Source: http://k12tlc.net/content/tdp/1102t.htm
Timestamp: 2019-04-25 01:55:48+00:00

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On November 2, 1948, the re-election of Harry Truman as President of the United States was one of the greatest political upsets in American history, providing a teachable moment to discuss the Truman-Dewey election along with other memorable presidential elections in history.
Strategies: 1. Focus on the 1948 presidential election.
2. Focus on specific presidential elections of historic note.
3. Focus on the statistical analysis of presidential elections.
What made Truman's re-election so historic?
Where did the voting not go as predicted?
Why was Dewey considered the favorite?
How did Truman get elected when he wasn't suppose to?
2. Which presidential elections in American history have proven to be particularly historic, and for what reasons?
3. How does the American electoral college system work, and is it fair?
4. Which presidents have been elected without having received a majority of the popular vote?
Activities: 1. Assign a different historic presidential election to a different group of students. Have each group research its election, using the K-12 TLC Guide to Presidential Elections as a starting point. When all students have been given adequate time to research their elections, bring the students together for a symposium on America's Presidential Elections.
1801: Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Aaron Burr.
1824: House of Representatives Selects the President.
1860: Abraham Lincoln v. Stephen Douglas.
1864: Abraham Lincoln v. George McClellan.
1920: Warren G. Harding v. James M. Cox.
1948: Harry Truman v. Thomas E. Dewey.
1960: John F. Kennedy v. Richard Nixon.
1968: Richard Nixon v. Hubert Humphrey & George Wallace.
1972: Richard Nixon v. George McGovern.
2000: George W. Bush v. Al Gore & Ralph Nader.
2004: George W. Bush v. John Kerry & Ralph Nader.
Who were the candidates, and which party did they each represent?
Any special circumstances associated with their party nominations?
Was the incumbent president a candidate?
Which states were the swing states/battleground states?
What makes this election historically significant?
Conclude your symposium by having each student make a rank-ordered list of the five presidential elections they think have been the most significant in U.S. history. Collect the student ballots and use them to compile a rank-ordered class list. Record your results on a poster headed Historic Presidential Elections, and display the poster prominently in your classroom for future reference.
Vote percentages by candidate, states and geographical regions.
Popular results v. electoral results.
Popular voting trends for each state over time.

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