As you have no doubt noticed, election season is here. It’s really unavoidable. Everywhere you look there is a yard sign or a political ad or a social media post about this year’s election, especially the contest for president.
All of this hype leaves kids to wonder what all the fuss about. And it leaves parents and teachers wondering how they can talk about the election in a way that is appropriate for their kids. Here are just a few books that you can use to launch conversation with kids about the role of president in our government, or about the importance of voting. There are also a few books that are just fun fiction aimed at kids about the presidency in general. For the most part, these are generic resources that would work for any family/classroom, regardless of politics. (The book titles are links to Amazon. I am an Amazon Affiliate. If you click on one of these links and buy something, I receive a small commission on the sale)
Grace for President
– A cute picture book about a girl who realizes we haven’t had a woman president and she wants to see that changed. So she runs in the school’s mock election. This is a popular election season book for kids. I’d be surprised if your local or school library doesn’t have a copy of this one!
The Kid Who Ran For President
– A fun story from Dan Gutman about a boy who decides to run for President of the United States. (This book got a lot of press earlier this year when comedian Jon Oliver referenced it in a rant about Donald Trump.)
Abe Lincoln at Last!
– This is my all time favorite Magic Tree House Book. I love it because the story is great and because it shakes up the usual formula for the series. There are some fascinating tidbits in here about how the White House operated back in Lincoln’s day.
Liberty Porter, First Daughter
The Case of the Rock ‘n’ Roll Dog (First Kids Mystery)
Both of these books are the first in series about being a kid in the White House.
Who Is Hillary Clinton? (Who Was…?)
– For families supporting Mrs. Clinton or for students interested in knowing more about the candidates in this year’s election, check out this book from the awesome Who Was series. At this time there is no companion book for Donald Trump. I couldn’t find a good book for kids about Mr. Trump that wasn’t satirical.
. . . If You Were There When They Signed the Constitution
– As the Constitution is the document that outlines our three branches of government, this could be a good resource for students wondering about how it came to be and what is included in it.
Grover Cleveland, Again!: A Treasury of American Presidents
– A fun look at all of our presidents (including Grover Cleveland who was president, lost the next election, and then was re-elected in the next term). The spreads are lovely and the information is engaging. The only complaint I have heard about the book (and it is accurate from my own read through) is that the author’s personal biases comes through in the storytelling. This would be a tremendous resource both for the content and for the opportunity to talk with students about fact versus opinion.
Don’t Know Much About the Presidents (revised edition)
– A more objective presentation of the presidents, but the layout isn’t as engaging as the previous book. Both books together would make for a great contribution to a classroom, school or home library.
Do you have any go-to resources you like to use with kids when talking about government or elections or the presidency?
