Friday Civics Microdose & Book Giveaway
Friday Civics Microdose & Book Giveaway
Remember when the vice presidency went to the runner-up?
Fun fact to kick off our microdose — way back when (in Hamilton times), the losing presidential candidate became the winner’s VP.
If I ever knew this, I forgot, but the rules changed after the election of 1800 resulted in a deadlock between Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr (cue Hamilton lyrics):
[BURR]
Congrats on a race well-run
I did give you a fight
[JEFFERSON]
Uh-huh
[BURR]
I look forward to our partnership
[JEFFERSON]
Our partnership?
[BURR]
As your vice-President
[JEFFERSON]
Ha. Yeah, right
You hear this guy? Man openly campaigns against me, talkin' bout, "I look forward to our partnership."
[MADISON]
It's crazy that the guy who comes in second becomes vice President
[JEFFERSON]
Yeah, you know what? We can change that. You know why?
[MADISON]Why?
[JEFFERSON]
'cuz I'm the President. Hey, Burr, when you see Hamilton, thank him for the endorsement
But seriously IMAGINE how much more restraint candidates would exercise during campaigns if this was still the case, or how much more emotional intelligence would matter if the runner up knew they’d be linking arms to get things done for the next 4 years.
There’s an argument somewhere in here to beta test this in student government or Model UN.
Book Giveaway #1!!
How to Raise a Citizen came out this week and there has never been a better time for a clear and concise roadmap for raising civic-minded kids. School is either already back or almost back in session and it’s an election year, which is when most of us pay attention to things like voting and politics… so let’s dive in.
If this is your first Friday joining us, we’re doing a weekly microdose of the 5 foundational skills Lindsey covers in the book:
Being able to have difficult conversations (covered last week, linked here)
Voting
Primaries
Constitutional knowledge
Federalism (covered in our first week, linked here)
On Promoting a Voting Culture at Home
I hear this advice consistently: take your kids with you when you vote.
As the best wisdom tends to be, this simple but effective takeaway pays dividends. Modeling active participation in civic processes is huge. It sounds easy, and sometimes it is.
But first — make sure that you’re registered to vote.
recently posted a concise and helpful reminder on how to check your voter registration. It doesn’t take long! But figuring out the simplest things, like how and when to register and where to actually vote (and what to bring with you, like your ID) are building blocks that show kids there’s a process behind being able to vote.Once you know you have everything in place to make a trip to the polls, you can start talking to your kids about what voting means. Lindsey suggests doing something as simple as looking up a sample ballot online and showing them how choices work. If there’s a local election, you can look up the websites of the candidates running in your district, read about the issues they care about, and talk about how these issues affect your family. Talk about why one candidate might be a good fit over another. Local elections cover everything from school boards to law enforcement, which are topics that tend to feel more relevant day to day than topline issues for federal elections.
“Teaching your child how to vote may be the single most important thing you teach them in their political lives. Not so much because an individual vote is powerful, but because this is the essential connective piece between each one of us and the government we consent to be governed by. A person who is a voter is a person who knows a little bit more, cares a little bit more, and matters a lot more in our political system.” - Lindsey Cormack
A few extra resources
- by is an incredible resource for students, parents and teachers with a focus on helping young people register to vote. On August 20, they’re running a workshop on when and how to register to vote. Sign up here!
If you have younger kids, check out this PBS Kids roundup of books on voting and elections.
More soon,
Sarah