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Student Objectives

• Identify the factors that have historically led Americans to war and how these factors have influenced the decision to go to war.

• Understand the unique role of the president as Commander in Chief in determining U.S. involvement in armed conflicts.

Materials

• Video on unitedstreaming: Commander in Chief: George H.W. Bush

Search for this video by using the video title (or a portion of it) as the keyword.

Selected clips that support this lesson plan:

• Early Days of the Persian Gulf Conflict

• Ghosts of Vietnam and the End of the Cold War

• Operation Desert Shield

• Persian Gulf War: Battles, Strategies, and the Reaction at Home

• Desert Storm, Hyper war, and the Role of the Media

• U.S. history textbooks

• Paper

• Pens or pencils

Procedures

1. Begin by asking students to brainstorm reasons the U.S. has gone to war in its history. Encourage students to think about why the U.S. entered World War II, the Vietnam War, and the Persian Gulf War. Write students’ answers on the board.

2. Explain that our country has gone to war based on the interplay of specific key factors: the president, Congress, external events, American interests, and popularity. Share with students the following five key factors, either by writing them on the board or displaying them with an overhead projector. Encourage students to take notes.

• President: In some cases the president has eagerly joined a military conflict. James Polk initiated the Mexican War and Franklin Delano Roosevelt supported Britain in World War II. But James Madison was reluctant to involve the country in the War of 1812.

• Congress: Members of Congress, especially the so-called War Hawks, were overwhelmingly in favor of American involvement in the War of 1812. And Congress strongly supported the Spanish-American War. But Congress was deeply divided over American involvement in World War I, although the members voted for the country to enter that war. Even though Congress never officially declared war, the U.S. entered the Korean and Vietnam Wars.

• Events: The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in World War II immediately involved the U.S. in that war. So did the Mexican soldiers who crossed the Rio Grade in 1846. When they attacked General Zachary Taylor’s troops, President Polk justified entering a war with Mexico.

• American interests: Americans have fought for land, as in the War of 1812; for oil, in the Persian Gulf War; for human rights (to some degree) in World War II and the Persian Gulf War; and for democracy, in the Korean and Vietnam Wars. Americans have also entered war to support their allies, as they did in World Wars I and II.

• Popularity: American involvement in the Spanish-American War was wildly popular, but many Americans opposed the Vietnam War.

3. Explain to students that for the next few days they will analyze how these key factors contributed to eight wars in U.S. history: War of 1812, Mexican War, Spanish-American War, World War I, World War II, Korean War, Vietnam War, and the Persian Gulf War.

4. Assign one war to each student. Have the class count off one through eight and assign all “ones” the War of 1812, “twos” the Mexican War, and so forth. At least two or three students in the class should study each war.

5. Pass out copies of the take-home activity sheet below; students will complete it as homework. Students should use their U.S. history textbooks and other resources if necessary to finish the assignment.

American Wars: Contributing Factors

1. Use your textbook to complete the following questions.

▪ Name of the war:

▪ Dates of U.S. involvement:

▪ Brief summary (main allies and adversaries; reasons for U.S. involvement):

2. Explain how each of the following factors contributed to U.S. participation in the war.

▪ President (What was the president’s view? Did he want to go to war?)

▪ Congress (Did Congress favor American involvement? Did it declare war?)

▪ Events (What attacks or other events involved Americans directly?)

▪ Interests (What were the American interests? How were American allies involved?)

▪ Popularity (What was public opinion? How popular was American involvement?)

6. In class, separate students into “expert groups” of students who studied the same war: all students assigned to the War of 1812 in one group, those assigned to the Spanish-American War in another group, etc.

7. Explain to students that while in their expert groups, they should discuss and, in some cases, expand on the answers written on the take-home activity sheet. Explain that when students have finished, each group will share with the class what they have learned from their research.

8. Each group should present for no longer than 10 minutes of class time. The rest of the students should take detailed notes during the presentations and be encouraged to ask questions afterward.

9. After all the presentations, review with students what they have learned. Moderate a class discussion that compares and contrasts the eight wars. Can they draw any conclusions about when and why Americans have gone to war? Work with students to identify recurring issues that have led to U.S. involvement in war. Be sure to talk about the president’s unique role as Commander in Chief in each conflict.

Assessment

Use the following three-point rubric to evaluate students’ work during this lesson.

• 3 points: Student completes chart accurately, makes a strong contribution to the group presentation, shows an understanding of the historical examples, and makes astute conclusions, even critical analysis, about the war they have studied.

• 2 points: Student fails to complete chart accurately, contributes some to the group presentation, makes thoughtful conclusions but lacks a thorough understanding of the information, and shows a lack of real analysis.

• 1 point: Student submits incomplete work that largely contains inaccuracies.

Vocabulary

conciliate

Definition: To overcome the anger, distrust, or animosity of; to appease or placate

Context: In an attempt to avoid war, the British tried to conciliate.

diplomacy

Definition: The practice or skill of conducting negotiations between nations or governments

Context: Once diplomacy failed, the president decided it was time to use military force.

mobilization

Definition: To assemble (resources, facilities, or the like) and make ready for action, as in time of war

Context: The president ordered the immediate mobilization of U.S. troops.

neutrality

Definition: The foreign policy of a nation that refuses to take sides in an international dispute

Context: The president publicly favored a policy of neutrality, although he was inclined to favor the British.

offensive

Definition: An act of aggression; hostile action; assault

Context: The general planned another major offensive against the enemy.

sanction

Definition: An action taken by one or more nations and designed to force another nation to comply with a legal, ethical, or moral code

Context: Congress favored using sanctions, which the President said was not effective.

Academic Standards

Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning (McREL)

McREL's Content Knowledge: A Compendium of Standards and Benchmarks for K-12 Education addresses 14 content areas. To view the standards and benchmarks, visit link:

This lesson plan addresses the following national standards:

• History—Historical Understanding: Understands and knows how to analyze chronological relationships and patterns; United States History: Understands developments in foreign policy and domestic politics between the Nixon and Clinton presidencies

• Language Arts—Writing: Uses the general skills and strategies of the writing process, Gathers and uses information for research purposes

The National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS)

NCSS has developed national guidelines for teaching social studies. To become a member of NCSS, or to view the standards online, go to

This lesson plan addresses the following thematic standards:

• Power, Authority, and Governance

• Civic Ideals and Practices

• Science, Technology, and Society

Support Materials

Develop custom worksheets, educational puzzles, online quizzes, and more with the free teaching tools offered on the Web site. Create and print support materials, or save them to a Custom Classroom account for future use. To learn more, visit

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Grade Level: 9-12

Curriculum Focus: U.S. Government

Lesson Duration: Two class periods

[pic]Lesson Plan: U. S. Foreign Policy and Unofficial Wars

The President’s Role as Commander-in-Chief When the U.S Goes to War

Lesson Plan

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