Teaching #inauguration this week, the primary lesson for my 10th graders will be “the power of words.” I’m creating a word bubble of Joe Biden’s most common speeches vs those of his predecessor. I’ll ask what they notice and what they wonder about what they see. +

Next, we’ll talk about the presidential oath. How 35 words take someone from a civilian to most powerful person in the world. We’ll discuss what the word ‘oath’ means and read this article about President Obama taking it twice!

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/jan/23/barack-obama-oath-inauguration +

+ Lastly, we’re going to discuss what the oath says vs what (and who) it leaves out. Each student will write a 35 word oath based on what they believe a president should do and value with the original as a model text.

Here is the word cloud for Joe Biden's 3 most recent speeches.

Here is the word cloud for 45's most recent speeches.