This term, the sixth grade students of Akiva School worked on a unit on Government, Democracy, and Civic Literacy. This year, we chose to participate in the Student Vote program (studentvote.ca), a program aimed at building the habits of informed and engaged citizenship. The students studied the different forms of government around the world, rights and responsibilities, the history of voting rights and the electoral system in Canada. The unit culminated in a “mock” vote, where the students were able to experience the voting process firsthand. Reading, writing, critical thinking and research skills were woven into each lesson, with an overarching goal of raising awareness and sparking discussion about the federal elections, the different political parties, and politics in general.
Our unique learning program was featured in the Westmount Independent and Canadian Jewish News papers:
