Hit: 6th-grade level election books

[David Bilmes <Dudu4tigers@AOL.COM>]

Thanks to all of you who responded so promptly to my reqest for books to
complement our elections lesson. The big winner is Dan Gutman's "The Kid Who
Ran for President."
I knew I could count on you all to come through, even during the summer! Now
that I just got officially hired for the fall, I'm sure I'll be seeking
everyone's help again soon!
David Bilmes, just-hired LMS
East Haven Academy/Tuttle Elementary School
East Haven, Connecticut

One of my favorites is Dan Gutman's The Kid Who Ran for  President.  I see on
amazon.com that it is currently not available,  although it now has a sequel,
The Kid Who Became President.  I  haven't read the sequel, but I like the
first one.  Twelve-year-old Judson Moon runs for president of the U.S. with
his best friend as his campaign manager.  The reader gets an idea of the work
and  compromise involved in such an undertaking.  It's a very readable
story.  I've read it to 5th graders a couple of times.

How about Gutman's "The kid who ran for president".  It is about a 4th grade
reading level but the story covers a great deal of presidential election
information. I have many students who have enjoyed this book:


The kid who ran for president by Dan Gutman.

Synopsis (from Barnes and Noble.com)

"Meet Judson Moon, the newest and most exciting presidential candidate in the
year 2000 elections. How is he different from other candidates? First of all,
he is 12 years old. Second, his friend and campaign manager, Lane, came up
with the idea, and Judson is going along with it because it sounds like fun.
. . . And third, his running mate is an elderly African-American woman who
used to be his babysitter. Judson's campaign is more successful than anyone
could have predicted. . . . The boy begins to realize he is in over his head,
but still he goes on to debate the other candidates on national television.
The voters love him and vote for him. . . . Grades four to seven." (SLJ)

I was just thinking about this myself.  I really like Dan Gutman's The Kid
Who Ran for President.  I am going to use it this fall.

There is a new book coming out in August that got a great review from Kirkus
Reviews. It's called "So You Want to Be President" by Judith St. George.
Looks good! It's nonfiction, but it appears to be very entertaining and full
of lots of little details about the presidents. It might be a nice adjunct to
your unit on elections.
In fiction, you might want to think about: "Kid Who Ran for President" by Dan
Gutman.
"Political Timber" by Chris Lynch. (about a mayoral election) "Neate to the
Rescue!" by Debbi Chocolate (about a city council election) "Off & Running"
by Gara Soto (about a school president election) "Dinah for President" by
Claudia Mills (student body president)


I just finished reading a good children's book about the presidential
election - the title is
"The Kid Who Ran For President" by Dan Gutman.  It was selected as one of the
Florida Sunshine State Young Reader Award books for the coming year - and
it's in paperback.

I did a big unit on elections 4 years ago.  The one resource that came in
VERY handy and people usually don't think of...."Cobblestone" magazine.  It
is a historical magazine that comes monthly.   They include photos, book
recommendations, articles, and drawings.  Every month they focus on on area
or person...like A. Lincoln...Irish Americans, Orphan Trains...they even did
any issue on elections!  I used they issue a lot.

My family liked _The Day Gogo Went to Vote_  by Elinor Batezat Sisulu ISBN:
0-136-70271-4 (pb)
It is the story of a very old woman who gets to vote in the first free
elections in South Africa, and her relationship with her 6 yo
great-granddaughter.  It describes the processes that were set up to keep it
fair, the reactions of the people and the joy and celebration after the event
itself (even before the results came out - just to be
given a voice).
The illustrations are great too - and really give you a feel for the area and
the people.
For us, it brought up several great questions and conversation opportunities.
 My children found it difficult to believe there were still countries that
don't vote for their leaders, and my youngest was fascinated by the voting
procedures they used and how they differed from ours.  We all liked it here!

This title is rather old but the first that popped into my head: Soup for
President by Robert Newton Peck

Try this database: http://www2.wcoil.com/~ellerbee/childlit.html
Hopefully it can help.

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