Vote for Our Future!

by Margaret McNamara, Micah Player (Illustrations)

In this charming and powerful picture book about voting and elections, the students of Stanton Elementary School learn how we can find--and use --our voices for change.

Every two years, on the first Tuesday of November, Stanton Elementary School closes for the day. For vacation? Nope! For repairs? No way! Stanton Elementary School closes so that it can transform itself into a polling station. People can come from all over to vote for the people who will make laws for the country. Sure, the Stanton Elementary School students might be too young to vote themselves, but that doesn't mean they can't encourage their parents, friends, and family to vote! After all, voting is how this country sees change--and by voting today, we can inspire tomorrow's voters to change the future.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Activism, Politics, Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Social Justice

40 pages, Library Binding

First published January 1, 2020

About the author

Margaret McNamara is the Christopher Award–winning author of more than two dozen books for young readers, including the Robin Hill School series. The Fairy Bell Sisters series is inspired not only by her love of the classic sisterhood novel Little Women but by her own experiences growing up with older sisters (and a baby brother). Margaret and her family live in New York City, but they spend part of their summer on an island in Maine very much like Sheepskerry Island.

Reviews

[Marti (Letstalkaboutbooksbaybee) · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Kids have to live with adult choices!”


Listen, I’m not going to lie. America is kind of a dumpster fire right now. That’s why voting is as important as it’s ever been, and this book is perfect at introducing the concept to young readers! It explains the process and shows why every single vote matters. It shows the different ways people can vote and how easy it is to register!

In the back of the book there’s a history of voting in America and some of the Acts of Congress that made voting accessible to every one. I think this is a great tool to open up conversation with older kids as well.

Another thing I loved about this picture book was the diversity and representation. There are families of color, different ethnicities and languages shown, and people with disabilities. I love how this book didn’t draw attention to those facts either, just simply showed them as being a normal part of life because, well, they are.

Disclaimer: I did receive this book from the publishers through StorygramKids book tours

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very timely! The students at Stanton Elementary School, recognizing that their school converts to a polling place every election day, decide to help get out the vote. It's a neat little story about the rationalizations some citizens make for not voting, and how/why those reasons can be overcome as part of our responsibility as citizens. A senior voter who is less mobile can get a ride, and the kids set that up for her; a woman doesn't like to wait in lines, and the kids remind her that she waits in line at the bank and the movies and the coffee shop; a first-time voter/teenager isn't registered, and the kids show her how easy it is to do online. "The whole town had a voting plan." Inspirational, colorful, and fun, with the schoolchildren depicted representing a broad American spectrum of races and cultures.

[Shelby · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Kids have to live with adult choices."

When their elementary school closes on election day so the community can use the facility as a polling station, the children of this book did some research to find out why it's important to vote and how they can take action despite not being of voting age yet. The kids remind their neighbors of the election, help register their sister and her friend online, find rides for homebound voters, and help their families make voting plans.

The end of this book, on election day, gave me goosebumps. It's a solid reminder to anyone that our right to vote is precious and important.

The end of the book includes a list and description of laws that Congress has passed to make the future better, including the Civil Rights Act, Postal Service Act, Indian Citizenship Act, and Air Pollution Act. Children's books are powerful!

[Melissa the Librarian · Rating 5 out of 5]

This might be my favorite book about voting/elections/citizenship. It's got great illustrations, an upbeat message, and stays fairly balanced in its political slant. It's definitely more focused on the importance of voting rather than presenting a political agenda. Recommended!

[Colleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute, vibrantly illustrated book about some very basic information about voting (probably for kids ages 5-9 years). It doesn't give much detail about the requirements for voting, but seems to mostly focus on the importance of encouraging people to vote and stating that each vote is important. Tells about an elementary school that is used as a polling place and some children who are participating in "get the vote out" type efforts.

[Christy Broderick⁷ · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great book to teach children about the importance of voting. This book makes it easy to understand, provides beautiful illustrations on every page, and shows the importance of just one vote. A great book to read today, since it’s a state primary election day in Michigan ❤️📚🤍📚💙

[Library Lady Vee · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was such a cute story about students learning and sharing the importance of voting.

[Tonya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great talking points for those that don't see the need to vote

[Vicki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Children at an elementary school figure out how they can get involved in voting in their community.

Colorful illustrations.

Well read by Miss Molly! 😀

[June · Rating 4 out of 5]

When an elementary school closes to be a polling place the students at the school encourage everyone old enough to vote. They remind people of the upcoming election, show people how to register to vote, encourage them to vote, get volunteers to drive people to the polls, tell people about early voting and voting by mail, tell people why it is important to vote, Backmatter lists 8 important Acts that were signed into law because of people voting to make the future better.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good, but subtle dem leanings noticed.

[Annese · Rating 4 out of 5]

"We should all vote. We should all vote to make the future better."
LaToya for Senate!!!

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Kids have to live with adult choices!”

A wonderfully diverse group of students from Stanton Elementary School want to be able to vote themselves, but know they can’t. So, they do their research, create pamphlets and go out and spread the word to adults about the importance of voting. They have prepared answers to all the normal excuses why people don’t vote, the most important one being “Changes are made every day because people voted.”

After election day, the kids head back to school knowing they played a part in positively impacting their future. “When you cast your first vote, what kind of future will you vote for?”

Will make a solid read aloud in classrooms during discussions about elections and voting.

[Cindy Mitchell *Kiss the Book* · Rating 3 out of 5]

Vote For Our Future by Margaret McNamara, illustrated by Micah Player. PICTURE BOOK. Schwartz & Wade (Random House), 2020. 9781984892805

BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3), EL - OPTIONAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE

As Stanton Elementary School changes from a school to a polling station, the kids educate themselves about why it is important to vote. Then they go out and work hard to educate actual voters.

McNamara has written a nice look at elections and shows how even children can make a difference.

Cindy, Library Teacher, MLS
https://kissthebookjr.blogspot.com/20...

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oversimplified fictionalized intro to voting for elementary kids. While the text notes that women didn't always have the vote, they don't discuss other forms of disenfranchisement. In addition, it doesn't explicit share the criteria of who and who cannot vote in the U.S. (just that you have to be 18). Finally, given the amount of misinformation available, the line about going online to find "all kinds of information" can be troubling especially as it relates to elections and issues.

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written book from elementary children's view. McNamara shares why it's important to vote and how every age can be part of the process. The illustrations support this critical message.

[Elizabeth]

Such a good!

"Every two years, on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November . . . Stanton Elementary School closes for the day" -- to become a polling place.

"The reason people vote is to choose who makes the laws of the country," is slightly over-simplified, but feels child-appropriate without being misleading.

"We should all vote to make the future better." / "We can't vote until we turn eighteen." / "So what can we do?" // "Kids have to live with adult choices!"

The kids do lots of research and launch their own Get Out The Vote effort in their town.

It's such a great kid-friendly way to cover so much of the discourse around voting.

One kid helps her big sister register to vote online...

Someone's aunt reminds someone that no one likes waiting in line, but we do it for lots of other things...

Someone else arranges a ride to the polling place for an elderly relative. They also mention that in their (unnamed) state, you can vote early or by mail.

It's true that the book doesn't get into voter disenfranchisement/suppression, but I feel like it manages a good, age-appropriate balance of enthusiasm for voting with acknowledgement of (and workarounds for/responses to) a variety of pushback. Besides being a good influence on the adult reader, it helps prime the child reader to be an engaged participant in the electoral process (while also giving them a little bit of understanding that it's not entirely simple and easy -- though yes, it certainly mostly presents it as simple/easy).

"At Jayden's house, the whole family was making their voting plans." (followed by examples of some of the plans) It's a little wild to me how quickly "make a plan to vote" has become part of the mainstream discourse, but here we are.

One adult raises the "one vote won't make a difference" concern, and so of course, as the book draws to a close, "On the first Wednesday after the first Monday of November, all the votes had been counted. The results were so close, the votes had to be counted again."

I liked that "Some people won, and some people lost." had a Black woman winning and a white man losing.

Circling back to the bit at the beginning about voting to make the future better, as we wrap up the book and the kids go back to school (in a nice touch, the blackboard has stuff like "branches of government"), we read that, "The laws of the country began to change. [...] And the future began to change."

It's a nicely diverse set of kids -- no visibly disabled kids (though there is an elder being pushed in a wheelchair in the fold-out spread of people going to vote), but it does include a hijabi (who goes door-to-door with her also-hijabi aunt, which is a nice way to undermine the idea that Muslim women who choose to cover their heads don't have any agency, etc.).

One girl says to a woman, "Voting is a right! A right that women didn't have a hundred years ago," and I appreciated that the backmatter nuanced that some (though it definitely could have done more).

The backmatter is about "Here are some Acts of Congress that made the future better," so they're not all about expanding enfranchisement (there's also The Air Pollution Control Act of 1955, etc.), but it does include:

Before the Civil Rights Act was passed in 1866, people who had been enslaved had no rights at all. This was he first Act of Congress to make it a law that every citizen be treated equally. Americans still struggle to preserve every person's civil rights today.

Yay for talking about "people who had been enslaved" instead of slaves!

And for acknowledging that we have to continue to work to keep progress from being rolled back.

The Indian Citizenship Act became law in 1924. Although this law granted citizenship to all indigenous people, many Native people did not have the ability to vote until 1962.

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was signed as a result of the civil rights movement. This law made it a crime to "injure, intimidate, or interfere with . . . any person . . . because of [their] race, color, religion, sex, handicap . . . familial status . . . or national origin. . . ." It continues to be amended to protect the rights of all.

The Americans with Disabilities Act, passed in 1990, states that people who are differently abled must be accommodated in schools, in the workplace, and in public spaces.

Please let's not say "differently abled" :(

[Ellwyn Autumn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lemon Drop Literary
Book Summary:
Elections may by for grown-ups, but when Stanton Elementary School transforms into a polling place, the students become a vital part of the election process.

In no uncertain terms, these civic minded kids prove that despite being unable to vote, there are other ways they can get involved. After reading voter guides and researching election history, the students help spread the word about the upcoming election and why it’s so important to vote.
They help their adult family members make plans to vote and encourage their neighbors to take advantage of this opportunity to make changes.

One of my favorite quotes from the book is, “I don’t like lines either,” answered Nadiya’s auntie, “but if we stand in line for coffee, or for a movie, or at a bank…”
The perfect rebuttal for anyone who doesn’t like standing in lines to vote (provided the polling station’s waiting times are reasonable).

Mini-Review:
A marvelous tribute to children and future voters of America!

I enjoyed everything about this book! Let’s start with the title, Vote For Our Future. As parents and teachers, we all want to make the world a better place for our kiddos’ future. This book reminds us that voting is one way to achieve this goal.

The cover sends a positive message to children and adults. From the hopeful expressions on the characters’ faces to the camaraderie as they march in civic-minded unison. Talk about a grassroots movement, these children are motivated, educated, and dedicated to their cause.

The illustrations are adorable and capture the excitement for learning students feel when given the freedom to pursue their interests. As soon as you crack the cover, a collage of colorful voting stickers, with voting puns and positive phrases, catches your eye. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants their children to learn about elections and how vital they are to our democracy.

[Rebeca Sanchez · Rating 3 out of 5]

The children of Stanton Elementary School become educated about how they help their communities through the purposes of voting. This all is portrayed in a simple picture book that is easy for students to interact with and follow. From the illustrations' simple shapes and colors, it makes the topic of voting to be a positive practice for citizens. Even though kids aren't able to vote, they motivate their families, "adult friends," and even strangers to vote in the upcoming election. Some of the kids go door-to-door and even remind their families to vote on this special day. Margaret McNamara depicts each character differently by touching that anyone can vote (through skin color, gender representations, and race) indirectly and that people shouldn't take the privilege for granted.

I overall liked the book in its contents of being an active citizen at a young age, so it has students understand their civil rights when they're able to vote. I liked the book with no party having a favor shown and being vague enough to show support in voting. I found that the book demonstrates that voting is essential for them when they reach of age, so they can "nudge" others to do their civic duty. I do think that there should be a little reason to why people can't vote because everyone may have an essential reason 9not being citizens). I see that it doesn't fit the theme or message of the book, but there is more discussion of voting when it comes to students being disappointed that they're not like the rest of their friends.

[Madeleine Muth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Title (italicize): Vote For Our Future
Author: Margaret McNamara
Illustrator (if separate from author):
Genre: Concept book
Theme(s): Government/Politics
Opening line/sentence (type directly from text):Every two years, on the Tuesday after the Monday of November Stanton Elementary School closes for the day.
Brief Book Summary (2-3 sentences in your own words):
Response to Two Professional Reviews (3-4 sentences in your own words): Kirkus Reviews raves that this book helps empower people to go vote and help young children get excited to vote. Publishers Weekly says that this book can empower to start an adult voting protest! This book brings light to voting and how it can help change the world.
Tell Me Framework (4 sentences in your own words):
Like(s): I like the diversity of the book and how it explains the whole meaning of voting. It gives definitions and explains concepts to help children get excited about voting.
Dislike(s): I don't have an dislikes about this book!
Patterns(s): All the students are trying to get their parents to vote and each family helps the child understand the concept of voting and how it can help the community.
Puzzle(s): Why are so many of the adults not wanting to vote in the story?
Consideration of Instructional Application (3-4 sentences in your own words): You can create an Election Day in your classroom. Have the children create a vote topic and have an Election Day to help the children understand the concept of voting. This can also empower the children to vote right when they turn 18.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Digital illustrations accompany an informative story about how elementary students learn about voting and get involved in the voting process even though they themselves cannot vote yet. Since their school, Stanton Elementary School, serves as a polling place for elections every two years, the students decide to learn more about elections. They then spread out throughout the community and urge adults to cast their ballots. The idea here is that one vote does count and that change in a democracy comes from voter participation. The youngsters have done their homework, and they have good responses to those who find voting inconvenient or a waste of time or even who don't have transportation to a polling place. The book strives to be nonpartisan, and the back matter lists some groundbreaking legislation that was enacted because of what others wanted in an attempt to improve our nation. It often seems as though one vote doesn't matter at all, but if voters don't exercise this privilege, they are allowing others to make political decisions for them. Reading a book like this just might encourage youngsters to vote when they reach the age that they can while nudging their parents or caregivers to do their civic duty.

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5

A clear look at what kids can do to participate in elections and explore their civic responsibilities. This school's-worth of kids get right to work encouraging family and neighbors to get registered and make a plan to vote. They visit their local election office, offer some general guidance on voting options, and remind their community that votes translate into laws. Uplifting and empowering, there is no defeatism here.

What's missing: the line about how the students "went online and found all kinds of information" could have been tightened up to indicate that you should go to your local clerk's or secretary of state page to get accurate and up-to-date information. I'm sure it was difficult, since every state has slightly different procedures and it's important to check local practices for early voting, absentee voting, and poll hours. I think the backmatter could have been more explicit on this front, though. Additional resource that detail the history of voting rights and who gets to vote would have been appreciated, too. But the positivity and can-do spirit that shine through this are much-needed.

[Cheyenne Kane · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is perfect for teaching kids how and why we vote here in the United States. One quote from the book states that "Kids have to live with adult choices" and that is important for not only kids to realize, but for adults to realize as well. We have the power in our vote to change and make decisions in our politics. This book was a great way to explain different ways to vote, how to vote, and gives examples on the common excuses on why people don't vote. By giving the examples on why people don't vote this book is able to respond to those in a kid friendly way that kids are able to understand. Other ways this book talked about voting was through telling the audience to research candidates, find your local laws, and all about the different ways citizens can vote. I would love to use this book as a lesson in my future during election season so that students can learn this type of information now rather than be bombarded with information at 18.

[Christie Kaaland · Rating 4 out of 5]

In clear simple language McNamara lays out the foundations for and importance of voting as citizens of a democracy. Important historic legislative Acts of Congress are clearly described in the backmatter of this important voter picture book.

A group of children from Stanton Elementary School "campaign" for enlisting every eligible citizen to vote. Of particularly unique content, the author narrates children visiting adults who give all the typical excuses ~~ "I don't like to stand in lines...I can't drive...I'll be gone...I'm not registered...(and of course) My vote doesn't count." Of course it does! Kids informing adults and responding to each excuse with a solution provides consideration for adult readers (parents?) as well as students.

Bright colorful illustrations with diverse highlight the message. This is a must for teachers and librarians to read to their students during election season.

[Eunchu An · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is an informational book that informs students of the importance of voting and why they should vote through voting at Stenton Elementary School. Students search for information and make pamphlets to promote voting. The students say to those who ask why I should vote those changes are made every day because people voted. Voting is one of the most important democratic systems and when you turn 18, you can vote. This book fosters how important exercising their rights is. It is an informative book that teaches children that voting is a critical element of practice to change our lives. The illustration is clear and concise enough to convey information.

[Flossmoor Public Library (IL) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars

With an election coming up this year, I was pleased to see a book about voting in the children's section. This book shows how young children, who themselves can’t vote yet, help motivate their families and community to get out there and vote! Despite some of the excuses their community members gave them about not being able to vote, the children come back with other options and encourages everyone to get out there and make a difference. Also, the illustrations were beautiful and very diverse.

- Miss Jenny

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

The children of Stanton Elementary School explain to readers that their school closes for one day so people can vote. When they learn that they aren't old enough to vote, they do their research to find out what they CAN do. Before you know it, they are encouraging grown-ups to register and vote, arranging rides to the polls, making plans to run for office someday, and generally being good citizens.

We see racially and ethnically diverse families, including women in hijabs and people in wheelchairs. The bright, cheerful, illustrations show that voting really is for everyone. Some back matter explains that when adults vote, they choose people who will make laws. Then examples of important laws are given. Highly recommended for kids in grades K-2, and anyone needed a shot of enthusiasm about voting.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

There's something about this book that stands out from the other children's politics books I've read-- it includes all the reasons and ways you can vote, and has an encouraging response to everybody who doesn't think it's worth voting. Here is a reminder to everyone that every vote counts, and we should use our right to do so to our advantage! Even if you're a child, there are ways to participate; and I vote yes to this book!

[Read Ribbet · Rating 4 out of 5]

As attention to the next election ramps up, this is a great book to introduce young children to the importance of voting. This may be an especially good read for schools that become polling places like the one in the book. McNamara wisely focuses on how young people can help get out the vote even when they are not young enough to vote. Aspirational in it's focus, it shows young people getting excited about voting and addressing excuses that adults in their lives use to avoid voting.

[Peacegal · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Kids have to live with adult choices!"

With charming, retro-style illustrations, this exuberant little book celebrates the right to vote and how important it is that we all exercise that right! This awesome little book has wide appeal and would be a perfect read-aloud for primary-grade audiences right around Election Day. Great ideas for kids who cannot yet vote, to reach out to those who can.