Virginia SOL 1.2.c
The Standard
Election Day
Virginia Standards of Learning for History and Social Science
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students identify Election Day as a time when registered adults vote for leaders and public decisions. They explain how ballots, polling places, and vote counting support this tradition.
What Mastery Looks Like
- Students can find Election Day on a calendar and explain its purpose. They can describe voting as making a choice and having each ballot counted.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may think children can vote in public elections or that everyone must choose the same candidate. They may also think Election Day only happens during presidential elections.
How to Assess It
- Give students this exit prompt: “Why do communities recognize Election Day, and what happens on that day?” Ask for a drawing and one sentence.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Hold a class election with paper ballots, a shoebox ballot box, and a tally chart to choose a read-aloud book.
Ask students to complete the sentence, “Election Day matters to a community because people can...”
Play a sequencing game with picture cards showing registration, entering a polling place, marking a ballot, and counting votes.
Examine a local sample ballot or polling place sign, then identify clues that tell voters what to do and where to go.
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Printable 1.2.c Worksheet
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