Prestwick House
Rhetorical Devices in Political Speeches
Have you ever watched a political speech and felt your heart beat a little faster, and your opinion either solidify or begin to slightly change? Rhetorical devices can be a strong tool in an effective and powerful speech. A short lesson...
ReadWriteThink
Analyzing Famous Speeches as Arguments
A speaker, a message, an audience. After analyzing these elements in Queen Elizabeth's speech to the troops at Tilbury, groups analyze how other speakers use an awareness of events, and their audience to craft their arguments....
PBS
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s ‘I Have a Dream’ Speech as a Work of Literature
To appreciate the oratory of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech, scholars examine the rhetorical devices and influences that make the speech so famous. They examine background information, conduct a close reading of the...
Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library & Museum
Pearl Harbor Activity #2: Why Do Words Matter?
Words matter! That's the big idea behind an activity that asks scholars to replace words in FDR's "Day of Infamy" speech with synonyms. They then listen to a recording of President Roosevelt's address and compare his version to their own.
Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library & Museum
Pearl Harbor Activity #5: The Medium Matters
Young journalists learn that how we get our news and information matters in a collaborative social studies activity. The class is divided into three groups with the first analyzing a transcript of FDR's "Day of Infamy" speech, the second...
DocsTeach
The Path of Justice: Selma and the Voting Rights Act
The civil rights movement: An ongoing battle for change. The activity focuses on President Johnson's speech in response to the massacre at the Selma March. Academics study the speech, complete a hands-on-activity, and discuss President...
PBS
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
What rights are guaranteed to students? Do they align with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which was approved by the United Nations in 1948? Middle and high schoolers present persuasive arguments about the rights they believe...
Curated OER
Persuade Me, Please! Reading a Persuasive Essay and Liking It!
Persuade your writers that crafting arguments is not that difficult. They only need to follow the steps outlined in this resource.
Curated OER
An Ideal for Which I Am Prepared to Die
English language learners have an opportunity to closely examine the academic language in portions of Nelson Mandela's famous 1964 Court Speech, "An Ideal for Which I Am Prepared to Die," with a lesson that looks at key passages from the...
Curated OER
The Art Of Persuasion
Young scholars engage in a instructional activity that focuses upon the use of persuasive speech. They conduct research into the famous sayings used by sideshow owners and performers from the Old West. Students then create advertisements...
Curated OER
Persuade or Die!
High schoolers read Patrick Henry's speech. They review prior learning about persuasive writing, and the American revolutionary war. Students listen as the teacher reads Patrick Henry's speech aloud to the class using lots of emotion and...
Curated OER
Colonial North Carolina
Students resarch people and events from a given list. Then based on teacher options, students employ perspectives, an audience, a presentation format, and topic to prepare a two-page document to share with the class. Students also...
Curated OER
Debate on Ratification: Should We Ratify the New Constitution?
Students determine whether the Constitution should be ratified. In this U.S. Constitution lesson, students research the roles of famous Federalists and Antifederalists in order to prepare them to participate in a classroom simulation...
Curated OER
VA Statute for Religious Freedom, III
Young scholars analyze the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedoms and consider its implications. In this governing principles lesson, students explore primary and secondary sources regarding the document penned by Thomas Jefferson.
Curated OER
VA Statute for Religious Freedom, II. Matching Activity
Pupils read and analyze primary source documents. In this matching lesson, students read sections of the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom. Pupils match the document sections with paraphrased sections and discuss the accuracy of the...
Sophia Learning
Sophia: I Have a Dream: Crafting a Persuasive Speech
This PDF lesson plan is for students to use Martin Luther King's famous speech as an example to write their own persuasive speech about an issue of their choice. Students will utilize their knowledge of oratorical strategies to deliver...
Texas Education Agency
Texas Gateway: Analyze Famous Speeches for Rhetorical Structures and Devices
In this lesson, you will learn to analyze persuasive speeches and examine the impact of rhetorical structure and the use of devices in famous speeches. It includes activities such as matching quotes from famous speeches to the speakers...
Texas Education Agency
Texas Gateway: Analyze Famous Speeches for Rhetorical Structures and Devices
In this lesson, you will learn to analyze persuasive speeches, those that are intended to sway the audience to agree with the speaker. You will examine the impact of rhetorical structure and the use of devices in famous speeches.
ReadWriteThink
Read Write Think: Analyzing Famous Speeches as Arguments
This multi-session lesson features the opportunity to analyze a variety of famous speeches. Students will look carefully at tone, rhetoric, propaganda techniques, and historical context as they write an analysis paper....
Texas Education Agency
Texas Gateway: Analyze Famous Speeches for Rhetorical Structures and Devices
Analyze the persuasive impact of rhetorical structures and devices in famous speeches.