Gilmer 5th Graders have been getting ready for Tuesday’s election by studying the two major candidates’ stands on major issues during the past several weeks.

Linda Williams, Social Studies teacher at Gilmer Intermediate School, had them study newspapers, magazine articles, TV and other materials and developed study folders to help them understand this year’s campaign, as well as the election process.

“I’ve had them going through the issues for two weeks,” she said. “We’ve read tons of newspapers going through the issues for both candidates.”

The students each made election folders.

Among issues they researched were health care, the economy, taxes, welfare, the war and education.

She used a technique called “teaching across the curriculum,” in which more than one type of subject is used. They read, wrote reports, and used math to create a timeline so they would know when presidential elections fall and when they will turn 18 and be able to vote for the first time.

She also selected certain students to put on Barack Hussein Obama and John Sidney McCain masks and address issues.

She told them, “you can’t just say ‘I will lower taxes.’ You have to explain how you will do it.”

“We had a lot of fun with that,” she said.

She tried to contact representatives of both major parties to help coach the students to represent their respective political sides.

“We never were able to contact the Republicans,” she said.

Democrats Delbert and Judy Burlison of Gladewater showed up in the afternoon, and while Mrs. Burlison worked with the Obama partisans, Delbert Burlison sat with and helped organize the McCain faction.

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