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BLAST Elementary
Grace for President

Grace for President

Grace for President
Written by Kelly DiPucchio
Illustrated by LeUyen Pham

When Grace discovers that there has never been a female U.S. president, she decides to run for school president.

 

Open-Ended Questions

These questions can be used during an interactive read aloud to engage student interest.

  • Why do Grace and Thomas have different campaign promises? (page 12)
  • Why isn't Thomas worried? Why does it matter that the boys have more electoral votes? (page 17)
  • How does Grace look here? How do you think she's feeling? (page 20)
  • Who is the better candidate? Who would you vote for? (page 20)
  • Who do you think Sam will vote for? Why? (page 26)
  • How did Grace earn Sam's vote? (page 28)
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Vocabulary Words

  • Candidate
  • Campaign
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Activities

It's Not a Popularity Contest!

Encourage your students to learn more about the candidates by holding a mock election in your classroom. As in the book, each student can represent a state or states holding a corresponding number of electoral votes. Graph both the electoral votes and the popular votes. Do the percentages match? Discuss with your students how the electoral college may not be the best election method. Do they have other ideas?

Campaign Posters

Do candidates ever really live up to their promises? Explore the various promises made by both presidential candidates: Obama and McCain. Then, have your students create their own campaign posters that detail what they would promise if they were running for office. Don’t forget a catchy slogan!

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Journal Questions

  • If you ran for president, what kinds of challenges would you face?
  • Who do you want to win the presidential election? Why?
  • Think of a campaign slogan and describe why it would convince people to vote for you.
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Extending Books

So You Want to Be President

So You Want to Be President
Written by Judith St. George
Illustrated by David Small

Presents an assortment of facts about the qualifications and characteristics of U.S. presidents, from George Washington to Bill Clinton.

 

Presidential Elections

Presidential Elections
Written by Christopher Henry

Presents information on how presidential campaigns work including the primary election, party conventions, presidential debates, and polling, as well as the role of independent candidates.


Barack Obama: Out of Many, One

Barack Obama: Out of Many, One
Written by Shana Corey
Illustrated by James Bernardin

 

 

 

President Pennybaker

President Pennybaker
Written by Kate Feiffer
Illustrated by Diane Goode

Tired of the unfairness of life, young Luke Pennybaker decides to run for president, with his dog Lily as his running mate.