Students in U.S. high schools can get free digital access to The New York Times until Sept. 2021.
Lesson Overview
Featured Section: New York Times Politics
Whether you’re a political junkie or only distantly aware that Election Day is Nov. 3, the little game we feature below — a departure from our usual Lesson of the Day formula — can help you navigate the current onslaught of political information, learn some useful facts and, we hope, start productive conversations with others.
Use it in either a Bingo or a scavenger hunt format from now through Election Day to scan the news that comes to you on any platform, whether via the New York Times Politics section, another newspaper, your social media feed, television or anywhere else.
When the game is over and you’ve responded to each prompt, use it for conversation with others; as ideas for deeper research; or as inspiration for creating new something in response.
Warm Up
If you could vote in the presidential election this year, whom would you vote for? Why?
That’s the question we’re asking in our Student Opinion forum today. Consider posting your thoughts online, or just answering in a journal or in small-group conversations with others.
Then, to get ready to play our game, below, think about three additional questions — answering them, if possible, in conversation with others:
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How much have you been paying attention to politics in general, and this election in particular? What news has gotten your attention lately?
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Where do you usually get your information? From your family or friends? Social media? School? Television or radio? How reliable do you think it is in general?
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When did you last have a good conversation about politics with someone? What made the conversation work, in your view?
Next, play our game.
Questions for Writing and Discussion
Directions: Alone, in pairs or in small groups, compete to fill in answers for the various prompts we list.
You can choose to play this as a Bingo game, using the game board linked below, and competing to be first to fill in a horizontal, vertical or diagonal row. Or, you can play it as a scavenger hunt in which all prompts must be filled in, using the alternate activity sheet linked below.
Regardless of how you play, for each answer you must list your source, and you must be prepared to explain and defend whatever you write. Do not repeat answers; try to find new information for each blank you fill.
The winner, or winning team, is the first to fill in all the answers with accurate information they can defend verbally.
To find answers, use the Times Politics section, or any other reliable news source you like.
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Play this as a Bingo game (fill in a full row, whether diagonal, horizontal or vertical).
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Play this as a scavenger hunt (fill in all answers).
Going Further
One of the goals of our game is for you to collect information you’ll then use to go further, whether by comparing and discussing answers with others, researching some of the topics in more depth or creating something in response.
Now that you have a list of possible stories, issues and ideas, here are a few options for what to do with what you’ve found:
Option 1: Share your answers and discuss them.
If you are playing as a class and have crowned a winner, or winning team, the next step might be to share all the ways different players answered each question, since there is no one “right answer” for any of them.
This can be done with a handful of students sharing different answers for each prompt verbally, or it can be done via an online collaboration tool like Google Docs, Jamboard or Padlet. When many answers have been shared, ask yourself:
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What patterns do you notice?
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What answers or information is most surprising to you?
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What answers push your own thinking somehow?
Next, you might move into small groups or breakout rooms to more fully discuss your answers to one or more of the questions.
As you work, keep in mind some guidelines for how to discuss issues that might be polarizing. This fall we’ve been running a Civil Conversation Challenge for teenagers on our site that sets several ground rules for productive discussions, and we’ve been happy to see that students are doing a wonderful job of following them. Scroll down to the rules, and challenge yourself to follow them in your group discussions.
Option 2: Choose one answer to investigate further.
Choose one thing you listed in answer to any of the prompts, and dig further. What can you find? Can you become an “expert” in this topic who can then share information with other students in the class, perhaps in a jigsaw-like setup? How will you continue to follow this topic through the election and, perhaps, beyond?
Option 3: Let one of your answers inspire you to create.
Choose one thing you listed in answer to any of the prompts and create something in response to it — whether a political cartoon, a poem, a collage, a poster, a video, a podcast or anything else. Then, consider submitting it to our Coming of Age in 2020 Contest by Nov. 12, since this election is one of the many news events we hope young people will respond to.
Option 4: Make your own Bingo board or scavenger hunt.
Years ago, as part of a series of activity sheets designed to be used with any day’s New York Times, we created this Bingo sheet with 16 blanks. Use it to create your own game.
For example, you might create one that is just for Election Day itself and invites your fellow students, or your family and friends, to find various things you expect to happen that day. Or, if you are doing this in a math class, you might provide all number-based criteria around polling and predictions, voter turnout and race outcomes.
About Lesson of the Day
• Find all our Lessons of the Day in this column.
• Teachers, watch our on-demand webinar to learn how to use this feature in your classroom.
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October 22, 2020 at 03:00PM
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Lesson of the Day: An Election News Game - The New York Times
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