Lesson Plan: For Teachers: The One to Watch

Lesson Plan

Before Exploring

Ask: What qualities or personality traits make you different and even unique? What characteristics do you have that make you "stand out from the crowd"? Invite students to share their ideas about famous people who they think have traits that are memorable and obvious to the public. Focus the conversation on Jean Chrétien. Brainstorm a class list of his characteristics or personality traits. Explain to the class that the young Chrétien was often touted as "the one to watch."

Outline the Opportunity

Have students work in small groups to explore the following clips from the topic Jean Chrétien: From Pool Hall to Parliament Hill on the CBC Digital Archives website:

"The political up-and-comer", "Le petit gars de Shawinigan", "Finally Finance", "The dealmaker", and "Losing the Liberal leadership"

Students will browse the clips to find words, phrases, or quotes that describe Chrétien's personality, along with any supporting details or background information they deem relevant. Provide students with the download sheet The One to Watch to record their information. Some notes are already included.

Using details from the class list and their download sheets, students will work independently to write a newspaper article that describes Chrétien. They can write a feature, an editorial, or any newspaper element of their choice, but the article must explain why Chrétien was considered the one to watch.

Revisit and Reflect

Invite students to share their articles with the class. Students should be prepared to ask and answer questions. Have students submit their articles to include in a special edition class newspaper for posting on the school website or on a class bulletin board.

Extension

Students can compare the information they gathered with the biography posted on the National Library of Canada.