Voting Patterns

Voting Patterns

(Chapter 6 in the textbook!)

The success of a democracy relies heavily on people CHOOSING to participate as voters. Studying how voters behave has become a science. This project asks you to review voting patterns and then analyze yourself as a voter (or future voter).

STEP ONE:

Create a brief timeline for changes in voting requirements. (Use A+, text, Internet as resources.)

The timeline should include dates for the following milestones — at least.

Voting age 18
Women can vote
Blacks can vote
Poll taxes and other "tests" declared unconstitutional for qualifying voters

STEP TWO:

Create a chart of "Factors that Influence Voters." Remember, those are factors are the trends you see when studying how people voted in the past. Create a new column for YOU and indicate when you fit the trend and when you do not.

STEP THREE:

After reading about the subject of voting you probably realize that most people don’t exercise this right as often as they could. Some people say that lack of voter participation will eventually be the downfall of our government system. Develop a list of Top Ten Reasons Americans Should Vote. Star the 3 reasons that are most important or applicable to you.

A	The timeline is neat and includes extra info like the name of the document or amendment that changed voting rules. The chart is computer generated and accurate. The student organized the info in an interesting and useful manner. The information they include about their own thinking shows thoughtfulness and thinking. The 10 reasons to vote are original, clever and serious, even if worded in a humorous way. All the work has been edited and contains few, if any, grammatical or spelling errors. It is clear the student learned while doing the work.
B	The timeline includes at least 4 dates and is easy to read. The chart could include more info, but has the basics, including info about how the student matches up. The project includes 10 reasons to vote. Some may be repetitive. The work is of good quality overall, but could use one more revision to improve the look, content and attention to details.
C	This project will include all of the required elements: timeline, chart and list. They may appear rushed and in need of more revision. The work may not be computer generated, or it has so many distracting errors that it is difficult to be sure what the student learned or if they applied it to themselves.