7 Easy Election Activities for Kids

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We are getting close to the next presidential election. This is always an exciting night, even if we don’t like the results. My family has followed the presidential campaigns with our children for quite a while now. I like to include these election activities for kids in our election lessons.

Our dinner-time conversations have always been full of politics. After all, politics intersect with just about every area of life. We have tried to help them find the facts when they had questions (which isn’t always easy). The kids even watched every single debate with us. We are ready to see how this plays out.

Like most Americans, Hannah and Ben have formed some very strong opinions about which candidate is best suited for the job. Their opinions do not always mirror those of mine and Paul, which has made for some very interesting discussions. That is okay though.  

My goal isn’t to instill my opinion and politics in them; it is to help them to form their own opinions.

We treat Election Day somewhat like a holiday in my house. After all, as flawed as our process is, we are incredibly fortunate to be able to vote. Many people around the world do not have this right, and we do not take it for granted. I want my kids to understand the importance of voting.

Here are our Election Day activities.

(This post was originally posted in 2016. I updated it in 2020, but the activities will work any presidential election year.)

Easy Election Activities for Kids

Read Books

Books are always a great starting point for discussions. They present information in bite-sized pieces that are perfect for kids.  

My favorites are:

I Want to Be President by Michaela Muntean. This is a Sesame Street book, so it is perfect for the preschool crowd. Betty Lou wants to be president and tells the reader about the various responsibilities of the president. Younger kids will enjoy seeing a familiar character.

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Vote! by Eileen Christelow. This book describes the history, purpose, and process of voting in cartoon format.

Last update on 2026-09-16 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

Madam President by Lane Smith. A little girl spends her day pretending that she is president. Kids will love her humorous cabinet choices and her veto power.

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Related: The Best Election Books for Kids

Watch School House Rock Election Videos

School House Rock has been helping kids learn about the election process for over 40 years, yet these videos remain timeless.  

YouTube has a School House Rock Election channel, but I bought the School House Rock DVD set. We tend to watch a lot of School House Rock on our van DVD player when we travel.  

Last update on 2026-09-16 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

If you need hands-off election activities for kids, don’t skip this idea!  Let School House Rock do the teaching.

Take Your Kids with You to Vote

I can not say this enough. Kids need to be included in this process. 

Take your children to the poll, and into the voting booth if allowed, so they won’t even think about not voting as an adult. It won’t be an unfamiliar process.

This lets them see what voting involves. It also lets them know that there are more than just the positions of president/vice president up for election. I took my kids to the polls every year when I voted in Virginia. One time we waited in line to vote for hours! We were still fortunate that waiting in line in a heated building was the only obstacle. Many countries face much worse.  

In Washington, everyone voted by mail. I kept my kids nearby, and we chatted about the election as I filled out the ballot. They came with me to drop off the ballot.

Now that we are in North Carolina, we go to our polling place as a family again. After voting, we always go get a special treat – cupcakes or ice cream cones. Remember, we treat Election Day like a holiday.

My hope is that if I help form these positive connections with voting now, my kids will grow up to do this civic duty every year.

Let the Kids Vote on Dinner

Kids want to vote too! We teach them about the process with these fun election activities for kids, but really, they want their voices heard too.  

You can let the kids each nominate a meal, and they can try to persuade everyone to vote for their preferred dinner. My kids made campaign signs, slogans, and even made up a campaign dance one year.

Make up a simple ballot with the dinner choices.  

Let the kids fill out their dinner ballot and vote secretly. Make whatever dinner option wins, despite grumbles from the ‘losing’ side.

One year we did this while Grandma was visiting. The kids both campaigned hard for their dinner choices (shrimp vs burgers). Grandma didn’t like having to make a choice and potentially upsetting one of her grandbabies, so she suggested that we make both dinners or make the losing dinner the next night. This wasn’t a lesson about fairness, though. It was a lesson about how the voting process works.

Understanding that there is one winner for each role is part of understanding how elections work.

Record State Results

I am usually very strict about having my children upstairs at a reasonable time (8:00 pm until they were double digits), but on election night I make an exception.  

My kids are allowed to stay up watching the election coverage with us. They watched all of the debates, so it only seems fair to let them see the results pour in.  

As states’ results are announced, they color a state either red, blue, or yellow on a map of the United States. States that go Republican are colored red, states that go Democrat are colored blue, and Independent states are colored yellow.

Education.com has a wonderful free map printable.

Coloring in the state results can be a great way to keep kids interested throughout the evening.

Count the Electoral Votes

As each state announces who won the popular vote, we add up the electoral votes.  

The electoral votes will not be officially announced on election night, but generally, electors vote with the popular opinion of their state.  

Electoral votes can be a hard-to-grasp concept, so I recommend watching this Teded video, “Does Your Vote Count? The Electoral College Explained“.

We will count the electoral votes on paper for a little real-life math practice. Keep this list of state electoral votes handy for reference.

Make a Fun Patriotic Snack

Sometimes election coverage goes on late into the night.  Kids will need a snack or two to fuel their enthusiasm for our election process.

We are going to make an American flag using pepperoni (red), mozzarella slices (white), and blueberries (top corner). This will give them protein and fat to keep them full without a sugar crash. They can even build this flag and other red, white, and blue treats themselves as an additional election activity.

Election Activities for Kids Resources

Here are a few additional resources for election activities for kids:

Election Unit Study – The Homeschool Mom has compiled a comprehensive election unit study.

The Election Collection – PBS has a great list of election activities for kids. There are videos, documents, and lesson plans for just about every election topic.

Free Election Printable Pack – Homeschool Planet has created a free election printable pack. It would be a useful addition to an election unit study.

All About Elections Online Unit Study – The Techie Homeschool Mom has created an online unit study all about elections. It is designed for mid-elementary through middle school

Election season can feel really long, but these fun activities can be a great way to involve young people in the democratic process.

Keep reading . . .

• The Best Election Books for Kids
• The Ultimate High School Government Curriculum
• November Homeschool Activities

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