Fourth Grade Elections at Middle School

Nine and ten-year-olds go to the polls this Friday, when the fourth grade votes in a student council representative at . 

This election will be an introductions to politics for most students.  Ideally, each candidate learns how to be a good winner or a gracious loser, while picking up campaign know-how and cementing values that can be applied in the school’s very active student council.

No campaign war chests are needed here: Candidates are limited to two posters and a 30-second speech "highlighting their character strengths with our school’s TV station, KPAW,” said Tanya Rianda, student council advisor. Students are only permitted a few ways of campaigning, but as many informal discussions they choose. Handouts are verboten. For that matter, so are expenditures -- any expenditures.

“We have a very active student council at La Entrada, and we want to make sure to include opportunities for our fourth graders to participate,” said principal Larry Thomas.

Election speeches are pre-taped to alleviate nervousness versus standing in front of an entire grade to communicate their short speech.

The speech recording “is both exciting and scary for a fourth grader,” said PTA president Lucia Tedesco.

The one student elected as a fourth grade coordinator becomes a member of the executive board on the Associate Student Body (ASB) and learns how to represent his or her constitutents and how to work well in both small groups and large, Rianda said.

"Active participation in ASB empowers fourth- and fifth-graders with the knowledge that all La Entrada students have a voice, no matter what grade they are in," said Rianda.

The students cast ballots this Friday morning.