Teaching your child the basics of voting is one of the most important things you can explain to them because as their parent, you have the influence to help your child understand the significance of the election process. As of right now, only 60% of eligible voters turn out to vote in elections, so the other 40% aren’t having their voices heard! Instilling the importance of voting in your child from a young age will encourage them to vote when they become of age and will hopefully raise that percentage.
Start Early
Your child will not be able to vote until she turns 18, but you need to start educating her about the voting process long before she’s eligible to register to vote. You can start teaching your child the concept of voting even when she’s a toddler. She probably won’t understand the entire concept at that age, but knowing about voting rules will help build a foundation for later. Before your child starts school, you can explain the basics of voting and how we elect leaders. Then, a couple years later, you can expand on that idea and start informing her of the reasons why we vote and why it’s important for her to vote. Once she’s closer to voting age, you can start telling your child the specifics of voters registration, requirements to vote, and how to make an informed decision when voting.
Plan Fun Voting Activities
Giving your child a lecture about voting info probably isn’t the most effective way to teach her what she needs to know about voting, especially when she’s younger. So, you will probably have more success if you turn the voting process into a fun activity. While your child is still young, you can set up three of her favorite stuffed animals on three chairs and tell her that as a family, you are all going to vote on which animal will join you for dinner that night. You can have your child draw a picture of the animal she wants to win if she doesn’t know how to write just yet. When your child is 5 or 6 years old, invite some friends over and have them vote on what activity they would like to do that day with options like, “swimming,” “going to the movies,” or “making ice cream sundaes.” After they cast their votes and the winning activity has been decided, some of the kids may be unhappy, but it’s your job to explain that they need to respect the outcome.
Explain the Importance
When your child enters junior high or high school, you can start explaining the importance of voting. Let your child know how much of a privilege it is to be able to elect your leaders, and if she doesn’t participate in the voting process, her voice may not be heard. Along with explaining why she needs to be an educated voter, you can also start teaching your child about the online voting system (if your state has one), voting software at the polls, how to register to vote, what an absentee ballot is, how to vote early, and how to choose who to vote for. Let her know that she doesn’t have to go along with your own political preferences, and she has the freedom to choose her own views and candidates.
