Pass-Ed's Living Textbook
| The Debate Welcome to Pass-Ed Feel free to use our lesson plans!! |
September 27, 2008
The New York Times is running an article entitled, "The Next Day, a New
Debate on Who Won." Referring to upcoming debates, Jim Rutenberg
wrote, "Speaking with reporters on a conference call Saturday morning,
Mr. Obama’s campaign manager, David Plouffe, called Ms. Palin, 'a
gifted debater.' Noting Mr. McCain’s preference for town hall formats,
and using the transparent, expectations-setting hyperbole common from
both campaigns, Mr. Plouffe said he would be 'thrilled' if 'we can just
escape relatively unscathed.'" Rutenberg further wrote, "The positioning
was in keeping with what is now a quadrennial rite in which the
campaigns go full bore to convince the news media, and ultimately the
public, that their candidate won. This often involves highlighting some
supposedly fatal mistake by their opponent — the sighs of Al Gore at a
2000 debate; the first President George Bush’s peek at his wristwatch
while debating Bill Clinton in 1992."
Read the Article!!
Discussion Starters for Younger Children
Have you ever told somebody that you disagreed with him/her? What did
you disagree about? How did you explain why you disagreed to the other
person? Is it OK to disagree with somebody else? Why/why not?
Do you think it's better to argue with somebody, using words, or to fight
with somebody, with fists? Explain your answer!! Why do you think that
so many kids hit other kids instead of using their words?
Have you ever picked on somebody for something small? Maybe their
name sounded strange or they said something silly. Have you ever seen
somebody pick on somebody for this kind of a reason? Why would people
pick on others for little, or no, reason? Is it ever OK to pick on somebody
else? Why/why not?
Have you ever tried to convince somebody of something? Who did you try
and convince? What did you try and convince them of? Do you think that
there are some smart ways to try and convince people of things? Explain!
Discussion Starters for Older Students
Vocabulary terms to discuss: "Middle Class"; Amplify; "Frenzied
Activity"; and, "Zone Offense."
Why do you think that Senator Obama is reminding the American public
that Senator McCain did not mention the words "Middle Class" in Friday
night's debate? Do you think that Senator McCain made a mistake by not
mentioning this term? Why/why not?
What can we learn from the fact that a McCain advertisement ran on the
Wall Street Journal's website advertising victory before the debate even
took place? Do you think that a similar mistake might have happened with
an Obama ad? Why/why not?
Do you think that Obama's campaign manager, David Plouffe really thinks
that Governor Palin is a "gifted debater"? Why would he have said that he
would be thrilled if the Obama campaign emerged from the debates
"relatively unscathed"? If Mr. Plouffe was the manager of a sports team
how do you think he would behave towards the media? Explain!
The New York Times is running an article entitled, "The Next Day, a New
Debate on Who Won." Referring to upcoming debates, Jim Rutenberg
wrote, "Speaking with reporters on a conference call Saturday morning,
Mr. Obama’s campaign manager, David Plouffe, called Ms. Palin, 'a
gifted debater.' Noting Mr. McCain’s preference for town hall formats,
and using the transparent, expectations-setting hyperbole common from
both campaigns, Mr. Plouffe said he would be 'thrilled' if 'we can just
escape relatively unscathed.'" Rutenberg further wrote, "The positioning
was in keeping with what is now a quadrennial rite in which the
campaigns go full bore to convince the news media, and ultimately the
public, that their candidate won. This often involves highlighting some
supposedly fatal mistake by their opponent — the sighs of Al Gore at a
2000 debate; the first President George Bush’s peek at his wristwatch
while debating Bill Clinton in 1992."
Read the Article!!
Discussion Starters for Younger Children
Have you ever told somebody that you disagreed with him/her? What did
you disagree about? How did you explain why you disagreed to the other
person? Is it OK to disagree with somebody else? Why/why not?
Do you think it's better to argue with somebody, using words, or to fight
with somebody, with fists? Explain your answer!! Why do you think that
so many kids hit other kids instead of using their words?
Have you ever picked on somebody for something small? Maybe their
name sounded strange or they said something silly. Have you ever seen
somebody pick on somebody for this kind of a reason? Why would people
pick on others for little, or no, reason? Is it ever OK to pick on somebody
else? Why/why not?
Have you ever tried to convince somebody of something? Who did you try
and convince? What did you try and convince them of? Do you think that
there are some smart ways to try and convince people of things? Explain!
Discussion Starters for Older Students
Vocabulary terms to discuss: "Middle Class"; Amplify; "Frenzied
Activity"; and, "Zone Offense."
Why do you think that Senator Obama is reminding the American public
that Senator McCain did not mention the words "Middle Class" in Friday
night's debate? Do you think that Senator McCain made a mistake by not
mentioning this term? Why/why not?
What can we learn from the fact that a McCain advertisement ran on the
Wall Street Journal's website advertising victory before the debate even
took place? Do you think that a similar mistake might have happened with
an Obama ad? Why/why not?
Do you think that Obama's campaign manager, David Plouffe really thinks
that Governor Palin is a "gifted debater"? Why would he have said that he
would be thrilled if the Obama campaign emerged from the debates
"relatively unscathed"? If Mr. Plouffe was the manager of a sports team
how do you think he would behave towards the media? Explain!
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