Jacobs Elementary School first grader Maddie Beck casts her ballot in Monday’s mock presidential election, as first grade teacher Mary Ellen Moran looks on. (Photo courtesy Hull Public Schools) 
Kindergarten student Christina Kenerson casts her vote in the Jacobs Elementary School mock election. (Photo courtesy Hull Public Schools) 
Kindergarten student Jordan Dunn casts his vote in the Jacobs Elementary School mock election. (Photo courtesy Hull Public Schools)
HULL — Superintendent Judith Kuehn and Principal Christine Cappadona are pleased to share that students at the Lillian M. Jacobs Elementary School participated in a mock 2020 presidential election earlier this week.
On Monday, Nov. 2, students in grades K-5 participated in a mock presidential election that was separated into three parts to teach students about elections, voting and democracy.
Principal Cappadona and Assistant Principal Kyle Shaw started the day off by having students watch a video that was sent to every classroom after morning announcements. This video explained the process of voting and also the expectations for every voter. The message of the video was the central theme of the day, which was to encourage and teach students to respect the views of others.
After watching the first video, students were assigned a voting poll zone where they could cast their individual vote. Upon arrival at their voting poll zone, students were given a ballot and took it to their own polling booth. After filling out their paper ballot they deposited it into a ballot box and waited for the remainder of their class. Each student was also provided with an “I Voted” sticker after depositing their ballot.
To reduce the spread of COVID-19, students were required to bring their own writing utensils to fill out their ballot, and polling booths were sanitized after each student voted.
Two more videos were provided from Principal Cappadona and Assistant Principal Shaw that updated students on the result of the election. The second video provided midday results to students, while the third and final video announced the final result of the mock election.
During the announcement of the result, Assistant Principal Shaw reminded students of the central message of the day, which was to have empathy and to be respectful to one another.
“We are very pleased by the mock election that took place on Monday, as it was a great educational and fun experience that taught our students about democracy and the importance of voting,” Principal Cappadona said. “Students were patient, thoughtful, and respectful during the voting process and also when the election result was announced. The highlight of the day was not who won the election, but how respectful our students were to one another even if they had different views.”
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