"Young people say, 'What can one person do? What is the sense in our effort?' They cannot see that we can only lay one brick at a time, take one step at a time; we can be responsible only for the one action of the present moment."
— Dorothy Day
YOUth Impact: Your Future. Your Voice.
Civic engagement is at the heart of a functioning democracy and it is important to instill these values into your students, even before they can fully participate in the electoral system. This lesson is designed to show your students that their voices are important, to help them critically examine their presidential and congressional candidates, and to encourage their understanding of both congressional and presidential elections. You can use this 2 page vocabulary list to provide yourself and your students with a brief background of important terms that may come up in your discussion.
Step One: Hook
|
Begin you lesson by showing your students the video on the left of President Obama speaking about voting patterns in the United States for American Idol and in elections. According to a poll by Washington-based Pursuant Inc., 35 percent of American Idol voters believe that their vote counts "as much as or more" than their vote for president.
Ask your students these initial discussion questions: 1. What are other events or contests that you can vote for? 2. Have you ever voted in a show or competition like American Idol? 3. Did your favorite contestant win? 4. If yes, how did that make you feel? How do you think people felt who voted for contestants who did not win? 5. If no, how did you feel when your contestant didn't win? 6. Do you agree with President Obama that "when we don't vote, we surrender our voice"? |
Step Two: Videos and Other Teacher Resources
|
The video featured on the left was produced by Rock the Vote and provides a brief history of voting in the United States. This article from the Huffington Post provides info-graphics from about voter turn out.
Show your students video, Unpacking Civic Engagement (4:56) that provides a general explanation of civic engagement and asks questions for reflection. The video Civic Engagement 101 (5:57) provides a historical perspective about American individualism and the importance of communities and civic engagement for a functioning democracy. Dr. Shakuntala Banaji presented a Tedx talk entitled "Young people, the Internet and civic participation (16:27)." |
Step Three: Common Core Friendly Exercise

Have your students complete the Vote Easy Activity on Project Vote Smart to find their "Best Political Match." This activity is available for both Presidential and Congressional candidates. Once your students find their best match, have them learn more about their candidate through the resources on Project Vote Smart. Have your students choose a speech from their candidate on a topic of their choice.
Directions for students:
1. Read the speech with a partner. Annotate any words or phrases that are unfamiliar to you.
2. Write about how the political candidate constructs their argument (the 'rhetoric') and whether the evidence the author uses supports their argument. Use two additional sources to make your point. Cite your sources.
3. Gather evidence in the source that helps you understand the "historical context" of the speech-- the social, political, or economic concerns, issues, or beliefs.
Directions for students:
1. Read the speech with a partner. Annotate any words or phrases that are unfamiliar to you.
2. Write about how the political candidate constructs their argument (the 'rhetoric') and whether the evidence the author uses supports their argument. Use two additional sources to make your point. Cite your sources.
3. Gather evidence in the source that helps you understand the "historical context" of the speech-- the social, political, or economic concerns, issues, or beliefs.
Step Four: What Can Students Do?

Debate! After your students have identified their "Best Political Match" have them argue about an issue from their opposing side. This will encourage your students to learn and understand their oppositions point of view.
Have your students research the positions of one their current representatives. Once they have established their representative's voting patterns, have your students write letters to their representative expressing their opinions about their most important issues.
Have your students research the positions of one their current representatives. Once they have established their representative's voting patterns, have your students write letters to their representative expressing their opinions about their most important issues.
Additional Resources

- PBS News Hour has created a lesson plan about the role of social media in the 2016 election
- PBS NOW Classroom created a lesson plan about Making Informed Decisions & Critical Thinking that you can access here.
- The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History created this worksheet about "What is the Electoral College?" and another sheet with the text of Article II of the Constitution. It also provides arguments both for and against the Electoral College. Use this worksheet to have your students write an essay about the best way to elect the president. Gilder Lehrman also created this graphic organizer to further understand the process of the Electoral College.
- CSPAN Classrooms has created a set of resources "Road to the White House 2016" that provides explanations of the various aspects of the election process for candidates vying to become the next President of the United States. Separated into 10 main areas, each topic is supplemented with related video clips, discussion questions, handouts, and culminating activities to reinforce students' learning.
- The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration provides more information about the electoral college.
- The American Democracy Project developed a comprehensive Guide to Informed Voting.
- The Youth Leadership Initiative has several classroom resources including a Mock Election activity.
AFT Resources

- Find more curriculum at RFK Human Rights
- Have your class submit a video to the Speak Truth to Power Video Contest
- Share My Lesson provides several lesson plans about the importance of civic engagement.
- Election 2016: Resource materials
- Voices for Peace- Nonviolent Strategies for Change Teacher Resources
- American Federation of Teachers' Endorsement for Hillary Clinton