So You Want to Be President, text by Judith St. George and illustrations by David Small was the 2001 recipient of the Caldecott Medal. This book can make ancient history (to a 5th grader that would be anything before 1992) interesting. I have found that when history is taught with an eye toward the characters, the concepts usually become more interesting and encourage discussion. Students usually yawn when we discuss Jefferson's "and all men are created equal" until I tell them he was a slave owner. This information will unleash a deluge of questions and debates. So You Want to Be President is a book that will encourage questions, debates, and further research. St. George's book is filled with accurate presidential anecdotes ranging from the oldest and youngest, tallest and shortest, and fattest and thinnest. The previous jobs of President's have included teacher, farmer, lawyer, and even movie actor. The book also mentions Nixon's resignation and Clinton's impeachment ( unfortunately it does not mention Andrew Johnson's impeachment).David Small's illustrations are styled as cartoon caricatures which I do not personally favor. I would assume that most social studies teachers would make sure that students were shown actual representations of the Presidents. Students, on the other hand, appear to enjoy the cartoon-like portraits. Small's illustrations include humorous pictures of Presidents being lifted into bathtubs and horses in a White House bedroom.
There are drawbacks to this book, most notably, the absence of President Barack Obama. The book specifically mentions that no person of color has been elected President.
Scholastic has a website that offers an audio selection from the book, along with an updated activity to include Barack Obama at http://www2.scholastic.com/content/collateral_resources/pdf/r/RB_BarackObama.pdf.
Another website that includes activities to accompany this book can be found at http://www.teachervision.fen.com/presidents/literature-guide/5241.html.
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