The American Vote
Progressive EraAll 5 grade bands · K-2 through APFree download

1896

Lesson plan.
William McKinley vs William Jennings BryanWilliam McKinley defeated William Jennings Bryan in a race that clarified the politics of money, labor, and industrial growth.

In 1896, William McKinley (Republican) won the U.S. presidency. William McKinley took 271 of the 447 electoral votes to William Jennings Bryan's 176. William McKinley led the national popular vote with 51.02%. The race falls within the Progressive Era; the lesson packets below dig into its central debates, with Gold standard vs. free silver among the major themes.

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
Download by grade band
  • K-2
    Story
    4 pp
    20 min
    Free
  • 3-5
    Reading
    5 pp
    35 min
    Free
  • 6-8
    Reading
    6 pp
    50 min
    Free
  • 9-12
    Source
    8 pp
    75 min
    Free
  • AP
    DBQ
    12 pp
    105 min
    Free