Procedures

• SET UP

  This lesson offers several options for you to use with your students whether you are teaching in class, using a hybrid model, or engaging through distance learning. It can be completed in steps as a class or students can move at their own pace and complete the activities independently.

  You can post links to the videos in the lesson along with the related handout and engage in discussion to share responses on a discussion board or learning management system.

  You can also save and share the following Google resource for students to use with this lesson.

  Handout: Graphic Organizer (Google Doc).

  In Google, choose "File" then "Make a Copy" to get your own copy. You can make any needed adjustments in the instructions such as which activities students need to complete, when it is due, etc. and then make it available to them via Google.

• WARM UP

  Pose the following brainstorming questions to your students, directing them to record their responses in their graphic organizer, share with a partner, and then with the class if they choose.

  • What is the State of the Union address?
  • Describe the elements that make for a good speech.

• INTRODUCTION

  Play the following introductory video clip of Stonehill College professor Peter Ubertaccio discussing Jeffrey Tulis' concept of the "two constitutional presidencies" and the Constitutional requirement for the State of the Union address. Direct your students to answer the related questions on their graphic organizer and share their findings with a partner, small group, or the class when finished.

  Clip #1: The Two Presidencies (4:14).

  • What does the State of the Union address “straddle?”
  • According to Peter Ubertaccio, what is the Constitutional (big c) presidency and what does it “proscribe?”
  • What is the constitutional (little c) presidency, who created it, and what does it “demand?”
  • Which section of the Constitution is less specific, according to Ubertaccio? Why?
  • Based on the clip, what does Article II, Section III require of the president?

• VOCABULARY

  Direct your students to their graphic organizers to view and define the vocabulary terms that will appear in the lesson in the chart in their graphic organizer handout. The vocabulary words are also listed to the right on this webpage. We recommend having your students define and present the terms in a jigsaw activity to save time.

  Depending on time and resources, you may consider having your students define and present the terms in a Frayer's Model activity, where each student takes one or two items. Students can then post their models around the room for reference throughout the lesson. Note: this is not an all-encompassing list of terms included in each video. We recommend you preview the video clips to determine any necessary additions/subtractions to this list for your specific students.

• BACKGROUND

  Direct students to the background section of their graphic organizers. Instruct your students to view the following four video clips that provide background information on the purpose of the State of the Union address. Direct your students to answer the related questions on their graphic organizer and share their findings with a partner, small group, or the class when finished.

• Clip #2: Not the President's Domain (2:41).

  • How often does the State of the Union address occur, according to Peter Ubertaccio?
  • Based on the clip, where does the address occur and who attends?
  • What is the “most important part” of the beginning of the address? What does it “indicate?”
  • Why doesn’t the President just “walk in?”

• Clip #3: A Political Rally (1:30).

  • What does the State of the Union address “take on” today?
  • According to Peter Ubertaccio, what feature of the address is well known?
  • Based on the clip, what did the Washington Post report about George W. Bush’s address?

• Clip #4: The Audience (5:04).

  • Summarize the viewership of the State of the Union address, as described by Peter Ubertaccio.
  • Why have the viewership numbers “declined?”
  • What does the constitutional (little c) presidency “require?”
  • Compare the three “big problems” described by Ubertaccio.
  • Based on the clip, what impact can the State of the Union address have on the problems? Why?

• Clip #5: Modeled After (4:05).

  • Was the concept of the State of the Union address “pulled” from the Articles of Confederation? Why or why not?
  • What is the “most gracious speech to Parliament,” and what purpose does it serve?
  • According to Peter Ubertaccio, how did early American colonial constitutions modify the intent of the King’s speech? Compare the examples he provides.
  • From where is Article II, Section III of the U.S. Constitution “derived?”

• HISTORICAL PROGRESSION

  Direct students to the historical progression section of their graphic organizers. Instruct your students to view the following seven video clips that detail the historical evolution of the State of the Union address. Direct your students to answer the related questions on their graphic organizer and share their findings with a partner, small group, or the class when finished.

• Clip #6: George Washington and John Adams (2:36).

  • Based on the clip, how long was the first State of the Union address?
  • According to Peter Ubertaccio, what did George Washington say in the first address?
  • Why did Washington choose this “style?”
  • How did Washington and John Adams “deliver” their addresses?

• Clip #7: Thomas Jefferson and the British (3:50).

  • What practice did Thomas Jefferson “end?” Why? Describe what you see and hear in the clip excerpt of the “Queen’s Speech.”
  • According to Peter Ubertaccio, what is interesting about the most gracious speech to Parliament?
  • Based on the clip, what else may have influenced Jefferson’s ending of the State of the Union address tradition?

• Clip #8: Verbosity and Expectations (5:35).

  • Of what were Presidents “freed” after Thomas Jefferson? How did this impact subsequent State of the Union addresses?
  • Are presidents still able deliver the State of the Union address in written form? Why would the “constitutional (little c) presidency” make this difficult?
  • According to Peter Ubertaccio, what is a modern critique of modern addresses and why is this ironic?
  • How have the “expectations” and “tradition” of the addresses changed over time?

• Clip #9: William Howard Taft and Woodrow Wilson (7:02).

  • When does the “in-person” State of the Union address return?
  • What did Woodrow Wilson believe was a “flaw” in the American constitutional system? How did William Howard Taft view this perspective?
  • At what point in the “calendar” are State of the Union addresses given, and how has this changed over time?
  • According to Peter Ubertaccio, what did Wilson think a “popular party leader” could do? What did he help to “create?”
  • What are the “perils” of popular leadership?

• Clip #10: 1920s to 1960s (5:36).

  • Why wasn’t Woodrow Wilson’s transformation of the State of the Union address “immediate?’
  • What has become “customary” since the presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt?
  • What “important development” occurred during the presidency of Lyndon Johnson? Describe the other changes that occurred in the early 1900s.
  • According to Peter Ubertaccio, how and why did the intended audience of the State of the Union address change during this era?
  • How were the address’s changes a “Wilsonian conception?”

• Clip #11: 1970s to 1990s (7:54).

  • What change did the “opposition party” make in 1966? Why?
  • According to Peter Ubertaccio, how did Ronald Reagan expand the State of the Union address?
  • Compare the clip excerpt of Bill Clinton with that of the clip of Reagan. What is the “difference?”

• Clip #12: Today's Addresses (8:13).

  • What is “too great” for many presidents, and for what is the modern State of the Union address designed?
  • Describe the two instances shown in the clip that illustrate the “hallmarks of today’s address.”
  • According to Peter Ubertaccio, what were the effects of each situation?

• REFLECTION

  Direct students to the reflection section of their graphic organizers. Instruct your students to view the following video clip in which Ubertaccio provides a conclusion to his lecture on the history of State of the Union addresses. Direct your students to answer the related questions on their graphic organizer and share their findings with a partner, small group, or the class when finished.

  Clip #13: Wilsonian View and Conclusion (4:47).

  • What have recent State of the Union addresses “encouraged?”
  • According to Peter Ubertaccio, what is the reality?
  • Based on the clip, what is gained and lost during the State of the Union address?
  • What does the final quote that Ubertaccio shares mean? Is it true with regard to the State of the Union address?

• CLOSURE

  After your students are finished sharing their findings from the lesson, direct them to complete the final culminating writing prompt in their graphic organizers, and have students share their responses, comparing their perspectives with their classmates' perspectives: Having now learned about the history of State of the Union addresses, describe how their goals, methods, and impacts have evolved over time. Be sure to include evidence from the video clips in the lesson to support your argument.