Hatching the idea: a "teachable" experience

I count myself as an ordinary dad with two extraordinary daughters,  13 and 10.   My younger daughter, Lauren,  has become enthralled with Barack Obama's candidacy.     She keeps saying that Senator Obama will "bring us all together, Dad...he really will."   As Lauren and I were so moved by his acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention last month,   I had an epiphany.   What if Lauren and I could pursue our mutual passion for the Obama candidacy by hitting the campaign trail together on his behalf,  in a state that was up for grabs?   The idea  became an instant hit with Lauren.   "That would be s-o-o-o-o-o-o amazing," she said,  in her standard melodramatic tone (Lauren is an aspiring actress who has appeared in several theatrical productions).

In discussing the idea of campaigning out of state,   I confronted the reality of having to take Lauren out of school for a few days.     Toward that end,  I contacted both the principal of her school as well as her teacher.   They were supportive of the idea and I am ever so grateful to them for their encouragement.   But beyond support,  there was this notion of making our trip a "teachable" experience.    So Lauren started reading articles about the campaign in both newspapers and the Internet,  the goal being to have her understand as much about the issues--and the candidates--as reasonable could be expected by a fifth grader.