Presidents: Fill in the Blank

In the last section of Chapter 11, four different presidents and their terms are discussed in less than three pages!  Martin Van Buren, William Henry Harrison, John Tyler and James Polk's presidencies are all briefly touched on, but much is left to the imagination. Your blog assignment this week is to fill in some of these gaps.

Spend 20-30 minutes researching one of these Presidents online. Here is the White House Website which I have found helpful, but feel free to use other text and online sources! Then, write a paragraph about the President that you research which includes his education and what prompted him to run for President (don't forget to include his running mate and party!). Discuss any key events or decisions that are happened during his presidency.

For your final paragraph, try to draw a connection from the legacy of  President you choose to research to our present day government, views on the presidency or way we look at life.

Jackson

Considered common man, Andrew Jackson faced many challenges during his eight years in office, Jackson juggled the Nullification Crisis, the Indian Removal Act, the Spoils System and countless other affairs. Below, there are several videos for you to watch and learn more about this esteemed man. Pick three videos to watch and take brief notes about what you learn (this will be first half of your post).

Then, critique Jackson's presidency in light of what you have seen and read. Do you agree with his decisions? Some of them? Which ones? Why or why not? Do you think that Jackson would be elected in this day and age? Be sure to include specific reasons to justify your critique.

The Corporations 

Indian Removal

Reinventing the Presidency, Part 1 

Reinventing the Presidency, Part 2 

Was Andrew Jackson a Great President? 

What Does America Owe the Slaves? 

Just How Different Were They?: North & South in the 1800s

In Chapter 13, we will be talking about differences between the Northern and Southern States in the 1800's. In the Northern states, the nineteenth century was a time of immigration, industrialization and growth. Many immigrants, women and children worked long hours in factories trying to make enough money to make ends meet while others were climbing up the social ladder of wealth and prosperity. Watch this video to hear more about the tenements that people called home and learn "How the Other Half Lives." What surprises you about this video?

Now, I'm sure you recall that in the 1800's slavery was commonplace in the South. Even though the living conditions of slaves heavily depended on the hearts of their Slave-Master, all of the slaves experienced a rough journey to the Americas. Read this article to discover what the journey to the Americas was like for captured slaves.

For your comment this week, post about the similarities and differences between the experiences of the slaves in the South and the poor living conditions of many in Northern cities. What were the attitudes of the people "above" them?