Presidents’ Day in third and fourth grade can be a great way to teach students about things going on in the government currently and a great time to teach the history of presidents in our nation. There are so many low-prep and rigorous activities that you can do on Presidents’ Day and today I am going to share a few ideas with you!
Small Group President Projects
For this Presidents’ Day activity, you get your students into groups of 2-3. Then, you assign each group a president. Their job is to read a book (or research information) about that president and then teach the rest of the class the important history that is related to that president.
You can do that by giving them these mini readers about presidents here or you can just have them research. The key is that they are the ones teaching the class about that president through either making a poster or a digital presentation.
Writing with Looking at Lincoln
Lincoln is always a president to focus on during this time, but why not also focus on biography writing?
I love reading the book Looking at Lincoln (grab the book with the affiliate link below) and then working through a biography writing unit.
You could have them write biographies on presidents or on any person in history.
Head here to check out that unit!
Presidents’ Day Read Alouds
Students need to simply learn what Presidents’ Day is! Grab one of these simple read alouds to teach that to them!
Who Was Abraham Lincoln by Janet P. Pascal
I LOVE the Who Was novel series! This is a great one to learn all about Lincoln and show them a peek into a series they may like to read as well!
So You Want To Be President? By Judith St. George
This is a great book to show about the different presidents that have risen to power over the years.
If I Ran for President by Catherine Steir
Want to teach your students about what it takes to become the president? Then, read this read aloud!
Presidential Pets by Julia Moberg
This is a silly and funny read aloud about all the pets that have come to the white house!
You can also have them do a close read to learn about it! This pack has a simple close read that could start off your Presidents’ Day.
EPIC Book Companion Freebie
Want a FREE digital activity you can use on Presidents’ Day? This EPIC book companion allows students to read
a book on EPIC and answer questions. Then, they do a simple digital Presidents’ Day activity!
Put your email below and that digital freebie will be sent right to you!
Presidents’ Day Video Suggestions
This 2 minute video gives a quick overview of the history of Presidents’ Day.
This is another quick video from PBS explaining the history of Presidents’ Day.
This video is a bit longer at 5 minutes, but it explains the history of the holiday and the different disagreements people have about the holiday, such as who the holiday should celebrate and how to spell it.
Hannah Wilde
I am so glad you’re here! I love helping 3rd-5th grade teachers by providing ideas, engaging resources, and professional development they need. I am a literacy coach who is here to help lessen the workload for teachers while making them more confident! I want students to be continually engaged in a rigorous environment!