Election term BINGO game

Subjects

Arts & Humanities

• Language Arts
• Educational Technology

Social Studies

• Civics
• Current Events
• Government

History

• U.S. History

Grades

3-5
6-8
9-12

Brief description

Objectives

• create a glossary of election terms or an ABCs of Elections book and add new election-related terms as they encounter them.
• choose election terms to write on a BINGO card.
• check off words on their BINGO cards as the definitions of those words are called out.

Keywords
vocabulary, election, BINGO, game, vote, elect, definition, campaign, government, civics, citizenship, Congress, legislation, law, Washington, D.C.

Materials needed

Election word list
Election BINGO card
 

Lesson plan

Introduction/preparatory activity (optional)
As students learn about, read about, and discuss the upcoming elections, they will undoubtedly encounter new vocabulary words. To keep a record of that new vocabulary, you might create with students an election term glossary or an ABCs of Elections book. This student-made glossary will comprise words they encounter, as well as words you introduce.

Following are some ways in which the glossary might grow:

When you introduce the idea of creating a classroom glossary of election terms, have students work in small groups to brainstorm lists of words they think of when they think about elections. Arrange the final list into shorter lists and give each student or group of students a different list of words to define.

As students come across new election terms in their current events reading, they might cut out of the newspaper or magazine the paragraph of text in which they find each new word. Include that clipped-out passage in the glossary as an example of the word in context.

You might select words from the Election word list -- which includes almost 200 words -- to add to the class glossary.

Students might use technology tools, including word processing or illustration programs, to create pages for the class glossary.

Election term BINGO game

Provide each student with an election BINGO card.

Instruct students to write in each blank square on the BINGO card one of the election terms they have learned. (You can post a list of terms for students to select from, or have them use the class glossary or ABCs of Elections book as their source.)

When students complete their BINGO cards, start the game by calling out the definition of one of the election vocabulary words. If students have on their card the word that matches the definition, they cover that spot with a marker or put an X through on the box in which that word appears. The first student to have a complete row of covered or Xd words calls out "BINGO! Have the student tell the words he or she has covered and the meaning of those words.

Start another game, or continue the game that is already in progress until another student or two has called out BINGO.

Assessment

Call on other students to share words they have covered and their meanings.

Lesson plan source

Education World

Submitted by

Gary Hopkins

See more election lesson plans from the Education World archive.

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Updated 2/20/2016