President’s Day lands on the third Monday of February each year, since it’s close to the birthdays of two famous American presidents, George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. Each of them used to have his own birthday celebrated separately…how would they feel if they knew we’d shoved the two of them together? And how many other presidents were there whose birthdays aren’t holidays at all?
Wee ones: James Madison was the 4th president of the U.S. What number president was next?
Little kids: George Washington served for two 4-year terms. How many years was he president? Bonus: Joe Biden is the 46th president of the U.S. If George Washington was the 1st president, how many presidents have served between him and President Biden?
Big kids: George Washington kicked off the whole thing when he became president in 1789. For how many years have we had presidents? Bonus: President Biden will finish his term in 2025. If we had had only 4-year presidents all the way through, how many presidents could we have had from 1789 to 2025?
Answers:
Wee ones: The 5th president (James Monroe).
Little kids: 8 years. Bonus: 44 presidents. There have been 46 in total, then we take away both Washington and Biden from the ends.
Big kids: 235 years. Bonus: It will have been 236 years, which would have spanned 59 4-year terms.
