Students experience the workings of the political process and what it takes to manage a political campaign.
Objectives
Students will
identify by name the two major political parties in the United States.
identify the chairpeople of the two major parties.
identify the symbols of the two political parties.
identify the political philosophies of the two political parties.
identify the propaganda techniques used by both of the parties in campaigning.
identify the fund raising techniques of the two parties.
identify and locate the local and state headquarters of the two parties.
Keywords
political party, politics, campaign, election
Materials Needed
supplies for creating campaign information (resources for this activity can be found in the school and the community)
Lesson Plan
Students play the Presidential Campaign Game to learn about the politics and the process of electing a president. Each group's activities include choosing a candidate, setting up a campaign committee, creating a name for a fictitious political party, creating campaign items and earning points for those items (for example, 20 points for a bumper sticker, 20 points for a campaign slogan), and evaluating candidates' speeches. The game culminates with a class election by secret ballot.
Assessment
The ultimate proof of success will be that students get involved in some way in the political process.
