. If teaching about civics or representative government, explain that the students from the Deal School were writing to the President because he was their elected official. If teaching about the Bill of Rights and the First Amendment, explain how this letter shows students using their freedom to petition.
Lastly, click on "When You're Done" for the full class to see, or ask students to click on "When You're Done." They will be presented with the final task:
The students at the Deal School felt strongly that there should be a Kids Day, so they wrote to the President of the United States at the time, President Gerald Ford, to state their beliefs.
Have you ever written a letter or email about something you believe in? Is there an issue that you feel strongly about?
Using this document as an example, write a letter to the President of the United States in support of an issue you feel strongly about. Some examples are: clean air, protecting endangered animals, or helping others. Make sure to include facts to support your argument or request.
Depending on the ability of your students, letters can be written individually or as a whole-class exercise.
The address for the President is:
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20500
