Discover Your Democracy!
In partnership with Elections Canada, Imagineaction is asking you to engage your Grade 5-12 students in a school or community-based social action project that encourages them to explore their democracy, past or present, and to recognize the important impact that participation in it brings. Then be creative … take that information and transpose it into a visual medium such as:
- A photo exhibit, or
- a video production, or
- a publication (e.g. – a newspaper article, blog , essay, or letter), or,
- another visually creative tool that reflects the project’s outcome, including those available on social media sites.
Need some inspiration? Check out these ideas:
- Run a school or community-based election or referendum and then put the results into action!
- Is there an issue right now at the local, provincial or federal government level that is important to the community or that the government is actively seeking feedback on?
- Choose a local cause and work with a community organization to help get their message out.
- Explore Canada’s democracy, past or present - learn first-hand about the power of participation from those who have actively participated in it.
If you are interested in having your students participate in this project, please login or register. If your classroom project application is approved, $500.00 will be provided to your school to enable the students to carry out the project. The final product will be publicly viewed on the Imagineaction website, and possibly used by Elections Canada as an example of participation in action.
Elections Canada has resources that can help with your project, including simulation kits, lesson plans and resources explaining the history of our electoral system and how it works! They’ve also summarized recent research and provided concrete recommendations for action in several Research Action Digests.
Notes
- This project is open to teachers/students in Grades 5-12
- Deadline to apply is November 30, 2012.
- All projects must be completed by February 28, 2013.
- As part of Canada’s Democracy Week, Elections Canada is also running a National Youth Challenge. If your project is selected under this Imagineaction program, the final class-based visual product produced is prohibited from being entered as part of the Challenge. Individual entries from students are however admissible.
If you require additional information, please contact info@imagine-action.ca