Help Wanted: President of the United States

Teaching Theme of the Week

from Education World®

Students write help wanted ads that describe the position of president of the United States.

Subjects: Language Arts, Visual Arts, Educational Technology, Social Studies

Grade Levels: 3-5, 6-8, 9-12

Objectives
Students will:

• use online and print resources to study the job of president,
• identify the powers and responsibilities of the president,
• write help wanted ads for the job of president,
• design artwork for the advertisements, and
• create samples of the ads.

Keywords
advertising, career, newspaper, president, writing

Materials Needed

• classified sections from newspapers
• Help Wanted work sheet
• Internet or other sources of information about the presidency

Procedure
Introduce this activity by asking students to identify ways that people search for and obtain jobs. You may list these on the board. Highlight the newspaper's classified section help wanted ads during the discussion, and pass out sample newspapers (pre-screened). Allow students to read the help wanted display ads. Then invite students to share some examples and identify information that should be included in this kind of ad. List on the board or on chart paper some important details usually found in job-related ads.

Talk about the job of the president. What characteristics should a good candidate for president possess? What schooling and work experience are required? What are the demands of the job? Ask the students to think about these questions as you distribute the Help Wanted work sheet.

Point students to the brief page from Scholastic The President's Job. Tell them to read the information about the president's job and use it to create help wanted ads. Every ad should include:

• a summary of the role of president
• a description of the responsibilities and duties required
• reference to the characteristics, education, skills, and experience candidates need.

Students can locate additional information on theses Web sites:

• Ben's Guide to the U. S. Government for Kids
• The President of the United States Grades 3-5)
• The President of the United States (Grades 6-8)

If Internet access is not available, print those sources or offer a collection of other sources of information about the guidelines for attaining the presidency and the role of the president.

When students finish writing, they may embellish their ads with appropriate artwork.

Older students may not need the benefit of the work sheet to get started with this assignment. Refer them to The President of the United States, another page from Ben's Guide that is designed for grades 9-12. There is additional information on the White House Web site, and these students might refer to Monster.com for authentic examples of job descriptions. Another site, Write a Great Help Wanted Ad, provides tips for making attractive and effective help wanted ads.

Extension activity
Have students exchange their job descriptions and respond in writing with letters written as able candidates for the presidency. They might even select lawmakers and other "real" Americans who have run for the office or they believe deserve it.

Assessment
A satisfactory essay will contain a summary of the role of president, a description of the responsibilities and duties required, and references to the characteristics, education, skills, and experience candidates need.

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