Learning about the Electoral College before Election Day at Lakeridge

Mercer Island, WA, November 6, 2024 - To get ready for the presidential election this week, the fourth and fifth grade students in Amber Bobst’s class at Lakeridge Elementary took a deep dive into the inner workings of the Electoral College.

Throughout the fall, Bobst has been teaching her students about subjects related to the election. The students created their own candidates from scratch, deciding on their platforms, campaigning for them, and then holding an election. And, they’ve spent multiple class days learning what the heck the Electoral College is. 

“It's a really confusing concept, and even adults can get confused by it,” Bobst said. “I think fourth and fifth graders are getting to that age where when they watch the presidential election, they'll hear the electoral college a lot. I thought it would be interesting just to have them be a bit more knowledgeable before the election itself.”

For the in-class exercise, students voted on five different school related issues supported by a made-up candidate using the Electoral College. 

First, Bobst handed out a tally sheet. Two students delivered “Candidate A” and “Candidate B” cards to their classmates. Then, Bobst passed out states randomly to each student. Each state card listed the state’s electoral votes. 

As Bobst handed out the state cards, one table of mostly boys chattered with excitement musing about what state they would get. 

“Think about the most random state to get,” one boy said. 

“Um, Oregon?” Another replied. They giggled. 

At the table next to them, one student bemoaned the state he received. 

“Ugh, I got the worst state,” he said. “Ohio.” 

On the classroom Promethean board, Bobst displayed issues and each candidate’s different positions. Each table discussed the issues and each student picked who they thought to be the better option. The table selected a student’s state and tallied up the total votes each hypothetical candidate received—a simulation of the popular vote. Whoever won the majority then received the electoral votes for the selected state. The class marked the popular and electoral votes on their sheets. 

For an issue concerning student behavior, Candidate A thought all misbehaving students should receive after school detention, Saturday detention, or suspension. Candidate B thought misbehaving students should talk to a counselor first and get a second chance before receiving punishment. 

“Sometimes I have tennis after school and I don’t want to be late for that,” one student said to his table. He voted for candidate B. 

An issue on school cafeterias saw Candidate A believing students should only eat healthy food. Candidate B thought some junk food was okay now and then. 

At one table, one student said she thought six hours without junk food wasn’t that bad. 

“Just eat junk food when you get home!” she said. 

“Yeah, but you can’t even bring junk food to school under candidate A,” her desk partner said. 

“Well, you could bring pizza probably,” she replied. 

“Pizza’s junk food,” her desk partner said. 

“Pizza is not junk food,” she said. 

Across the table, another student posed a thought-provoking question: “What if you got mushrooms on the pizza? Or basil?” 

Their table split their electoral college votes that round. 

“I was surprised to see some of the teams were divided [on their votes],” Bobst said. “It was unanimous sometimes and sometimes it was three against one. It was cool that there were kids out there that weren't afraid to vote for what they thought was right.” 

The students found the exercise rewarding, too. 

“It makes [the election] a lot more interesting,” Evelina, a fifth grader, said, “because it's just really fun to know that when people are actually doing boring adult stuff it's actually not that boring, and it's actually a lot like children’s arguments that are really fun for me.”

Her classmate, fifth grader Charlie, agreed. 

“It's also cool to know that it's a little more than just whoever gets the most votes wins, but it matters state by state and stuff,” Charlie  said. 

View Electoral College Lesson Plan Displayed to Students on Promethean Board

Before the unit, most students thought the Electoral College was a real college. 

“I thought it was a special college and then I learned that it's like numbers, and I'm like, ‘That's more boring,’” Elena, a fourth grader said. 

Despite the numbers, Elena still loved learning about it because of its importance for the country. 

“If you don't learn about it as a kid, and then you're 18 and then it’s time to vote you're like, ‘Great. What are we doing?’ Elena said. “It's important to learn so you are already ready [to vote] when you're 18.”

Jakob, a fourth grader, felt the knowledge would serve all voters well. 

“That way you're just prepped for when you get to that age,” he said. “That way, you know how to vote, where to vote, and when to vote. That way, you're not like, ‘Oh, voting day was a week ago! Oh my gosh, I wanted to vote for this guy!’”

When asked if they would vote when they turned 18, Evelina immediately said, “Yes, definitely, right away.” 

But, she reconsidered a moment later. 

“Well, it depends if I'm by that time even living in the U.S.,” she said. “I might be in college in Africa or something. You never know.”

Jakob said he wanted to vote, but he was born in Canada, so he’d need to “look into it.”

Regardless of what happens when they turn 18, the important thing for Bobst is that these students know a thing or two about their government starting now. Students are often surrounded by politics even if they aren’t especially in-the-know about what it means or how it works.

“They talk a lot about the different candidates,” Bobst said. “And they talk about our state and what we would vote for, and they often talk about what their parents would vote for. So, they're aware, but not in a significant way. They know it’s important.”

The last election happened when they were five or six years old, Bobst explained. This election will be the first one they remember. 

“I wanted to make it memorable, and I wanted them to be able to understand it at a young age,” Bobst said. “Hopefully, they'll continue to understand it.” 

Nathalie Graham is a freelance writer based in Seattle. She regularly works with the Seattle Times, GeekWire, and The Stranger. She will be highlighting MISD students, schools, and staff during the 2024-2025 school year. You can read more of her writing here.