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Issue 76
Writings By 8th Graders About the Election
In our last column we marveled at the amazing process of 1st graders
learning to read. Unless you are in a classroom on a regular basis, you
might not realize just how wonderful the learning process is. In all
grades and in all classes it is inspiring to see students truly grasp
what they are being taught and show it in their work. This applies as
much to older students as it does to beginners.
Recently 8th grade teacher Denise Rose asked her students to write about
the Presidential election. She gave each of them one of the following
assignments:
Why do you think some people don’t vote?
Do you know someone who doesn’t vote? What are his/her reasons?
If you could vote in this election, which candidate would you choose for
president? Why?
Who do the adults in your family want for president? Why?
One student wrote
When I asked my dad who he wanted to vote for he promptly replied,
“George W. Bush.” My mom doesn’t have a strong opinion about who she
wants to vote for, but my dad jumped at the opportunity. He said to me,
“I am a republican and George Bush is the republican candidate.” When I
asked my mom who she was going to vote for she said, “I am undecided. I
need to know more about the candidates before I can make a final
decision.”
Another wrote:
Some people just don’t care who wins the election, so they do not bother
to vote. How can you not care who wins? We are voting for the next
leader of our country. If I could vote, I would, because it lets me know
that my voice is being heard. No matter who wins, it will change our
lives.
And another wrote:
If I could vote for the president in the 2004 Presidential Election
Race, I would vote for John Kerry. I think Bush has kept the troops in
Iraq there for too long. More and more people are being killed, and we
are using a lot of money to help Iraq that we could be using here. I
believe Bush went to war for oil because his father wanted him to. Kerry
will most likely solve this problem by taking most of the troops out of
Iraq and not help them rebuild as mush as Bush has. Kerry was in the
war, so he knows how the soldiers there feel.
And finally:
To some people voting is an inconvenience. People’s lives are very busy.
Sometimes their schedules are so hectic, they feel that it is just too
much to put aside time to go to their polling place to vote. People may
choose not to vote because they are uneducated about the issues which
they are to vote on. To some people the debates, media, and endless
mailings are frustrating, overwhelming, and deceiving because the issues
are confusing and distinguishing what the proposition is really about is
frustrating. Some voters may feel that casting their vote is useless,
especially when a judge can overturn a winning vote that the people
voted for. All votes count and can decide whether a proposition passes
or not, but some people still believe that their vote will not make a
difference. Even with all of the never-ending reminders, some people
just plain forget to vote.
These are just samples of the wonderful thought and ideas that went into
the essays written by 8th graders at Healdsburg Junior High School. All
of the essays can be found on the school website at
http://www.hjh.husd.com/electionessays.html. And they were
recently printed in the San Francisco Chronicle.
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