Mitchell Elementary Shows Obama Speech During Assembly

Received numerous phone calls and emails from concerned parents regarding an assembly that presumably took place yesterday. According to these calls and emails, the prinicpal held an assembly to show the speech and announced that the Board of Education had decided to show the speech for educational purposes. Please remember all of this post is PRESUMED/ALLEGED, etc. I am still questioning and awaiting details from Central Office and Mitchell Elementary and will update this post accordingly.
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UPDATE:

The below was sent from Mr. Richmond to all staff (the Board was NOT included onthis correspondance) ...

Thursday, October 01, 2009 2:34 PM

Subject: President Obama's Speech
On September 8, 2009, President Barack Obama spoke to the students across the United States via television broadcast. His message is one of encouragement to students about setting goals and accepting responsibility for their educational success. It is a message which is important for all students to hear, and also supports the Maryland State Curriculum for Social Studies.
As a result, we encourage your school to utilize this speech as an instructional resource. To assist in implementation, a few suggestions for the various grade levels are listed below along with the appropriate MSDE expectations.

Teachers can click on the link below to view the text or video of the speech. You may also go to the Virtual Drive / AllStaff folder.

President Obama Speech (Text)
President Obama Speech (Video)

In addition, please let Mr. Cunningham's office know how you utilized the speech.

Elementary Level
Social Studies Goal 1.0 Students will understand the historical development and current status of the fundamental concepts and processes of authority, power, and influence, with particular emphasis on the democratic skills and attitudes necessary to become responsible citizens.

Suggested Activities:

• Students create posters about their responsibilities; how these affect their future and the future of our nation.
• Students create posters / write an essay about their goals and their plans to achieve them.
• Students generate a class list of student responsibilities and post in the classroom.
• Post student goals around the classroom as reminders.

Middle School Level
Social Studies Goal 1.0 Students will understand the historical development and current status of the fundamental concepts and processes of authority, power, and influence, with particular emphasis on the democratic skills and attitudes necessary to become responsible citizens.

Suggested Activities:

• Students use before, during and after reading strategies as they read the speech.
• Students use SOAPSTone to analyze the content of the speech.
• Students create posters about student responsibilities; how these affect their future and the future of our nation.
• Students create posters / write an essay about their goals and their plans to achieve them.
• Generate a class list of student responsibilities and post in the classroom.
• Post student goals around the classroom as reminders.
• Students “Think, Pair, Share” share their goals.
• Students use different genres (songs, poems, etc.) to write about their goals.

High School Level

LSN Government:
EXPECTATION 1.1 - Assessment limit: individual rights and responsibilities

U.S. History:
Expectation 6 - Students will demonstrate understanding of the cultural, economic, political and social developments from 1981 to the present.
Indicator 2 - Analyze modern economic, political and social influences on American society from 1981-present (5.6.2).

Suggested Activities:

• Students use before, during and after reading strategies as they read the speech.
• Students use SOAPSTone to analyze the content of the speech.
• Students create posters of their goals (perhaps use a quad format) and label it based on the categories identified in the speech (personal, community, academic, and country).
• Students write essays explaining how their goals can be achieved.
• Students interview one another and share their goals.
• Students use different genres (songs, poems, etc.) to write about their goals.
• Compare President Obama’s speech with those given by his predecessors.