Election Day, USA

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Election Day, USA

• Casey Watson
• ED 417-02

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Citizenship Rights and Responsibilities

• Grade Level 6th grade
• Lesson Election Day

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Table of Contents

• Objectives of the Lesson
• List of Activities
• Materials
• Kids Voting USA

• Research Parties and Candidates
• Party Debates
• Color Map of USA
• Around-the-Room
• Websites and Resources

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Objectives
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• To have the students acknowledge the basic
  information about elections and the United
  States democracy system.
• Having the students know the basics of voting in
  a political system.

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Objectives cond

• Encourage students to voice their ideas and
  opinions according to the political parties and
  their platforms.
• Demonstrate good researching skills to prepare
  for debates, reports, and for basic knowledge.

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Activities
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• Kids Vote USA
• Research Parties and Candidates
• Party Debates
• Map of USA and Electoral Votes
• Around-the-Room Questions about Democracy

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Materials

• Computers
• Worksheet-USA map
• Room Questions
• Podium
• Crayons/Markers/ Color Pencils

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Kids Voting USAObjectives

• Helps young students become educated and engaged
  voters as adults.
• Students learn how to gather information, think
  critically, and make decisions.
• Students learn important collaboration skills as
  well as respect for others viewpoints.

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Kids Vote USA Activity

• Have the students fill out a registration paper.
  This paper registers the student as a legal
  voting citizen. They can turn this paper in and
  then participate in the election.
• Set-up political signs throughout the room and
  then on election day, take them down and start
  the process.

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Kids Voting Activities cond

• Set-up and area in the room as the precinct and
  have the students one at a time go over to the
  computer and vote as if they were voting in a
  real election as an adult.
• Hand out stickers that say I Voted Today as a
  symbol of their political duty as well as
  promotion to others.

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Kids Voting Activities cond

• This set up will get the students familiar with a
  real set up of a precinct and booth.
• Suggest and encourage parents to take their
  children with them to vote that way they can see
  for themselves a real demonstration.

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Research Political Parties and Candidates
Activity Objectives

• Students will gain a basic knowledge of the
  political parties that exists in the United
  States.
• This requires the students to research and
  collaborate amongst their peers.
• If used during and election year, the students
  can do some extended research on the current
  candidates that are running for office and know
  what their stance is and how it differs from the
  other candidates.

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Political Parties and Candidates cond

• Have the students do extensive research on the
  current political parties that are in existence
  in the United States.
• Have the students go to several sources such as
  books, internet, etc
• Make a basic concept map of the similarities and
  differences between the political parties.

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Political Parties and Candidates cond

• If the year is an election year, have the
  students use their research sources to look up
  information on the running candidates.
• Have them research their background information,
  their stance on current issues, their plans and
  actions they have taken thus far.

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Party Debates Objectives
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• Students will gain a familiar background of the
  political parties that exist in the US today.
• Students will use researching skills to gain
  information for their desired political party.
• Students will have the knowledge of other
  political parties that might oppose their view
  points however, they will be able to rebuke their
  parties position.

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Party Debates Activity

• First, have the students look up information on
  the political parties.
• Once they have been introduced to the political
  parties of the US, have them choose the one that
  most suits them.
• Have the students do a further in-depth research
  on their political party to prepare for a
  classroom debate.

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Debates cond

• Have the students elect a person to be their
  spokesperson for the debate.
• Have several days to work with this idea and then
  have a debate with the entire class and their
  representatives as the spokesperson.
• Have the students research topics that should be
  addressed in the debate and make sure that the
  spokesperson speaks from their political parties
  stance on the topic.

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Color Map of Electoral Votes Objectives
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• Depending if it is an election year, this will
  require the students to pay close attention as to
  what state votes which way.
• Also, it requires the students to know where each
  state is located on a map of the USA.

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Color Map of Electoral Votes cond
Each State should be colored according to which
way the electoral college outcome was.
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Around-the-Room Questions Objectives
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• The students are required to use whatever
  information that is available to answer a series
  of questions located around the classroom.
• This will be a group project in which students
  are to divide the work up evenly and to
  acknowledge opposing opinions on questions that
  are debatable about democracy.
• The students will be required to weigh opinions
  according to their importance and whether or not
  its a fact or opinion.

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Around-the-Room Questions cond

• There will be a series of 10 questions placed
  randomly throughout the classroom.
• Each group (2-3 students) will have an a certain
  time frame at each question station.
• During that time frame, the students must locate
  the answer and record it on paper restating the
  question in the answer.

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Around-the-Room Questions cond

• The students will have to debate amongst the
  group if that arrises but must answer to the best
  of their ability.
• Students should finish by the end of class and
  have used all the information that is given to
  them for this activity.

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Websites
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• www.kidsvotingusa.org/
• http//pbskids.org/democracy/educators/tovote.html
  
• www.socialstudiesforkids.com/subjects/government.h
  tm
• www.congressforkids.net/Elections_politicalparties
  .htm
• http//cybersleuth-kids.com/sleuth/Government/Unit
  ed_States/Parties/index.htm