Tuesday was Election Day. Did you vote? Not for the Republicans or the Democrats, but for Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Mint Chocolate Chip or Chocolate, among other top favorites. I’m talking about the Second Grade Ice Cream Election, an annual opportunity for our Second Grade Students to get hands-on experience setting up and running an election, and campaigning for a “candidate,” or in this case, for a flavor. Research was performed, posters were designed and crafted and speeches were made. In the end, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough was the winner, for, I think, the second year in a row.
At Friends School we emphasize engaged citizenship from Pre-Kindergarten through Eighth Grade. The ice cream election is a second grade project-based opportunity for students to combine their written and oral language arts skills with their mathematical and artistic skills in the service of learning social studies. If you are the parent of a second grade student ask them if anyone sang a jingle or used Spanish in their presentation. I do know that some speeches did touch on science and the presence of particularly healthful ingredients in particular flavors.
On the other end of the spectrum Eighth Grade Civics is a capstone course in our curriculum. It is a chance for 8th graders to focus closely on the U.S. Constitution, U.S. History and what it means to be an engaged citizen researching issues, forming opinions and taking stands on a full range of social and political issues in the United State and abroad. All of these experiences tie to the Quaker Testimony of Community. What does it mean to be engaged and caring in your family, your school, your church, your town, your country, or as a citizen of the world? How can you make a difference? These lessons start early in life. Taking your child into the voting booth with you, or voting in the Ice Cream Election are two great ways to get your child started. Then celebrate with the ice cream flavor of your choice!
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