Elections Unit Study

 

We are a month-long into the new school year and things are going great! For our first unit study of the new year, we are diving deeply into learning about Elections. We briefly started this unit earlier this year, but got sidetracked by some other projects! I hadn’t done a great job of gathering resources anyway, so it has worked out for the best to wait. You can read a blog post where I show how we set up our notebook though. We will still be using it! 

 

I thought I would share some of the resources I have found to enrich this study. Some of these resources are free (which I love) and some are not (but totally worth it). I hope you find the list useful! This is a great month to begin learning more about the Elections process!

 

 

 

American Government from Unit Studies by Amanda Bennett

Constitution Celebration from Unit Studies by Amanda Bennett

Election 2012: Teaching Ideas and Resources from the New York Times 

 

 

NotebookingPages.com (notebooking pages for Presidents and other “patriotic-themed” notebooking pages)

Printable Electoral College Poster and Map and Map Activities

 

 

Woodrow, the White House Mouse by Peter W. Barnes

House Mouse, Senate Mouse by Peter Barnes

Marshall, the Court House Mouse by Peter Barnes 

Presidential Elections and Other Cool Facts by Syl Sobel

Vote (DK Publishing)

The Ideals Guide to Presidential Homes and Libraries by Peggy Schaefer

The Importance of the Electoral College by George Grant

So You Want to be President by Judith St. George

If You Were There When They Signed the Constitution by Elizabeth Levy

George Washington: Man of Prayer and Courage by Norma Cournow Camp

If You Grew Up with George Washington by Ruth Belov Gross

Abigail Adams: First Lady of Faith and Courage by Evelyn Witter 

If You Grew Up with Abraham Lincoln by Ann McGovern

 

The Child’s Book of American Biography by Mary Stoyell Stimpson

Heroes Every Child Should Know by Hamilton Wright Mabie

The Story of Our Country Every Child Can Read by Jesse Lyman Hurlbut

With Lee in Virginia by G.A. Henty

  

Presidents vs. Aliens — iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch

American Civil War Gazette — Kindle Fire

Manual for the USA, 1st Edition — iPhone/iPod Touch

Manual for the USA, 2nd Edition — iPad

U.S. Citizenship Test — Kindle Fire

American History Books — Kindle Fire

Stack the States — iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch

 

Tour your state capitol. This is a great opportunity to learn more about how government works and about the history of your state.

 

Take a civic field trip. Tours of your local campaign headquarters can usually be arranged with a simple phone call.

 

If you live in a state that one of our Presidents was also from, visit his birthplace, homestead, library, burial site, or other historical landmark dedicated to him. 

 

Plan a vacation around a trip to Washington, DC!