WHY VOTE? SOCIAL STUDIES GRADES 9-12 DEBRA FRANKLIN. TIME ALLOTMENT: Introductory Activity: 45-minutes. SUBJECT MATTER: Civics, LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

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1 WHY VOTE? TIME ALLOTMENT: Introductory Activity: 45-minutes OVERVIEW: Learning Activity: 60-minutes Culminating Activity: 60-minutes The Webster dictionary states that voting is a formal expression of preference for a particular candidate for office or for a proposed resolution to an issue. This process is demonstrated by a show of raised hands or by ballots. This is a tradition that has been used since the New England settlers arrived on the Mayflower. In 1619 the settlers of Jamestown in Virginia founded the House of Burgesses as America s first representative accessibly for making laws. In 1620 English Pilgrims aboard the Mayflower agreed that the laws for Plymouth Colony in Massachusetts would be subject to their approval and consent. The document formalizing this agreement was the Mayflower Compact. (Reviewing U.S. History and Government: revised 1997) During the next 150 years, other English colonies were founded, from New Hampshire to Georgia. The laws of each were made, in part by the popularly elected assembly. The assemblies often successfully opposed colonial governors appointed by England s monarch. Even though, there were elected assemblies, no English Colony was full democratic. Some people were not allowed to vote. Women, slaves and white men who did not own property were not allowed to vote for representatives. White males who owned property set the tone and future for the voting privileges for this country. Today the Voting Rights Act is in place to protect the rights of all citizens.the activities in this lesson are designed to help students understand the voting process to elect a political candidate or political issues. The main focus is giving students the experience of voting. Some students may be of age or become of age to vote in the next few years. In addition, the activities will help students understand the kinds of issues developed in government and help them make informed decisions or choices. Students will use the video entitled Louisiana Boys: Raised on Politics as one of the major resource components for this lesson.. SUBJECT MATTER: Civics, LEARNING OBJECTIVES: Current Events &Government Language Arts GRADES 9-12 DEBRA FRANKLIN Students will be able to: Connect speaking, listening, reading, writing, and viewing, and tie the connection to numerous research and inquiry activities, while developing and enhancing their communication skills. Design or create a ballot slip for student voting. Tally election results. Compose slogans, and create a brochure for a chosen political candidate. Demonstrate knowledge of candidates and issues by making an oral presentation. STANDARDS: US Education National Standards for English English NL-ENG.K-12.4: Communication Skills Students adjust their use of spoken, written, and visual language (e.g., communications, style, vocabulary) to communicate effectively with variety of audience and for different purpose. NL-ENG.K-12.5: Communication Strategies Students employ a wide range of strategies as they write and use different writing process elements appropriately to communicate with different audience for a variety of purposes.

2 NL-ENG.K-12.8 Developing Research Skills Students use a variety of technological and information research (e.g., libraries, databases, computer networks, video) to gather and synthesize information and to create and communicate knowledge. EL-ENG.K.12: Applying Language Skills Students use spoken, written, and visual language to accomplish their own purposes (e.g., for learning, enjoyment, persuasion, and the exchange of information). The Louisiana Content Standards and Benchmarks for Language Arts Standard 1: Students will read, comprehend and respond to a range of materials, using a variety of strategies for different purposes. ELA-1-H1: Using knowledge of words meaning and extending basic and technical vocabulary, employing a variety of strategies (e.g., context clues, affixes, dictionary the thesaurus) Standard 3: Students communicate using standard English grammar, usage, sentence structure, punctuation, capitalization, spelling, and handwriting. ELA-3H3: Spelling accurately using strategies and resources (e.g., glossary, dictionary, thesaurus, spell check) when necessary. Standard 4: Students will demonstrate competence in speaking and listening as tools for learning and communicating. ELA-4H5: Listening and responding to a wide variety of media (e.g., music, TV, film, speech, CD-Rom) ELA- 4H6: Participating in a variety of roles in group discussion (e.g.) active listener contribute discussion, leader, facilitator, recording, & mediation. Standard 5: Language Arts: Students will locate, select and synthesize information from a variety of text, media, references, and technological sources to acquire and communicate knowledge. ELA-5-HE-2: Locating and evaluating information sources (e.g.) print materials, databases, CD-ROM references, internet information, electronics references works, community and government data, television and radio resources, audio and visual materials. ELA-5-H3: Accessing information and conducting research using graphic organizers, outlining, note-taking, summarizing, interviewing and surveying to produce documented text and graphics. Louisiana Social Studies Content Standards & Benchmarks for Grades Students develop an understanding of the structure and purposes of government, the foundations of the American democratic system, and the role of the United States in the world, while learning about the rights and responsibilities of citizenship. Civics: Citizenship and Government B. Foundations of the American Political System C-1B-H5: Evaluating the roles of political parties, campaigns, elections in American Politics. H-1A-H1: Applying key concepts, such as chronology conflict, to explain and analyze patterns of historical change continually. H-1A-H2: Explaining and analyzing events, ideals, and issues within a historical content. H-11A-H3: Interpreting, evaluating historical evidence in primary and secondary sources. From the State of Louisiana History Content standards H-1D-M1: Describing the contributions of people, events, movements, and ideals that have been significant in the history of Louisiana. H-1D-M2: Tracing the development of the various governments that have been established in Louisiana throughout its history. H-1D-M6: Examine and recognizing how folklores and other cultural elements have contributed to our local, state and national heritage.

3 MEDIA COMPONENT: SOCIAL STUDIES Video: Louisiana Boys: Raised on Politics (Louisiana Public Broadcasting) is an unorthodox look at the colorful political culture of Louisiana politics. This 56 minutes documentary unveils the life of Louisiana politicians and governors like the legendary Huey P. Long, his brother Earl, Governor Jimmy Davis; famous for the song, You are My Sunshine, four times elected Governor Edwin Edwards, and reactionary racist figures like Judge Leander Perez and David Duke. The video looks at the history and the contemporary conditions of the political arena formed around Louisiana politics. The video was produced and directed by Louis Alvarez, Andrew Kolker, and Paul Stekler and was released August 26, Web sites: The Web site created by the Louisiana Secretary of State of Elections Division, describes the duties and functions for laws governing voter registration and elections; some duties include but are not limited to, the maintenance of the voters registration system, scheduling of elections and the qualifications of candidates for elections. x.htm Information, images and sound files on individual Governors in Louisiana. Louisiana Parish & State Government. Louisiana State & Parish Guide of information on politics and the economy. Web site to track history events and topics. Information on the new governor of the state of Louisiana: Kathleen Blanco. This is a Web site of the Lycos almanac, enclopedia and dictionaries. Students can use this website to research and find information on various political candidates. MATERIALS: Per Student: Any school assigned American Government or Louisiana History text Book Dictionary Per Class: List of Web site addresses Television/Video Cassette Player Computers (access to computers for students) Chart Paper Construction paper or card paper Colored pen, pencils or paint pens PREP FOR TEACHERS: 1. Prior to teaching the lesson, CUE the video to the beginning of the tape: Louisiana Boys: Raised on Politics. 2. Review the listed online Web sites and bookmark on students computer or create a Microsoft Word document of the Web sites. 3. Go to or call the Clerk of Courts office to obtain current voter s pamphlets, poll books, and information on voting booths with punch or examples of punch cards. Review material obtained from the Clerk of Courts office prior to distributing to the students. 4. Preview, print or Project Vote Smart article to the students 5. Have pamphlets available for students to obtain information about the voting process.

4 INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITY: (Setting the Stage:) 1. Explain the expectation and purpose of the lesson to your students. (The purpose is to help students understand and to become knowledgeable of the rights and responsibilities of voting.) 2. Distribute or attached document Project Vote Smart to your students. Ask your students to carefully read over the document, and make regarding whether they would like vote on government issues or political candidates. 3. After you students have completed reading the article, ask your students if they think voting is a privilege or a right. 4. Guide students to realize the importance of having the right to vote. Inform students there are two types of voting, prospective and retrospective. Prospective Voting means forward-looking. This is when voters look carefully at both candidates and evaluate how their future will be if they vote for each person. This type of voting requires looking closely at the ISSUES. Retrospective Voting means backward-looking. How have things been in recent years? If the answer is good, then the voter is likely to re-elect the incumbents. If the answer is not so good, then the voter is likely to vote for the challengers. 5. Distribute the official voter registration card from the States Clerk of Courts office. The reviewing of the card will provide students with the type of state required data to obtain a voter registration card. 6. Tell students they will use the Internet to research the requirements to vote. (Students should list the four rules to become a registered voter. a. One must be a United States citizens; in addition, have students research the ways one can become a united States citizens- Information should list, (i. One can become a US citizen if your parent is a US citizen and has lived in the US, ii. One can become a naturalized citizen by reaching the age of 18 and have lived in the US for five years, able to read, write and speak English. iii. You must also understand the constitution and promise to uphold it.) b. One must be 18 to vote in federal elections. c. One must live in the area where they are going to vote at least 30 days. d. One must register before they are able to vote. To register to vote you must be able to show appropriate age, name where you were born, your present address and how long you lived there. 7. Inform your students that in 1994 the Legislature passed the Motor Voter Law. This law gives us the opportunity to register to vote while renewing our driver s license. It also provides more locations to register to vote. 8. Next ask students: How do you know who, what or where to vote? (Answers should include but are not limited to: sometimes in the mail you may receive a practice ballot to see who is running for office. The practice ballot may have area or location to vote in your town or city. You may also receive in the mail questions and information on candidates and issues. Television and radio may run stories about the candidates and issues.) learning ACTIVITY: 1. Ask your students what comes to mind when they hear the word elections. What comes to mind? (Students may mention their student council, voting for the president of the US, the Governor of their state or local political candidate.) 2. Tell students: An election is a process of choosing government representatives, government issues or deciding on new laws. Explain to your students they will now be looking at piece of video demonstrating how political candidates sell themselves to the public in order obtain their votes.

5 3. Provide students with a FOCUS FOR MEDIA INTERACTION, ask students to focus their attention on how the political candidates walk the streets of towns and present at festivals and rallies to ask for votes. Insert tape Louisiana Boys: Raised on Politics. 4. Play the tape from the beginning of the introduction of Governor McKeithen giving greeting. The soundtrack will start playing Louisiana boys want to be governor someday. Play until Raymond Strother political consultant and Governor Edwin Edwards kissing and shaking hands with the public. Pause or stop video - Raymond Strother ) 5. Ask students if you do not attend rallies or read the newspaper, how does one get information about a candidate s platform or campaign? (Answers should include, but are not limited to: brochures are mailed to homes, volunteers may campaign door to door to provide information to the community, etc.) 6. Ask students by show of hands; indicate how many if any recognize the candidates shown in the video. Have students record the names of people they recognize in their notebook (allow about 5-to-8 minutes). CULMINATING ACTIVITIES: Lesson 1 Culminating Activity: Group Activity 1. Tell students the first official political party in the United States was the Federalist Party. It began in 1789 when George Washington was elected to his first term. The Federalist party existed for about 25 years and gradually died out because it did not win another Presidential election after John Adams victory in The oldest political party in the United States today is the Democratic party. It was founded by Thomas Jefferson and was first known as the Democratic-Republican Party. By Andrew Jackson s election in 1828 it had become a fixture in American politics, as later did the Republican Party which started in 1856 as a minority party. As a result of a three-way split in the Democratic Party in 1860, Abraham Lincoln become the only minor party candidate in American History to win a presidential election. From that time on, the Republicans have shared equal billing with the Democrats as our major parties. 2. Regardless of the political party you may be affiliated with, voting for a particular candidate or issues can change or impact government decision and laws. Divide students into three groups; instruct each group to brainstorm an issue to improve student government at their school. Tell students as a class they will vote on the issue each group has formed, the class will vote for the best issue by show of raised hands. The teachers should tally the votes orally and inscribe the winning issue on the chalkboard or poster board. 3. Next instruct students to choose one student from their group to campaign for the Governor of their class. 4. Tell students the candidate will use the issue selected by the class as their campaign platform. Prior to selecting an issue and choosing a candidate to run for office, the teacher should create a fourth group to create a ballot slip, a ballot box and to tally the votes. The slips should include the date of the elections, the issue and the time. 5. The member of the three groups will be their candidate s campaign committee and consultants. The group will design a brochure based on the winning issue. The candidate will present the brochure to the class and give a message why the class should vote for them. After each candidate has presented to the class, the class will use a ballot to vote for one of the candidates.

6 CROSS-CURRICULAR EXTENSIONS: MATHEMATICS: A well financed campaign, ability to speak, and ability to relate to the average citizens helped Governor Edwards become a three time elected governor. Have students develop a campaign budget for a political budget listing all expenditures or the fiscal operations of a program a candidate may want to incorporate if elected. TECHNOLOGY/AMERICAN GOVERNMENT/LA HISTORY/CIVICS: Using the Internet, have student research the development of the Voting rights of 1965 and the House of Burgesses. VISUAL ART: Have students design campaign buttons. COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS: Visit the Clerk of Courts office or the office of the Secretary of State of Elections Division. Have State or Local public officials visit classroom to give presentation on their campaigns platforms and or political experiences.