NMS Mascot Election
It’s election season at NMS, and the race for official school mascot is tight!
Students are learning about the electoral process through a series of lessons and shared experiences that mimic the way in which US citizens elect leaders.
Overarching goals for this unit are for students to understand that:
Groups of people can work together to make a decision in the best interest of the group
Leaders represent the qualities that their supporters value
People make persuasive arguments to convince their audience
People have different opinions and should be able to discuss them respectfully
Politicians take note!
To start the process, Elementary students first learned about our system of government and why it is important to elect people to serve as representatives for the general public. Imagine if we each had to vote every time a decision was made!
Next, Elementary students participated in the Mascot Primaries to select a nominee for each of the three mascot parties – the Avian Party, Aquatic Party and Terrestrial Party. We chose to use an open primary system, so students first selected which primary to vote in based on the values of that party. Aquatic candidates tend to be calm and flexible, while Avian candidates are known for being carefree and optimistic. Terrestrial candidates are characterized as consistent and reliable.
After students cast their votes by secret ballot, the official nominees were announced: Owl (Avian), Turtle (Aquatic) and Beagle (Terrestrial). Upper Elementary students became campaign managers for each of the nominees and spent time garnering support by designing slogans, posters and buttons, and hosting speeches and rallies. They also visited the Primary classrooms to share information about their nominees.
On November 8th, all NMS students ages Primary Year 2 and older as well as faculty members are eligible to cast their votes in the gym. We’re expecting record voter turnout! Stay tuned for official results.
