Table of Contents
Sample: William Howard Taft

A great way to begin class!

Have you ever herded bunnies?
Then you know how difficult it is to make students come to order at the beginning of class.
A gong works exceedingly well.
But how about a story?

155 stories - nearly one for every day of the school year!
Imagine your startled students - whether fifth graders or seniors - when you begin class with:
“Once upon a time . . .”

Storytelling
It’s hard to remember the Presidents, much less why each became famous.
Storytelling can make each President an individual and therefore memorable.

How it works
1. You tell a brief story about him as a boy, then students predict the decisions he made as President.
2. You tell about the problems he faced as President, then students predict the solutions he chose.

Childhood . . .
Around twelve, students begin to form their “world view.”
That is, they begin to shape their views on race and class, religion and politics.
The same is true for a boy who grows up to become President.
If you know about his childhood, you can predict what he will do as President.
Don’t take our word. Try it!

A fine summary of the 20th century.
After hearing stories of the Presidents, students will learn all the major concepts of the 20th century.
Including people and events, terms and definitions.

Great practice in Bloom’s taxonomy!
Students who practice critical thinking do exceedingly well on standardized tests.
These stories call upon students to exercise all six levels of Bloom’s taxonomy:

1. Recall The colorful stories allow students to memorize the facts.
2. Interpret Listening to the stories, students learn how to read between the lines.
3. Apply Since the stories tell of each President’s childhood, students can easily relate to each man.
4. Analyze Students can analyze the strengths and weaknesses of each President.
5. Synthesize Students are called upon to add up the facts and predict. (This is pure synthesis.)
6. Evaluate After hearing story after story, students learn to evaluate each President.