Wait for it…..

USE PICTURE BOOKS.

If you take anything from me, please take this. Using picture books in the classroom will be one of the best instructional practices you can do this year. I have been teaching for 15 years and I have had multiple students- all upper grade kids- tell me how much they loved our picture book time. I use picture books for fun and for content. 

I love using picture books to teach real life. I will be honest with you. When teaching about the election, I stick to the process. I recently found the book Leo’s First Vote. I love this story for multiple reasons. Reason number one: It shows the importance of getting your voice heard and how we can all work together. Reason number two: It shows real life: someone becoming a US citizen and how proud they are to vote for the first time. Reason number three: the back matter. I believe it is my job as an educator to teach the process and importance of voting. I never share with my students who I vote for, but I will share that I vote. Below is list of my favorite government picture books. Click on the picture to get the list.

On Election Day, we will be reading Leo’s First Vote. Leo’s father becomes a US Citizen and Leo learns about the democratic process of voting. This book is very well done and is a tool to help teachers navigate this year’s election. 

Before reading Leo’s First Vote, I will walk my students through tier 3 words to help them navigate learning about the voting process. I selected words that will help them understand the story better and understand words that are specific to the voting process. 

Since we will be doing this activity during reading, I created a notes page for my students to fill out after reading and practice sharing with their classmates their findings. I love doing this because it helps my students process their thinking and work on their social skills. 

In Room 35, I will host a mock election to facilitate the difference between the popular vote and the electoral vote. If you would like to do this in your classroom, click on the picture above. Inside the resource, I have shared how I run my mock election. It is simple and to the point- my favorite lesson.

Want to teach about the election in your classroom? Here is the resource just for YOU! Click on the picture below. Let me know if you have any questions.

Need to come back to this later, pin the resource and come back soon!

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