1. ELECTION DAY & EQUAL RIGHTS 2 nd grade- Mrs. Brown’s Class November 3, 2015

2. WHAT ARE EQUAL RIGHTS?  Equal Rights are rights under the law that cannot be denied by the United States or by any State.  What does this mean?  This means that because of our gender, our color, or our preferences, we can not be denied anything that we may want such as the right to vote.  Today in our class, we had a problem. How was one group of students treated unfairly? What could we do so that doesn’t happen to us in our classroom?

3. CLASSROOM SIMULATION  How did those that were not allowed to vote feel? Those who could not vote were students that did not have a vowel at the end of their first name.  Before the equal rights were brought up, certain people were not allowed to do certain things. i.e- A girl could not vote. A person of color could not go to certain areas of cities or even go to the store.

4. ELECTION DAY  What is Election Day?  This is a day where voters go to polls to vote for who they want in office.  We vote for President, other national members, state members, and even town or city members.  We also vote for issues such as the equal rights issue.  What do you think we take votes on? **Today we took a vote on what book we would like to read. This is how they vote for our President and other council members.

5. INTRODUCING…..  Candidates- We have 2 main parties in our country.  What does “parties” mean?- NO it does not mean having a party with drinks and snacks, it means two political parties!  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtGgreHgvfo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtGgreHgvfo

6. HOW DO WE PICK?  As citizens, we have to watch and listen to everything that is going on in the community.  The candidates that are running for office create posters, TV ads, radio commercials, and they visit specific cities. This is how they persuade someone to vote for them.

7. AND THE WINNER IS…  POLLS- Polls are where the voting takes place. The polls close and open at specific times.  What does it take to vote?  Must be 18 or older  Resident of the United States  Must register  RESULTS of our voting!

8. HOW DOES ELECTIONS AND EQUAL RIGHTS TIE TOGETHER?  Elections are held to bring new members into office whether it be in Washington D.C. or your own state.  Without members of the office, we would not have the rights that we do.  What do you think our community might be like if we did not have all equal rights?  How do we tie this into citizenship?  Voting is being a good citizen! How? We vote and use our opinion to put members in the office to make our country a better place and that way we can live free. You are helping yourself and others!