What is voting?

When a group needs to make a decision, it is usually done by voting to see what the majority chooses. This is done by everyone casting a vote for their choice, and then having the votes counted to see which choice the majority desires. In America, adults vote for president every four years on Election Day. Currently, all US citizens, eighteen years or older, are allowed to vote.

Have some fun teaching voting!

Whether you’re preparing your students for Election Day or simply want a visual for teaching about the voting process, here’s a project to turn regular lessons into hands-on fun!

Recycle an empty cereal or cracker box. Clean out all the crumbs, and remove any liner bags. Have an adult carefully cut an opening in the middle of the side of the box, wide enough for an index card to fit through.

Cover the box with construction paper, leaving one end and the slit open. Cover the open end with a flap of paper so that you can close and open the box. Secure the construction paper with tape or glue.

With markers, write the word VOTE on the top of the box and decorate as desired with stars, flags, or other patriotic symbols.

Prepare index card ballots by writing a list of candidates’ names on each card, leaving a 1-inch margin beside each name. You may choose to have a silly election, using ice cream flavors, stuffed  animals, or book titles as candidates.

Place the ballot box in a prominent area and stack the ballots beside it along with the hole punch. Voters each get an index card and use the hole punch to punch the card beside their choice. Then, each voter places his card secretly into the ballot box.

Once all votes are cast, have the election “official” remove the cards. Create a tally sheet to record the results, and discuss how the winner is decided by the most votes. You can even set up a math problem to figure out how many more votes the winner received.