Before Viewing American Presidents
Part 1
Have students identify basic biographical information on or about
President William Howard Taft. Instruct students to visit C-SPAN's
American Presidents web site and review biographical information on
President William Howard Taft. Each student should take note of five facts
about President Taft that he or she find interesting. (please note:
students who do not have access to the Internet can use a print out
from the web site.)
Discuss the facts gathered by the students by writing them on
the board in front of the classroom. How many facts were
gathered in total? Which fact did the class find most interesting?
Why? As a class, develop a biographical profile of the president and
try to develop an understanding of his personality.
Part 2
William Howard Taft held many positions as a public servant including
President, US Supreme Court Justice, Secretary of War, and
Governor-General of the Philippines. As a class, consider the following quote:
"It's very difficult for me to understand how a man who is
so good as Chief Justice could have been so bad as President"
- Justice Louis Brandeis
What qualities are needed to be president? What qualities
are needed to be a Chief Justice? What is the process to
achieve these public service positions? Why do you think
a person can be a good chief justice but a poor
president?
While Viewing American Presidents
Directions: Take notes on information presented during the
American Presidents biography program on President William
Howard Taft. Students should connect
events during William Howard Taft's life (1857 - 1930)
with his action as a public servant.
Childhood and Education
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International Affairs
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Domestic Policy
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Justice System
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After Viewing American Presidents
Divide students into three groups. Assign each group to study
one of the following topics: International Affairs, Domestic Policy, and
Justice System. Students can use the
information they gathered during the above activity to aid in
their research.
Students must answer the following questions
according to their topic: Considering that he was an
unwilling candidate, what would American history have been like
if William Howard Taft was not president?
Tips: Students must be able to identify contributions by
William Howard Taft before and after his presidency, problems
he had encountered as president, the political
environment during Taft's presidency, and the man he beat
in the 1908 election.
The student groups will present their research
and views to the class.
