Climate change. Assault weapons ban. Death penalty. And the list goes on. So many issues are part of a US presidential election that it can be hard to determine a candidate's position on a particular topic and whether their position has changed over time. To better understand this complex process, class members research a candidate's position history on one issue and share their findings.

Concepts

presidential campaigns, presidential candidates, presidential elections, critical thinking

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Additional Tags

social studies

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Instructional Ideas

• Have researchers create a color-coded timeline that shows the candidate's position on an issue and whether it has changed over time

Classroom Considerations

• Requires extra prep time to prepare a list of suggested topics and resources

Pros

• The assignment encourages scholars to think critically about the importance of an issue-based vote

Cons

• None