Elementary |
Decision Making in Government
Learn how leaders make decisions through voting. Model the democratic process in the classroom through voting on new rules for the class.
Download a free hands-on activity and start teaching in minutes.
Download a free hands-on activity and start teaching in minutes.
Elementary |
Learn how leaders make decisions through voting. Model the democratic process in the classroom through voting on new rules for the class.
Elementary |
Find out about civic rights and responsibilities. Then, interview two people about what it means to be a good citizen.
Elementary |
Go on a virtual field trip to Washington D.C. Explore the important buildings in the U.S. capital and learn why this place is important.
Secondary |
Identify the differences between facts and opinions. Practice the skill by analyzing a text and using a two-column chart.
Secondary |
It’s important to consider a variety of characteristics in evaluating candidates for public office. Use this tool to evaluate the candidates in a political race.
Secondary |
Research is essential to understanding unfamiliar issues. Use these questions to evaluate the information you find in your research.
Secondary |
Find out how to be part of a campaign and support a local candidate or issue.
Secondary |
Preparing to vote involves educating yourself about the candidates and issues on the ballot. Use this chart to locate and evaluate voter information resources in the area.
Secondary |
Dig into the history of who has the right to vote. Then, explore the question: Do you think Americans take voting for granted today?
Secondary |
Dig into the history of the Nineteenth Amendment, which expanded voting rights to women. In this multimedia lesson, students examine a primary source song and image.
Secondary |
What’s the difference between a caucus and a primary election? Make sense of the presidential nomination process, then research caucuses or primaries in your state.
Secondary |
Examine a primary source of a president’s daily dairy. Then, explore the many roles of a modern president.
Elementary |
Every year, sea turtles come to nest. Their nesting sites are protected by law. Learn how protecting sea turtles is part of responsible citizenship.
Secondary |
Like the Olympics, our government has roots in Ancient Greece. Make connections between the U.S. government and political principles from ancient Greece and Rome.
See these collections for additional teaching ideas for the elections.
This webpage contains age-appropriate, educational videos about elections and voting by Kids Academy, PBS Kids, Go Noodle, Sesame Street, and Kid President.
This online exhibition contains more than 250 actual television commercials from every election year starting in 1952. The site allows you to explore these ads via a searchable database and augments the commercials with commentary, election results, and historical background materials.
The Center for Responsive Politics: Opensecrets.org, a nonpartisan, nonprofit research group, is your guide to the flow of money in U.S. elections. The Center for Responsive Politics is dedicated to tracking the large sums of money funneled to our elected officials in the form of campaign contributions, special interest contributions, and lobbying.