I had no idea just how interesting the US presidents were until I created the US Presidents Day Trivia Game!
Here are just a few fun things I learned about our presidents…
- More than half of the US presidents were lawyers.
- President Grover Cleveland had cancer removed from his mouth in secret and on a yacht! (This one really blows my mind)
- President John Tyler had 15 children!
- President William Henry Harrison had the shortest presidential term at only 31 days.
The interesting facts continued as I researched books to recommend for Presidents’ Day. For example:
- When he was a soldier in WWII, future president John F. Kennedy was stranded on a deserted island for six days. (Close Calls)
- Amid considerable controversy, a woman was executed for her role in a plot to assassinate Abraham Lincoln. (Hanged!)
- There is an urban legend that FDR traveled to his “Day of Infamy” speech in a car once owned by Al Capone. (Two Men and a Car)
The booktalk slides includes 28 picture books, middle grade, and YA fiction and nonfiction titles, all themed for Presidents’ Day.
The link below is for Google Slides, but if you prefer PowerPoint, you can find the PPT version of this Presidents’ Day Digital Booktalk in my Free Resource Library (subscribe to get the password via email).
SLIDESHOW: PRESIDENTS’ DAY DIGITAL BOOKTALK
The booktalk slideshow is editable in Google Slides. Please feel free to make a copy and edit it for your library as you wish. I’ve included lots of popular books that are found in many libraries, but you can easily add your own library books, too.
Play the slides on a timed loop in the library or hallway to encourage students to explore interesting biographical information about the US presidents.
To download the digital booktalk presentation, click the link underneath the slideshow below. Click “make a copy” when the message pops up to make a copy in your Google Drive. You can then edit it to include books from your school library.
I included some fantastic titles below, many of which have starred professional reviews. Some have also won book awards, so it can also make a great collection development tool. I also plan to update these slides from time to time to add new titles!
To edit this Presidents’ Day Digital Booktalk, click this link and “make a copy” for your Google Drive.
RELATED PRESIDENTS’ DAY RESOURCES FOR SCHOOL LIBRARIES
Looking for more fun facts about US presidents? This trivia game is a great way to celebrate Presidents’ Day in the library or classroom. It contains 25 question slides (a few examples are listed above) and answer slides. It’s great for Grades 4-7.
All the answers are multiple choice, so students do not need any prior knowledge of US presidents to play.
