Art by Anya Kuvarzina; Shutterstock.com (Paws); Courtesy of Phyllis Mueller (Mayor Max)

A Dog Mayor

By Meg Richardson

From the October/November 2024 Issue

Learning Objective: Children learn about elections and voting.

Lexile® measure: 290L

Featured Skill: Key Details,

Vocabulary: mayor, vote, election

Topic: Social Studies,

Woof! This dog is the mayor of a town in California. His name is Mayor Max.

A mayor is the leader of a town or city. Mayors make sure people follow the rules. They keep the schools and parks running smoothly.

How do people choose their mayor? They have an election and they vote. Whoever gets the most votes becomes the mayor.

Most mayors are humans, of course! But Mayor Max’s town is tiny. It doesn’t need a human mayor. The people have animal mayors, just for fun.

This doggie mayor wears a necktie. (Sometimes he tries to eat it.) He goes to schools and parades. He makes people in the town happy. Good boy, Max!

video (1)

Slideshows (1)

Activities (3)

Download All Quizzes and Activities

Answer Key (1)

video (1)

Slideshows (1)

Activities (3)

Download All Quizzes and Activities

Answer Key (1)

Implementation

Small group; whole group; independent reading

Before-Reading Resources

Voting Video
Watch the video “Time to Vote” to help students learn more about voting.

Text Preview Bookmarks
(10 minutes) Kids can cut out the nonfiction bookmark and use it to preview the text.

Play the Vocabulary Slideshow
(5 minutes) Help students become familiar with vocabulary words they will see in the article.

Nonfiction text features (30 minutes)

Take a close look at the picture and the title. Ask students, “What do you think this article will be about?”

After-Reading Skills Practice

(15 minutes for each activity)

Quiz: Comprehension check

Color the Picture: Students can practice identifying different ways to make the long a sound while coloring a picture of the dog mayor.

Text-to-Speech

A Dog Mayor

Implementation

Small group; whole group; independent reading

Before-Reading Resources

Suggested Reading Focus

Nonfiction text features (30 minutes)

Take a close look at the picture and the title. Ask students, “What do you think this article will be about?”

After-Reading Skills Practice

(15 minutes for each activity)

Quiz: Comprehension check

Color the Picture: Students can practice identifying different ways to make the long a sound while coloring a picture of the dog mayor.

Help/Support

Help/Support

Subscriber Information

A Dog Mayor

Implementation

Small group; whole group; independent reading

Before-Reading Resources

Suggested Reading Focus

Nonfiction text features (30 minutes) Take a close look at the picture and the title. Ask students, “What do you think this article will be about?”

After-Reading Skills Practice

(15 minutes for each activity) Quiz: Comprehension check Color the Picture: Students can practice identifying different ways to make the long a sound while coloring a picture of the dog mayor.

Help/Support

Help/Support

Subscriber Information

Connect with Us

Nonfiction text features (30 minutes)

Take a close look at the picture and the title. Ask students, “What do you think this article will be about?”

(15 minutes for each activity)

Quiz: Comprehension check

Color the Picture: Students can practice identifying different ways to make the long a sound while coloring a picture of the dog mayor.