7 Reasons Why You Need to Use PBS Election Central

We are less than a month away from the Presidential Election in the United States. Regardless of who you are or are not voting for, there are many great tools to help our students understand the entire process. PBS Election Central is an excellent resource to understand the entire election process, providing engaging resources to foster learning and debate.

Here are seven reasons why you should be using this awesome tool!

1. Election Collection

The Election Collection is a comprehensive set of resources describing why we have elections, how democracy works, and the foundations of the US Government.

2. The Election Process

Have you ever wondered how Presidents get elected or how the election process works?  The Election Process provides a set of PBS Learning Media videos and resources describing the process in user-friendly language and terms.


3. Understand the Presidential Debates

How do Presidential Debates work? Check out the Understanding Presidential Debates section for lesson plans, videos, and other resources to help students understand the importance of debates.

There is even another section that contains a Debate Toolkit, where you can facilitate your own classroom debates.  This is a powerful way for students to learn the power of civil and meaningful student-led discussion.

4. We The Voters Films

PBS partnered with We The Voters to create a series of short-films, handouts, and lesson plans to provide a non-partisan understanding of the election process, debates, democracy and government for students in grades 8 - 12.


5. The Electoral Decoder

The Electoral Decoder will take you inside every single Presidential Election and help you understand the Electoral College and its impact on the Presidency. This is an excellent analysis tool that highlights an often overlooked component of the US Electoral process.

Not sure how the process works? There is a helpful set of resources that explain the process.

6. Interactive Map

The Interactive Map provides you with information about each of the candidates, when and where they are campaigning, information about the event, information about the state they are campaigning in, and interactive resources. Follow each candidate from now until November!

7. Virtual Field Trips 

The Virtual Field Trips section gives your students an opportunity to see important places related to the Presidency like Monticello, Mount Vernon, The US Capitol Building, and the Congressional Record.