Maryland's Primary Election is February 12

Links

2008 Presidential Election
Atlas of US Presidential Elections
History Central - Elections Central, A History of Presidential Elections

ABC News Vote 2008
CBS News Campaign 2008
CNN Election Center
Fox News You Decide 2008
MSNBC Decision 2008
Washington Post - 2008 Presidential Candidates

Maryland Election Districts
Maryland State Board of Elections
Maryland's Voting System
Voter Registration

back to top

Lesson Plans

MATHLINE - Voting: Approval Voting -- In this activity, students will: Apply the definition of Approval Voting to a problem and determine a winner, apply the five kinds of voting to an election, and determine the winner in a variety of situations.
Subject(s): Mathematics
Grade Level(s): 5, 6, 7, 8

Democracy Project - Polling: Exit Polls -- Students learn how exit polls are conducted and how their results are used to project election winners and to analyze voting patterns.
Subject(s): Language Arts, Mathematics, Social Studies
Grade Level(s): 9, 10, 11, 12

By the People: Election 2004 - Analyzing Political Ads -- Students will view current political ads and learn how they can make use of various commercial ad appeals. Students will also develop familiarity with basic videography terms.
Subject(s): Language Arts, Social Studies
Grade Level(s): 9, 10, 11, 12

MATHLINE - Voting: Pairwise Comparison -- In this activity, students will: Develop a formula for the number of pairwise comparisons that will have to be considered Use the formula to determine the winner in an election requiring pairwise comparison.
Subject(s): Mathematics
Grade Level(s): 5, 6, 7, 8

Election '98 - Persuasion and the Media -- This lesson asks students to examine the strategies advertisers use to sell products and ideas to consumers. Students look at the concept of persuasion, connotation, various types of appeal, and audience analysis.
Subject(s): Language Arts
Grade Level(s): 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12

MATHLINE - Voting: Borda Count Method -- In this activity, students create a formula for determining the total points for a candidate, and use the formula to determine the winner of an election using the Borda Count method.
Subject(s): Mathematics
Grade Level(s): 5, 6, 7, 8

By the People: Election 2004 - Voting Rights -- In this activity, students will write letters to their state and/or national leaders either in support or against a fictitious proposed constitutional amendment to lower the voting age from 18 to 16.
Subject(s): Social Studies
Grade Level(s): 9, 10, 11, 12

By the People: Election 2004 - Writing a Political Speech -- Students research political party platforms and write speeches based on those platforms. Each group will assess its own speech, which will also be evaluated by the audience and the instructor.
Subject(s): Language Arts, Social Studies
Grade Level(s): 9, 10, 11, 12

By the People: Election 2004 - Presidential Campaign Stop -- Students are to plan a campaign stop in Anytown, USA, a mid-size fictional city. They will need to select where the candidate will appear and with whom, how to handle the media and what he or she will say during the visit to best reach that city's voters.
Subject(s): Language Arts, Mathematics, Social Studies
Grade Level(s): 9, 10, 11, 12

By the People: Election 2004 - Get It on the Ballot! -- In this real-life, hands-on activity, students will research referenda/ballot initiatives in their areas, choose something to put on the ballot, and compose a petition and gather signatures.
Subject(s): Language Arts, Mathematics, Social Studies
Grade Level(s): 9, 10, 11, 12

The Mystery of the Voters Who Don't Vote -- This lesson plan, from EconEdLink, asks and tries to answer the question: Why don't more Americans vote? Americans are known around the world for their love of liberty and democracy.
Subject(s): Social Studies
Grade Level(s): 9, 10, 11, 12

The Economics of Voting -- In this lesson, from EconEdLink, students try to answer the question: Why do so many voters stay away from the polls on Election Day? Students learn about economic explanations for this behavior.
Subject(s): Social Studies
Grade Level(s): 9, 10, 11, 12

The Economics of Voting: What Do You Mean, My Vote Doesn't Count? -- This lesson, from EconEdLink, explores the costs and benefits associated with voting in national elections. Specifically, the concepts of rational apathy, rational ignorance, and expressive voting are explained.
Subject(s): Social Studies
Grade Level(s): 9, 10, 11, 12

Will the Best Candidate Win? -- In this lesson, from Illuminations, students learn about various voting methods, ways in which these methods can be manipulated to achieve certain outcomes, and the impossibility of fair elections when more than two alternatives are available.
Subject(s): Mathematics
Grade Level(s): 9, 10, 11, 12

back to top

Video Clips

Judge Robert B Watts (Windows Media) -- Judge Robert B. Watts was the first African American judge appointed to the Municipal Court in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1961. In 1995, he was awarded the Elizabeth Gilman Award from the American Civil Liberties Union.

Verda Freeman Welcome (RealVideo) -- This clip features Verda Freeman Welcome, a politician, civil rights crusader, and community activist from Baltimore. In 1959 Welcome became the first African-American woman elected to Maryland's House of Delegates.

back to top