Election 2012 is all over the news and, with just a few short weeks remaining until the “big day,” your students are probably asking tons of questions about this exciting process. If you’re looking for great teaching resources on voting, the candidates and/or the Electoral College, you’ve come to the right place!
Check out these web resources, eBooks and more:
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1. A History of Voting YouTube Video This 3.5 minute video provides a concise and easy-to-understand history of voting and voting rights. Celebrity blogger Perez Hilton, Grammy Award winning artist John Legend, “Glee” star Darren Criss and R&B singer Bridget Kelly speak directly to the audience to educate them about the importance of exercising their right to vote. |
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2. American Political Parties PowerPoint® This 55 slide PowerPoint® presentation is packed with audio, video and information about the different political parties in the United States. It starts off by highlighting the history of the political system in America by covering the Federalists, Anti-Federalists and Jeffersonians, and then progressively moves into modern politics. From there, it discusses the differences between the Democratic Party and the Republican Party, including each party’s respective roots in liberalism and conservatism. |
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With USA Today’s Candidate Match Game, your students will answer a series of questions that progressively shifts their results toward President Obama or Mitt Romney, depending on their answers. |
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Similar to the New York Times’ Electoral College Map, the Huffington Post’s Election Dashboard gives information about which states are likely to vote for each candidate. It goes one step further in that it provides a little bit more history on the voting record of each state. It’s interesting to see the trends over the years! |
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5. Elections eBook (Shell Education)
Improve your students’ understanding of the election process by exposing them to primary source materials and by running a simulated presidential election in your classroom! This resource challenges your students to use their critical thinking skills, just like they would in a real election. |
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6. Elections eBook (Teacher Created Resources)
This eBook includes materials and activities that can be used with students in the intermediate grades and middle school. Students become familiar with election terminology, apply what they have learned in a fun board game and then simulate the election process! |
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If you’re studying how the electoral college works, you’ll definitely want to check out the New York Times’ Electoral College Map. It shows which states are likely to vote for each candidate, and highlights the “toss ups,” while providing information on why they’re so tightly contested. |
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8. iSideWith
Have your students take iSideWith’s short quiz on important political topics to find out which candidate most closely holds their political views. |
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9. Scholastic’s Election 2012 Classroom Magazine
This collection of kid-friendly resources is home to breaking election news, a “what you need to know” section, lesson plans and even several useful videos. |
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10. Voting in America: Mock Election eBook If you’re interested in having your students research the different party platforms, hold a classroom debate or vote in a mock election, this eBook is a must! It includes detailed instructions for all of the aforementioned activities, plus an end-of-unit survey and grading rubrics.
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If you're still looking for more election teaching materials, click here.
What is your favorite way to teach your students about the upcoming election? Do you have any teaching resources to suggest? Let us know in the comments!
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Signing out,
Erik Schreefel
Marketing and Operations, GoEd Online
