CLASS #27 Rewind  10/29/2012
One and Done - The Presidency of John Adams (1796 to 1800)

This class was driven by the following essential questions for Topic #3

1. How did  Adams shape the office of the President, which had been vaguely defined in the Constitution?

2. How did president Adams attempt to meet foreign policy challenges?

ANNOUNCEMENTS: Thank you to all the students that completed the first WIRE assignment. The next WIRE will be posted Monday evening. I also provided a sneak preview of the essay you will be writing on the next unit test. Yes you read that correctly - you got a chance to see your next essay.  I will even post the question at the end of this class rewind!!!

Hurricane Sandy has the whole area in a tizzy and caused our school day to be cut in half - dismissal is at 12:30. I started class by sharing the story of the Children's Blizzard of 1889. Here is a link to the book on Amazon. An here is a link  and description to a podcast about the event:  The Children's Blizzard Listen now: standard [right click "Save Target As"]  January 12, 1888 began as an unseasonably warm morning across the upper Midwest. Children walked to school without coats and gloves, unaware of the impending blizzard that was to claim 500 lives. 

To review the Precedents of George Washington we spent the next 15 minutes of class adding notes to your personal copy of the United States Constitution. WHY? Good question. Our goal is to generate notes on this constitution for the rest of the year. Each time an historical event comes up in class we will find language in the Constitution that guides our presidents, Congressmen and judges through the problem. Remember all the notes you add to your copy of the Constitution can be used on the test during a 2 minute drill type window.  I have also built a webpage to support this note taking activity  take a look at it here-  Please be advised it is under construction :). Here are the constitutional connections we made in class today

#1 Washington's Cabinet 1791 (an example of the unwritten Constitution- Who are GW's cabinet members?  Why are they important? Why is Alexander Hamilton such an important figure in the new cabinet? )Think B.E.F.A.T

#2  Whiskey Rebellion 1794   Remember the President's job is to make sure the laws are faithfully executed. How did he illustrate this power with the Whiskey Rebellion? Why were the Whiskey farmers so upset? What role did Hamilton play in this event? 

SCOREBOARD UPDATE:  If you are keeping score at home here is an update...We covered notes on Washington first term Class #25 ; I quizzed you on the first term Class #26, I reviewed what we covered and quiz Class #27 with the aforemention Constitutional Connections. Based on this level of conversation and coverage you should be able to nail the essay of Presidential powers (that I posted for you) when we you are asked to write the essay. 

After a brief summary of meterological history and forecasting we dove right into the story of our second President - The Federalist John Adams. A note sheet was provided for you to follow along. A ten minute investment after class review these notes will help you master the topic. 

Here are the highlights of the Adam's Presidency. Can you recall specific factual information about each of these events? If note re-read the notesheet I provided of click on the web based notes I have embedded on our class website at

www.rushcanvas.pbworks.com

XYZ Affair

Alien & Sedition Acts 

Nullification

Virginia & Kentucky Resolutions

THEMATIC ESSAY FOR TEST #3 Date TBA 

Theme: Presidential Actions  United States presidents have taken actions that have had a significant effect on United States foreign or domestic policies.

Directions: Write a well-organized essay that includes an introduction, several paragraphs addressing the task below, and a conclusion.

Task: Identify TWO presidential actions that have had significant effects on United States history and for each

• Describe the historical circumstances surrounding the action

• Discuss the impact of the presidential action on United States foreign policy or on American society

You may use any presidential action that has had a significant effect on United States history. Some suggestions you might wish to consider include George Washington issuing the Proclamation of Neutrality, George Washington responding ti the Whiskey Rebellion John Adams signing the Alien and Sedition Acts, Thomas Jefferson authorizing the Louisiana Purchase  You are not limited to these suggestions.

Guidelines:  In your essay, be sure to

• Develop all aspects of the task

• Support the theme with relevant facts, examples, and details

• Use a logical and clear plan of organization, including an introduction and a conclusion that are beyond a restatement of the theme

In developing your answer to Part II, be sure to keep these general definitions in mind:

(a) describe means “to illustrate something in words or tell about it”

(b) discuss means “to make observations about something using facts, reasoning, and argument; to present in some detail”