IN THIS ISSUE

PUBLISHED BY

LAW WISE

Coordinators: Bethany J. Roberts, Chair, LRE Committee; Nicolas Shump, Law Wise Editor; & Patti Van Slyke, Journal Editor SEPTEMBER 2020 • ISSUE 1

Greetings from the Kansas Bar Association (KBA). Welcome to this first edition of Law Wise for the 2020-2021 school year.

IN THIS ISSUE Elections in American History ........................ 1 Voting by the Book ......................................... 2 The Electoral College........................................ 3 Elections During Times of Crisis ....................... 4 Terrific Technology for Teachers........................ 5 To Vote or Not To Vote (lesson plan) ............... 6 The Electoral College (lesson plan) ................... 8 iCivics “Win the White House” Game.............. 9

Old City Hall and Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA in the evening. It is the place where the US Constitution and the US Declaration of Independence were adopted.

Elections in American History

National Pain Awareness Month Patriot Day ..................................... Sept. 11 Grandparent’s Day ........................ Sept. 12 Constitution Day ............................ Sept. 17 Int’l Talk Like a Pirate Day ............ Sept. 19 Int’l Day of Peace ........................... Sept. 21 Autumnal Equinox ........................ Sept. 22 National Punctuation Day ............ Sept. 24 Native American Day .................... Sept. 25 World Contraception Day ............. Sept. 26 First 2020 Presidential Debate ...... Sept. 29

Having achieved independence after the Revolutionary War, the founders realized they needed to develop a system to ensure a legitimate and democratic process to pass power from one leader to the next. Though there have been criticisms of this system since its inception, the United States accomplished this goal by including specific guidelines in the Constitution. Subsequent Constitutional amendments modified these original instructions, and over time, the franchise widened to include nearly all segments of American society.

With an important Presidential election only weeks away, this issue of Law Wise will look at the legislative origins of our system of elections, as well as the various criticisms and challenges to this system. The Electoral College system will serve as a major point of consideration; it has contributed to significant and controversial Presidential elections throughout U.S. history. As the nation celebrates Constitution Day this month, this issue will highlight elections which remain one of the enduring legacies of the system of governance practiced in the United States.