While the Watergate Scandal was shocking, it didn't come from nothing. It's helpful for students to understand the background of the scandal and how it ended in the resignation of President Nixon. To do this, they can create a timeline that highlights major events, stemming from the break-in of the Democratic National Convention headquarters, to Nixon’s eventual resignation as president. By putting it all into a visual timeline, students will have a better understanding of how it fits in with the greater timeline of Nixon's political career and be able to easily understand the sequence of events.
For an alternative to the timeline layout, have students create a timeline poster to incorporate into a presentation or gallery walk. You can add more than one template to this assignment to give students lots of options, and update the instructions accordingly.
Extended Activity
Have students create a timeline of Nixon as an ex-president, beginning with his resignation. Students should highlight the major events of how Nixon responded to and dealt with the scandal and also give insight to how he lived the remainder of his life until his death in 1994. Suggested major events should include his Frost interview, as well as his continued public service. In addition to this, students should highlight how the public viewed him, and how his role as president was interpreted post-Watergate.
(These instructions are completely customizable. After clicking "Copy Activity", update the instructions on the Edit Tab of the assignment.)
Student Instructions
Create a timeline detailing the events that were a part of and led up to the Watergate Scandal and Nixon's resignation.