Second Party SystemAll 5 grade bands · K-2 through APFree download
1836
Lesson plan.
Martin Van Buren vs William Henry Harrison — Martin Van Buren, Jackson's chosen successor and Vice President, won a majority of electoral votes against a fragmented Whig opposition that ran multiple regional candidates hoping to throw the election to the House. The Whig strategy failed as Van Buren held the Jackson coalition together. The election was notable for featuring the newly formed Whig Party running different candidates in different regions. Van Buren would soon face the devastating Panic of 1837.
What is in each packet
Cover
Cycle metadata + band eyebrow
Lesson plan
Instructor — timing, materials, standards
Reading
Sized to grade band (K-2: ~250 words → AP: ~650)
Background
Curated cycles — 5-7 vocab terms + primary-source excerpt
Student worksheet
K-2: 3 questions → AP: 8, mixed format
Answer key
Instructor — rationale on every item
Discussion prompts
3 prompts tied to era
DBQ (AP only)
Long-essay + 5-point rubric + second source