Special from Dennis Jenkins
Friday morning students shared what they learned about the background of Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter. Students also shared their opinion about the Supreme Court’s decision regarding affirmative action during the Carter years. We watched part of the American Century series that dealt with the presidency of Jimmy Carter. The class was divided into two groups in which they made campaign posters for our role-play debate of the 1980 election. Students watched Bryce and Hayden perform as Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan as they did a mock debate. Both students did a great job!
After lunch, students visited the Kentucky Museum and examined artifacts from different time periods. Some of the students tried on clothes from the Civil War era. Students also got to see some famous political cartoons over the presidents. When we returned to class, we watched impersonations of recent presidents from a man named Steve Bridges. We also watched as he transformed into each person to do his stand-up routine of the presidents.
During the last session of class, students watched several commercials from the 1980 presidential election and we also watched part of one of the debates between Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan. Students read about the assassination attempts on both Andrew Jackson and Ronald Reagan.
They discussed the effect of a major decision that each president made as we examined Jackson’s response to the nullification crisis, and Reagan’s response to the economic problems of the Carter years. Students watched a short clip over the first term of Reagan’s presidency. The last ten minutes of class we watched President Obama’s speech this afternoon regarding the decision of today’s Supreme Court decision regarding same-sex marriage.
Students are looking forward to the weekend back at the dorm. There are a variety of activities planned for the campers over the weekend. I am sure that they are looking forward to getting some much needed rest as well! We will resume study hall Sunday night with an analysis of Ronald Reagan’s background and a study of current events articles.
