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John Tyler
American Presidents - English Lesson Plans
John Tyler
1. John Tyler was the 10th president of the United States. John Tyler was born in
Virginia in 1790. His father was a prosperous tobacco planter and slave owner.
His father also served as governor of Virginia. John’s family was able to provide
him with an excellent education. When John was 12, he entered the preparatory
school of William and Mary College. He graduated from William and Mary
College when he was 17.
2. After college, John studied law with his father and a cousin who was an attorney.
At 19, he was admitted to the bar. John, however, wasn’t a lawyer for long. When
he was 21, he was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates. In 1816, he was
elected to the House of Representatives. After five years in the House, Tyler
returned to Virginia and was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates again. In
1825, he was elected governor of Virginia. In 1827, Tyler was elected to the U.S.
Senate. In 1836, he resigned from the Senate.
3. In 1840, John Tyler was elected vice-president on William Henry Harrison’s Whig
ticket. President Harrison, however, died 32 days after he took office. Tyler
immediately took charge as president. Tyler decided to keep Harrison’s Cabinet; however, the members of the Cabinet didn’t
really want to work under Tyler. They told him that they would be making the major decisions. Tyler told them that they
could either cooperate with him or resign. The Cabinet did not take that well. By September of 1841, all of his Cabinet,
except one, had resigned.
4. President Tyler’s troubles with the Whigs continued throughout his presidency. He had run on the Whig ticket with
Harrison, and had promised to support Whig policies. However, he had his own ideas. One bone of contention between
Tyler and the Whigs was the National Bank. The Whigs wanted to reestablish a National Bank, but Tyler was against it. He
offered the Whigs a compromise, but they refused to meet him halfway. Tyler continued to veto Whig legislation. The
infuriated Whigs finally threw Tyler out of the Whig Party.
5. In spite of the conflicts with the Whigs, President Tyler had some notable achievements. His administration negotiated
several important treaties. The Webster-Ashburton Treaty established a border between Maine, parts of the Great Lakes
region, and Canada, which stopped disputes between the U.S. and the British. The Wanghia Treaty allowed trade between
the U.S. and China in certain Chinese ports. In 1844, Tyler supported a controversial treaty, the annexation of the Republic
of Texas. The idea had been rejected by President Van Buren before. He had thought that annexing Texas would start a war
with Mexico. Tyler, however, signed the treaty with Texas. The Senate rejected the treaty. Tyler then asked for a joint
resolution of Congress. In February of 1845, the resolution passed. In December of 1845, Texas joined the Union as the
28th state.
6. John Tyler decided not to run for a second term. He returned to Virginia and died in 1862. He is remembered as the first
vice-president to become president when a president died. He is also remembered as the president who helped bring Texas
into the Union. Married twice, he is also known as the president with the most children --- fifteen.
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John Tyler
American Presidents - English Lesson Plans
Pre-Reading Warm Up Questions ☀
1. Like many of the early presidents, Tyler is considered a Virginia aristocrat. Why?
2. What do you know about William Henry Harrison?
3. What do you know about Tyler’s presidency?
4. What was President Tyler’s connection to the Republic of Texas?
COMPREHENSION ✍
A. True or False. Read the statements below. If the statement is true, write T beside the
sentence. If it is false, write F. If it is false, correct the information.
1. John Tyler’s father was against slavery.
2. John Tyler graduated from William and Mary College when he was 12.
3. John Tyler went into politics before he finished law school.
4. Both John Tyler and his father served as governor of Virginia.
DISCUSS
5. John Tyler ran against William Henry Harrison in the election of 1840.
1. John Tyler said, “I can never
6. John Tyler’s marriage lasted fifteen years.
7. Tyler was elected president after President Harrison died.
8. The Senate did not accept the treaty to annex Texas.
B. Practice asking and answering the following questions with your partner.
Then write the answers in complete sentences.
consent to being dictated to.”
How does this quote reflect
Tyler’s personality and
actions? Give examples from
the story.
2. People made fun of Tyler by
calling him “His Accidency.”
1. How old was John Tyler when he became a lawyer?
2. How long did John Tyler serve in the U. S. House of Representatives?
3. How did John Tyler become president of the United States?
4. To which party did Harrison’s Cabinet belong?
5. Why did Tyler tell the Cabinet to cooperate or resign?
Why did they call him that?
What does that name reveal
about people’s attitudes
toward him as president?
3. Why do you think that
6. Why did the Whigs throw Tyler out of the party?
President Tyler decided not
to run for a second term?
7. According to the story, how did the Treaty of Wanghia benefit the United States?
Summarize his possible
8. What problem did the Webster-Ashburton Treaty solve?
personal and political
9. What was the purpose of the Treaty of Annexation in 1844?
reasons.
10. Why did Tyler ask for a joint resolution from Congress?
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John Tyler
American Presidents - English Lesson Plans
VOCABULARY REVIEW ✍
A. Special Expressions - Match the definitions to the expressions on the left.
1. _____ to take charge
a. the topic of an argument or dispute
2. _____ to be a bone of contention
b. to resist, refuse to cooperate, or to have a bad attitude
3. _____ to throw someone out
c. to start a job as an elected official
4. _____ to not take something well
d. to compromise
5. _____ to meet someone halfway
f. to become the leader of something
6. _____ not for long
g. to compete for an elected political position
7. _____ to run for office
h. not for too much time
8. _____ to take office
i. to expel someone from a group or a place
B. Vocabulary – Synonyms
Choose the word that is a synonym for the underlined word in the sentence.
1. The prosperous businesswoman planned on opening another store.
a. struggling
b. wealthy
c. intelligent
4. His wife was infuriated when she heard he had gotten another speeding ticket.
a. extremely angry
b. very sad
c. really calm
4. The school provides nutritious lunches for all the students and teachers.
a. plans
b. gives
c. rejects
4. My cousin passed the Bar, and now she’s an attorney in Texas.
a. server
b. architect
c. lawyer
4. To be successful, this project will require cooperation among coworkers.
a. teamwork
b. contention
c. establishment
4. Just when he thought his troubles were over, he had a car accident.
a. tickets
b. problems
c. luck
4. Susan resigned because she hated the boss at her new job.
a. quit
b. ran
c. negotiated
4. The theme of the movie was controversial, but that made it even more interesting.
a. caused arguments
b. caused nightmares
c. caused laughter
4. The journalist received an award for three notable articles she had written.
a. long
b. important
c. readable
4. The voters supported the mayor in her decision to ban smoking.
a. opposed
b. backed
c. vetoed
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John Tyler
American Presidents - English Lesson Plans
ANSWER KEY
PRE-READING QUESTIONS
1. Tyler was a member of the highly-educated and wealthy planter class in Virginia. His father was the owner of a large
plantation and a politician. Tyler’s mother also came from an old, distinguished Virginia family.
2. Harrison and Tyler ran for president and vice-president on the Whig ticket. Harrison died 32 days after he took office, and
his vice-president, Tyler, took over as president.
3. Answers will vary.
4. Tyler wanted the Republic of Texas to become a state. Tyler believed in territorial expansion, and he strongly supported the
institution of slavery. He knew that Texas would add territory and resources, and that Texas was pro-slavery. Tyler also
wanted to keep the British from meddling in the Republic of Texas.
COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS
A. True or False
1. True
2. False
3. False
4. True
5. False
6. False
7. False
8. True
B. Written Answers
1. He was nineteen years old.
2. He served in the House of Representatives for five years.
3. When President William Henry Harrison died, Vice-President Tyler became president.
4. Harrison’s Cabinet belonged to the Whig Party.
5. The Cabinet told Tyler that they would be making all the decisions, and President Tyler wouldn’t accept that.
6. Tyler didn’t support many of the Whig policies and legislation, so the Whigs expelled him from the party.
7. The Treaty of Wanghia opened certain ports in China for trade with the United States.
8. The Webster-Ashburton Treaty stopped disputes between the British and the Americans over the borders between Canada
and Maine, and certain areas of the Great Lakes region.
9. The purpose of the treaty of annexation was to add Texas as a state to the United States.
10. Tyler asked for a joint resolution because the Senate had rejected the treaty of annexation.
VOCABULARY REVIEW
A. Political Vocabulary
1. f
2. a
3. i
4. b
5. d
6. h
7. g
8. c
B. Vocabulary – Synonyms
Choose the word that is a synonym for the underlined word in the sentence.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
b. wealthy
a. extremely angry
b. gives
c. lawyer
c. teamwork
b. problems
a. quit
a. caused arguments
b. important
b. backed
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Copyright 2011. This eBook is produced and distributed by Red River Press Inc. All rights reserved. The contents within this e-book/document may only be
photocopied by members of ESL-Library.com in accordance with membership terms and conditions. Contact info@esl-library.com for complete details.