Activities
Brush Up on Your Voting Smarts
1. Research the democratic and republican presidential candidates. Project Vote Smart is a good place
to start. Who would you vote for if the election were tomorrow? Where do you think most
people get their information about candidates (click here
for some stats)? Do you think people make informed decisions when voting?
2. Even if you aren’t 18, you can still let your representatives know what you
think about the issues. At VOTE.com you
can submit your opinion on a number of issues, including some bills that are presently
before congress. Visit VOTE.com and
choose an issue that you’d like to express an opinion on. Look for background
information if it’s an issue you feel you’d like to know more about before
voting. Look at the percentage of people who have voted the same way-are you surprised?
3. Look at the Close-Up Foundation’s Personal Inventory of
Civic Responsibility. Answer the questions. Do you think you do enough for your
community? Print copies and survey 5 of your friends and 3 of your parents’ friends.
How politically active are you? Do you expect that to change when you’re older?
4. Read the article I Petition, You
Petition, We All Petition for Ice Cream. As a class, define the terms in bold in the
article (or invite a local government representative or lawyer to discuss them-get a
lawyer through your state or local bar
association’s speaker’s bureau). Think of other ways youth can affect changes in
their communities. Could you organize a school club for students who are interested in
politics? What are other ways people under 18 can influence the political process? How
about just helping others vote on Election Day? What other ideas can your class come up
with?
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