November 5 is Election Day nationwide and a great opportunity to teach your kids about the importance of democracy and voting. How about doing it in a way that’s both educational and fun? Here’s a list of some of the very best election-related apps available. They’re all completely free, so take a moment and encourage your kids to download an app – or three!
Cast Your Vote (Available at: Apple App Store, Google Play)
Voting is the cornerstone of democracy. In Cast Your Vote, kids learn how they can educate themselves about candidates and make informed choices. They participate in town-hall meetings with fictional candidates, receive email updates about where the candidates stand on various
issues, and get to research the candidates’ background and voting history. This app also lets kids track how their own views may have changed as they gather more and more information, and it concludes with a virtual booth where they can cast their votes.
My Vote Ballotpedia (Available: Apple App Store, Google Play)
My Vote Ballotpedia is a great companion app to Cast Your Vote. Depending on where you live, this app provides information about real-life candidates that are up for election at local, state, and federal levels in your specific area. Kids learn where the candidates stand on a variety of issues, and they can share and discuss what they learn with friends and classmates. This app strives to be a non-partisan, encyclopedia of electoral politics.
Win the White House (Available at: Apple App Store, Google Play)
Cast Your Vote and My Vote Ballotpedia teach kids about the importance of informed voting. Win the White House takes it one step further and lets them imagine what it’s like to run for office themselves and in this case, for President of the United States. They learn how to launch and raise funds for a campaign, articulate arguments and positions, poll voters to see which arguments and positions resonate the most, participate in candidate debates, and engage in targeted media campaigns. Kids are guided through the entire process, from primaries to the general election, by a virtual campaign manager who explains everything in a clear and child-friendly manner.
U.S. 270 (Available at: Google Play)
The presidential election is still a full year away. Kids learn in school that the road to the White House doesn’t go directly through the popular vote but through the Electoral College where candidates need at least 270 votes to win the presidency. The kids can use U.S. 270 to imagine different outcomes depending on which candidates are likely to run. This app has historical data from all previous presidential elections and will provide live updates of the elections as each state is called on election night. Keep it handy: it’s always a nail-biter!
Convene the Council (Available at: Apple App Store, Google Play)
Convene the Council lets kids imagine that they’ve won the presidential election and are now responsible for U.S. foreign policy. As President, they are the head of the National Security Council and must respond to international incidents that threaten the security of the country.
They learn how foreign policy decisions are made, how to weigh the pros and cons of various options such aid and sanctions, and what government agencies and departments are responsible for carrying out which decisions.
Engaging Congress (Available at: Apple App Store, Google Play)
Engaging Congress is a great companion app that teaches kids about another important government institution: U.S. Congress. They learn about the history of Congress, its role in the political process, and how its responsibilities relate to individual states. Most impressively, much of the information is relayed in the form of fascinating primary source documents and photographs that make the topic alive to kids.
Happy Election Day!
