The President’s Role as Commander-in-Chief
When the U.S Goes to War
Lesson Plan
Grade Level: 9-12
Curriculum Focus: U.S. Government
Lesson Duration: Two class periods
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.
The President’s Role as Commander-in-Chief When the U.S. Goes to War
Lesson Plan
2

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?)
Published by Discovery Education. © 2005. All rights reserved.
The President’s Role as Commander-in-Chief When the U.S. Goes to War
Lesson Plan
3
 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.
Published by Discovery Education. © 2005. All rights reserved.
The President’s Role as Commander-in-Chief When the U.S. Goes to War
Lesson Plan
4
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:
http://www.mcrel.org/compendium/browse.asp
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 http://www.socialstudies.org
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 Discoveryschool.com Web site. Create and print support materials, or save them to a
Custom Classroom account for future use. To learn more, visit

http://school.discovery.com/teachingtools/teachingtools.html
Published by Discovery Education. © 2005. All rights reserved.