Teaching my upper elementary students about voting is honestly one of my favorite units. Not only do I find the topic important, but there are many activities available to engage students in the unit. When you add in voting activities to your lessons, students will understand the lessons and topics even more.
I want to share with you my favorite voting activities for upper elementary students. These activities will have your students engaged in the lesson and absorbing all the information.
Take it Online
In the digital age, the internet is riddled with educational websites about voting. There are many ways you can utilize these websites. For example, you may have students analyze a chart or map with voting information. Students may locate the number of people who voted or who won the election. Additionally, you could engage students in a mini-research project. Perhaps they have to read an article online and summarize the information. Or they must search for a reliable website to answer a voting related question.
The options are truly endless when it comes to digital resources. Just be sure the information you choose is trustworthy, and talk with students about reliable websites.
Utilize Videos
Similarly to an abundance of voting related websites for upper elementary students, there are also a ton of videos online about voting. Videos are excellent for recapping information or disseminating information in a new way to students. You can use videos to end a whole group lesson or have students watch the video individually. Check out websites such as TED Ed and Crash Course for voting related videos.
Read About It
Learning about voting doesn’t have to be complicated. It can be as simple as reading an informational text about the voting process. Don’t be afraid to use alternative texts as well, such as children’s books or magazine articles, to engage your students in different forms of media.
What’s great about using texts as an activity for your voting unit is that you can also challenge students’ reading skills. You can ask them comprehension, main idea, organizational structure, and graphic features questions to tie together social studies and reading.
If you want a voting passing that is ready-to-go for upper elementary students, I have just the thing. This digital and print voting passage includes ten comprehension questions to check your students’ knowledge. Better yet – the digital version is self-grading, so you (and your students) can have instant feedback. Grab the resource here!
Make Use of Centers
Want to incorporate several types of activities? Centers are the way to go. Centers are especially great after an initial introduction with students. Give them a chance to work independently and flex their skills through various activities. Don’t be afraid to mix and match the types of activities: video, reading, writing, artistic, and more.
Want voting centers, but don’t have time to prep? I’ve done the hard work for you! There are eight different station activities, plus an assessment. The centers are a mix of print and digital, so you can choose what works for your classroom. The centers include activities such as a reading passage, research, watch and respond, illustrate it, and more. Check out the voting centers here!
