The Inauguration occurs every four years on January 20th and the State of the Union Address is held around the same time the other three years.

Both are steeped in tradition but are always unique to each year, creating the perfect opportunity to analyze, discuss, and evaluate what’s said. 

And whether you have just one day to cover the speech’s highlights or more to dive deep, this open-and-go activity kit is all you need!

This kit works for any year’s speech. Just pick your activities, grab the transcript, stream the speech, and go!

Included in both the State of the Union Address & Inaugural Address kits:

• Teacher Overview with detailed lesson plans, including ideas for accommodating each activity to student levels and time constraints
• History and Quick Notes to use as a preview and shortened viewing guide
• What Was Said / What I Think notes sheet with room to go more in-depth with topics covered and reactions by students, as well as analyze the rhetorical devices, tone, and overall message in the speech
• SOTU Response notes sheet to analyze and reflect on the opposing party’s statement
• 8 Point of View cards to challenge students to more deeply view and discuss the speeches from a variety of viewpoints
• Analysis & Evaluation Questions and Response sheet (with rubric) for students to culminate their learning and reactions
• Print PDF and digital Google files of all student materials

This resource is 24 PDF pages, plus Google files.

What grades is this intended for?
This was designed for high school, but could still work for upper middle school. 

What supports are included? How can I modify this?
Clear graphic organizer style notes, and three levels of viewing and analysis activities are included. 

It’s recommended also to obtain the speech’s transcript and/or turn on captions while viewing. 

Can I use this in a homeschooling setting?

Sure! Everything in this kit can easily be used in a solo or a small-group setting. 

Is this editable? What file types does this resource come in?
The main resource comes as a secured, non-editable PDF file intended to be printed.

Included are links to editable Google files, to customize to your classroom needs and assign digitally if you choose. 

What standards does this address?

Several! Standards vary, but this resource supports these from various states:

• Analyze the duties, responsibilities, and obligations of citizenship, including being informed about civic affairs 
• Analyze the various methods of participation in the political process 
• Participate in civil discourse on relevant social studies topics 

What are the terms of use for this resource?

This resource, including all ancillary files, may be used as needed for regular, non-commercial single-classroom use between a teacher and their students. 

This includes printing copies and sharing digital files with students through a secure platform, like Google Classroom or Canvas, email, or a classroom-only shared drive.

The using and sharing of any part of this resource in any manner outside the above-mentioned capacity is strictly prohibited. Prohibited uses include, but are not limited to,

• posting files on the open internet or in a Facebook group
• emailing files to or sharing print copies with others (without purchasing additional licenses)
• uploading or storing files in a shared cloud drive accessible by anyone other than students
• including any part, or any derivative work, within any commercial endeavor like curriculum development, professional training, or for-profit teaching like Outschool, or selling this resource as your own in either print or digital formats

Doing so violates the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), copyright law, and these terms.

By downloading this resource from Let’s Cultivate Greatness, the original user has been granted one license for a single teacher (or number of teachers matching the number of licenses purchased) and their students at any one time.  

Let’s Cultivate Greatness retains the full copyright of this resource.

This resource had amazing ideas! I modified it slightly for my students, but it helped them watch the SOTU with purpose and fostered curiosity!  – fellow TPT seller

This was a great guide for the SOTU Address, it kept my students engaged and helped them understand the more nuanced and complex parts of the speech. I'm just sad I only get to use it once a year!  – Brian A.

When I downloaded this resource and reviewed it, the first thought that crossed my mind was, "Wow. This is such a great resource." After I used it with my students, I thought, "SERIOUSLY! This is SUCH A GREAT resource!" I highly recommend this product. It helped foster some great discussions!  –  fellow TPT seller