Barach Obama Speech | Obama President 2008

President Obama makes history again on September 8 with a speech written for and delivered to the students of the United States. This unprecedented speech has become quite controversial and many parents are concerned about allowing their children to watch. For teachers, this is an opportunity to use a current event to teach a bit of social studies and perhaps encourage those students who do watch to set goals for the school year.

How Teachers and Students can Watch the President's Speech

President Obama will speak to the Nation's students on September 8, 2009 at 12:00pm Eastern time. Those teachers who wish to show the speech in their classroom can view the speech live on c-span or watch live on the internet at Whitehouse.gov/live. For those who wish to watch the speech but cannot watch live, video will be available for download on the White house website later in the day. Schools can use the live satellite feed starting at 11:00 am at the coordinates found on the White house website.

Prior to Watching the President's Speech: Lesson Introduction

Introduce students to the speech prior to watching by holding a class discussion about the president. Ask students to share information about the office of president, as well as any significant facts the students might know about President Obama. For additional ideas to teach students some background to the speech, consider these lesson ideas used for President Obama's inauguration.