Week 3: Know Your Rights!

Hello again!

 This week Ava B. gave her presentation on Life as a Puritan and the Salem Witch Trials. It was awesome and we had discussions about how the Puritans were at the time, "guilty until proven innocent, etc." and those discussions took us on a rabbit trail adventure to other discussions, such as current events going on in the Supreme Court right now! Can I just say that we have an awesome class (again!).

We also went over our Unalienable Rights, as found referenced in the Declaration of Independence. 

"All men are created equal...[and] are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

Here is a link to define our Unalienable Rights, and list additional rights to recognize: 

https://www.conservapedia.com/Unalienable_rights


 We also started a video on Unalienable Rights, but my laptop speakers were annoyingly quiet! URGH. Please feel free to microwave some popcorn and watch it here:

We must be educated to know our Unalienable Rights, like the colonists, so that they cannot be taken away from us.

 From there, we watched one of my FAVORITE scenes from televised mini-series on Amazon Prime, "John Adams".

 Later, we had another great discussion on what the average American chooses to study (consensus: video games, social media..?)  and how it will benefit or harm the future generations. Let us be the people who inspire and teach others about the importance (and totally AWESOMENESS) of history and why it is so beneficial for future generations to be interested in it. While you are at it, keep on keepin' on! Be interested in other cool stuff, too! Follow those Rabbit trails that lead you to other interesting topics and have a mental feast!

 We also went over The Stamp Acts. Here is a video that discusses this topic:

 We also worked on memorizing the first paragraph in the Declaration of Independence, "Statement of Coarse". See if you can pass it off next week!

ASSIGNMENTS FOR OUR NEXT CLASS:
October 3rd, 2018
Devotional: Makayla
Presentations:
 Tyler (French and Indian War)
 Zeke (King George III)
Kimberly (The Boston Massacre)

Opinion Paper Assigned: What are your God-given Rights?
Memorize for next class: DOI "Statement of Coarse"
Start: Heritage Award Requirements found in your binder!
Finish: "Rush Revere and The Brave Pilgrims" and/or "The Landing of the Pilgrims" or another book on the Pilgrims of your choosing!

Have a nice week. We enjoy each and every one of you. Enjoy your homework and if you feel overwhelmed, you are growing! Just relax, do your best and have fun with it! :)

Week 2: Why the Need for Independence...

Hello! First off, another amazing week in Key of Liberty!

This week we went over memorizing the 10 Commandments to better understand the Colonists and what are some of the guidelines Heavenly Father gave us in the Bible to achieve a better understanding of His Gospel.

Here is the best video I can find to help with the memorizing of them. Earn that ROYAL BLUE ribbon!

We also began an excellent movie! "Monumental: In Search of America's National Treasure" is an inspiring and educational (although a bit dramatic!) movie that is a must watch! Parents should watch this with their older kids to have give opportunity for some wonderful discussions. It is really eye opening as to why the Pilgrims left the mother land in search of a new place for more potential to exercise Religious Freedom. Although it was not an easy voyage, the future colonists, or Puritans, made HUGE sacrifices for their voyage. "Monumental" is available to watch for FREE now for those with Amazon Prime. Watching this movie can also count towards an ORCHID ribbon on your key. For a list of the other movie options for your ribbon, please reference your Key of Liberty binder!

https://www.amazon.com/Monumental-Search-Americas-National-Treasure/dp/B00AHSFOXS


We had a discussion about why a moral people is required for a good government. Here is another Video we watched:

 Our last task of the day was to read and discuss the May Flower Compact. We read and discussed each paragraph to get an idea of what the colonists were thinking when they wrote it. It's a short read with a lot of reference to the respect of the King that they were running away from. This is also a LIGHT BLUE ribbon! We worked on or completed 3 out of our 9 ribbons for the semester in ONE DAY! Totally. AWESOME. Right?!

ASSIGNMENTS FOR OUR NEXT CLASS:
September 26th, 2018
Devotional: Ava B.
Presentations:
Ava B. (Life as a Puritan and the Salem Witch Trials)
Tyler W. (French and Indian War)
Try to finish "Monumental" or another approved movie.
Complete your Opinion Paper!

A note about Presentations: You don't need to write a paper (although you can!) for this presentation, just give an oral/visual presentation of what you learned. Have FUN with it! Costumes, props, games, etc. are highly encouraged.

Anyhow, another GREAT week! You guys are totally awesome! We enjoy every minute in this class. Enjoy your break and we'll see you all on the 26th!

P.S. We will miss you, Beth! See you in December!

Week 1: America is YOUR Land

Hello!

  Marie and I absolutely loved class yesterday and getting to know all of the students present was GREAT! I can tell it's going to be an AWESOME year!!!

 Yesterday we:

-Handed out binders (yay!)

-Discussed Note Taking and Proper Lecture Behaviors

-Discussed our goal to complete our "KEY of Liberty" Key

-Went over the rewards for reaching our goals! 

-We assigned our First Opinion Paper (This is due NEXT week. You can do it! :) )

-Had an awesome colloquium on, "The Red Scarf Girl" by Ji-Li Liang

   Some of the questions we pondered were:

          -What are some examples of items that you own that might be considered Four-Olds?

          -Do you think dai-zi-boa worked at making everyone equal?

          -Can we see evidence of the breakdown of the family in this book? 

          -What do you think the effect of unlimited power had on the young red guards? 

          -Why do you think the government attacked the authority of parents and teachers?

          -Why do you think the government got away with so much? 

  We also had a lecture on how America is Your Land. We discussed how great Leaders are not perfect, and make mistakes just like everyone else. We also discussed how our nation's founding fathers were inspired by God and they studied the Great Thinkers of the past in order to break the mold and form America. We are a chosen generation, to have the freedoms we have and to not be in poverty like most of the world's past (and current!) civilizations. We briefly discussed how America is different than other countries. We have every reason to live a wonderful life and have to do the most with our time that we can! It is our Responsibility!

 Here is our Book List for this Semester:

- The Red Scarf Girl, by Ji-Li Liang (COMPLETED!)

- Rush Revere and The Brave Pilgrims: Time-Travel Adventures with Exceptional Americans

Buy our next book here on Amazon...

 If you already have read this book recently, read it again! Or choose another book with the same topic and time frame. Our NEXT Colloquium is on October 3rd, 2018. Please finish the book and prepare 5 interesting point, topics and/or ideas to discuss.

 - John Adams, the Reluctant Patriot of the Revolution by Leonard Falkner

PLEASE order this from the Lemi Website at http://www.lemimentortraining.com/Home_Page.html

-George Washington An American Life, by Laurie Calkhoven.

It's a great biography with lots of interesting Pictures!

 Please look over your binders, so that you are familiar with it's contents. Oh, yes. Don't forget this gem to start your memorizing of the Declaration of Independence!

Link to YouTube for The Declaration of Independence Memorization Song...

Thank you! See you next week!