Thursday's Exam Results

Year 3 Student

What is the Union Jack, and how did it come about?

It was two flags put together and it came about because Scotland and England had two parliaments and they had a union. They were already allies but they tried to be one nation, but they couldn't do that til they only had one parliament. The two flags they combined were St. George's and St. Andrew's. St. George's was a red cross on a white background and the St. Andrew's was a white "x" with a blue background. One general, the general of the army, signed his name as something like "Jack." His two flags were called "the Jacks" and when they were combined they were called "the Union Jack."

Tell about how otters live.

They make their homes in dens and all they really eat is fish. They go fishing like bears, they actually go under water and go fish hunting. When they have their babies, they make a different nest above the surface of the water and the otter cubs don't drown because they can't swim when they're first born. Every now and then the mother otter takes the cubs out so they can learn how to swim. She'll carry them on her back into the water and then she'll slide out from underneath them.

Year 5 Student

Why was the Civil War fought?

The south had slaves and the north didn't think it was right. As new states came in there would be almost fights about whether it would be a slave state or a free state. Eventually the south said that they wanted to create their own country. So they declared themselves free from the union. President Lincoln asked them not to and then declared war.

What attributes made Teddy Roosevelt heroic?

He always made time for his family even when there were a lot of important things to do. He did his best to do everything right; I don't think he ever made the same mistake twice. He thought of the people first. And he stood up for what was right.

Year 9 Student

What was important to the founding fathers in setting up their own government?

It depends a lot on who you asked. Hamilton would have answered differently than Jefferson. But in general:

It was important to them to establish a government that would accurately represent the people’s needs and desires and not ignore them as Britain had done. It was important that the government would preserve the people’s rights and not intrude on their personal business; but at the same time it was important that the government should promote and uphold both the moral and civil law. They wanted a government that would promote peace and security, both in itself and towards other nations.

A government is established to protect the rights and happiness, and therefore the safety, of the people. The difficulty is finding a balance between too much and too little government. Jefferson feared too much: he believed in the good of man and was afraid that a powerful government would encroach on the people’s rights and freedom. John Adams feared too little: he believed in the intrinsic evil of man and therefore felt that a strong government was necessary to preserve the nation’s law and safety. The struggle between those two viewpoints, the struggle to find a balance between too much and too little government, was what brought about our Constitution; and the result is a happy compromise that may well be called “a miracle”.

Briefly trace the events of Ben Franklin’s or Napoleon’s life.

Benjamin Franklin was born the youngest son of a candlemaker. He was apprenticed to his older brother James as a printer’s assistant in Boston, and published several articles under the false name of Mrs. Silence Dogood. He and his brother did not get along well, so he ran away to New York and thence to Philadelphia, where he worked for another printer. He made a business trip to England but found himself stranded there, having to work for several years before he could return. When he returned he was married, and set up his own printer’s shop, which became the most popular in town. He started a library and post office as well as continuing his scientific experiments. He was a member of the legislature for a time and led an expedition against the Indians in the French and Indian War.

He was several times sent to England to represent the American Colonies, and worked hard to make a peace between them, but finally decided it was impossible and was tried (in England) for treason. He was an important, if silent, member of the Continental Congress and Constitutional Convention.

Wed Answers

Year 3 Student

Tell about a tall tale.

Joe Magarac - He was made out of metal and one time one girl's father had to decide who got her as a wife, and Joe Magarac got her but gave her to who really wanted her and they were married and lived happily. But the steel mill was going to be put out of business because of Joe Magarac, because he was steel. So he melted himself and they made a new steel mill with his metal. So they made one and that was it.

Tell why Timoleon was heroic, OR tell why Othello wasn't.

Othello wasn't heroic because he wasn't a good man. He was being told lies by Iago and killed Desdemona. And Cassio tried to be murdered by Iago and Roderigo, but Roderigo got murdered instead of Cassio, and Iago murdered Emilia his own wife. Othello was a good man, but he shouldn't have believed Iago and shouldn't have killed his wife. A good man wouldn't have stolen Desdemona to be his wife.

Year 5 Student

How did Lobo the wolf die?

They caught and killed his mate and then used her as bait to catch him. He was then killed, maybe strangled.

What led Othello to kill his own wife? OR What made Timoleon a successful leader?

Timoleon - what made him a good general, a good leader, is that he used tactics and not brute force, and that's all there was to it. He was a nice guy, so the troops followed him and obeyed him willingly. He didn't try to become powerful, he tried to bring peace back to the nation and get rid of the tyrants.

Year 9 Student

How did Othello end up killing his wife?

The obvious answer is through the deceptions of his supposed friend, Iago. But really Iago’s lies only exploited faults of Othello’s character that reveal themselves more as the play continues.

Othello was jealous and possessive of his wife, and therefore mistrusted her reasons for marrying him and her fidelity to him. He had very little self-control, so instead of putting away Iago’s lies, he encouraged them, and worked himself into a rage that blinded his reason and (as Desdemona saw) amounted to madness. He had strong emotions and a fiery temper, which when ignited he could not control. Finally, he had a skewed sense of right and wrong, which led him to an attempted assassination of Cassio and the actual murder of his wife--thinking all the while that he was doing right and satisfying justice.

This is an excellent depiction of the nature of evil. The devil tempts us and deceives us, but he is only exploiting faults that are already there. Evil is both an external and internal thing.

What are the four loves?

1. The love of pleasure. Under this love are sloth and idleness as well as the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes.
2. The love of money and possessions. Under this is all our love for material things.
3. The love of power. The desire to control others. Pride is a big factor in this.
4. The love of self. All three other loves center around this one and come from it.
(Apparently this is a joke, and I'm told that the real answer is forthcoming!)

The real answer:
1. The first is storge, or affection. Under this usually fall our love for pets and the love between parents and children.
2. The second is philia. This is “brotherhood,” comradeship or friendship.
3. The third is eros, or amorous love: the love between a man and a woman.
4. The fourth is agape, which Lewis calls charity. This is our love for all people—or rather, what should be our love for all people.
All four loves are from God and are good as long as they remain under God’s law. As Lewis put it, “love, when it becomes a god, becomes a demon”—any love, when given free reign to make itself our god, is a bad thing. All four loves are also models or representations of God’s love for us.

Tuesday's Answers

Year 3 Student

Why was Pocahontas friendly with the settlers?

Because Captain John Smith promised to take her to England, and because the white men needed food and help, and because she didn't want war between the Indians and the white men.

Tell about what life was like for a woodsman during the exile of Charles II.

They had to keep hidden because most of them were against the roundheads. They had to hunt, but hunting was forbidden, but they hunted deer. They couldn't hunt when roundheads were around.

Year 5 Student

Tell about one event in modern history (from the 20th Century book)

The Titanic: There was this one company that wanted to build a really big ship. I think it was 1903 or 1904 but it was built and the captain was trying to make a run from England to up past Greenland in record speed. There were thousands of passengers on board and they were going so fast that when they spotted the iceberg up ahead, they couldn't stop and they struck it. They closed the doors to the rooms that had been hit because the rooms were waterproof, but so many rooms had been opened that even with the doors closed the ship started sinking. They sent out a message to the nearby coast, but the guy who was at the lighthouse wasn't paying attention, or was sleeping or something. A nearby ship heard the signal and came to the rescue but, by the time they had gotten there, the ship was sunk and there weren't enough lifeboats for everybody. A little over half the people died.

Tell a little bit about the caste system of India's society OR child labor in Dickens' London

If their parents couldn't pay all their debts, then the children were forced to work at parish work houses sometimes all their lives and they also didn't get fed very well. They worked almost all day long every day.

Year 9 Student

Tell what you know about the doctrine of predestination.

Predestination is the belief that salvation is foreknown, predetermined, and unalterable. Looking at it timelessly, those who will be saved are saved already; those who will not be are not. The thought is that, if God knows all (which He does), then a person’s fate is already known, and therefore already determined.

This doctrine is in opposition to the idea of free will in that people cannot choose their own fate. It can also act against witnessing and spreading the Gospel, because if people’s fates are already determined, it will make no difference. If a person is destined to be saved, then nothing we can do will change that, and vice-versa.

What are some of the similarities and differences between the French and American revolutions?

Both happened in the 18th century; in both the people overthrew King and monarchy and instituted republics.

But the American revolution was about freedom from tyranny, in a way going back to the older and higher ideas of law. The French revolution was about freedom, not just from government but from law, doing away with the old thinking and basing itself on “enlightened” ideas. Because of this the French revolution followed no law, executing thousands of people, many of them guiltless, stealing lands from the Church, and leading to economic trouble and the country’s ruin and disrepair.

Both were about the people’s right to govern themselves. But the French led to a mob rule, a despotism of the people, whereas the American instituted a government that represented the people but also controlled it. The French revolution and republic were based on the idea of the inherent goodness of man, the American on his inherent evil.

The American revolution was carried out in the knowledge that their cause was right before God, fighting for the liberty of man under the law of God. The French revolution was based on human right and principles, fighting for “liberte et egalite” of men. The American revolution was essentially Christian; the French revolution essentially Humanist. The results are well known.

Monday's Answers

Year 3 Student

Tell about Queen Elizabeth's reign

She was good and kind. She thought about other people and not just herself. She was a good queen, her reign was a very good time in England. She was better than most kings and queens and she saved England in a sea war with Spain. Spain had a much bigger fleet than they did but England still won.

She was actually the younger daughter of Henry, and her older sister Mary threw her in the tower to execute he. She didn't get executed, she was set free by some friends.

How did Jason get the Golden Fleece?

A centaur had a school for heroes. Jason went to that school and made friends with the heroes.

He was helped by another one of the heroes who could charm any living thing with his music. He had to go through a few monsters. The heroes built a ship with a talking bough, a tree branch, actually. They rolled into the water on logs. The hero with magic harp had to charm it to sail.

Two of the heroes flew off, they went to catch two demons or something, and they didn't come back.

He was helped by a maiden. She was a witch and she gave him some herbs and helped him by protecting him. He killed a thousand soldiers with the help of the witch. The soldiers came up from out of the ground and he fought them all. He had such a good sword, that he was able to kill them. It was his sword. And then he stole the golden fleece.

Year 5 Student

Was Victoria a good queen? Give some examples.

Yes, she was a good queen--one, she was nice--I think she looked more at what the people wanted more than what she wanted. It was about the time of Abraham Lincoln which would have been about 18-something, about the time of the civil war. She didn't try to do anything that she shouldn't. There was not any war going on at the time so there wasn't a chance to do anything great. It was her husband who really ruled at the time. He got together a few of the countries and made a big exhibit in England and he had an outdoor/indoor museum for a few weeks and he basically let the different countries of the world come and look at this exhibit and I think what he was trying to do was to get the different nations closer together. I don't remember if the exhibit had a name. I can't remember his name.

How can water and ice sculpt in nature?

Water, when it hits the ground, carries away earth, and at the base of the Alps, ice forms and it slides, creating rivers sometimes and as they melt, the water runs to the nearest river. It sculpts by changing the earth, by bringing particles with it. As the river runs, it also takes part of the river bank with it, which in turn changes the earth, which is considered sculpting, I guess.

Year 9 Student

What were the Americans primarily fighting for in the Revolution?

Originally for the right to have a say in how they were governed. Parliament had little knowledge of the needs or feelings of the Americans, and treated them as subservient colonies. Britain taxed the colonies without their consent, hampered their trade, and quartered troops in their houses. The colonists’ wish to have their own legislature under the crown, in place of or equal (in the colonies) to the British Parliament, struck Parliament as rebellious. The position of Governor (the executive branch of government in the colonies) was a royal appointment, and while some governors sympathized with the Americans, they were basically mediators and had no power to change the instructions sent from Parliament.

Later, of course, the Americans fought for complete independence from Britain. Not from its law (John Adams felt that English Law, founded on the moral law, was the basis of American civilization); but from its government and its government’s mistreatment of the colonies. They fought for the right to govern themselves.

What is a Liberal, what is a Conservative, and what is a Libertarian?

Liberals in general think that the power of government should be used to control economics, and therefore promote higher taxes, equal distribution of money, and programs like Welfare. They think that vice is for the most part a personal matter that should not be controlled by the government, and therefore don’t believe in gun laws and promote “free speech” to a fault.

Conservatives in general are lenient (liberal in the common sense of the word) in economics, and therefore promote free trade, capitalism, and big business. They believe that government should control crime and even sin, and therefore promote things like Prohibition and laws against profanity and drugs.

Libertarians believe that, because government is in all forms an evil, it should be kept to a minimum: the less power the government has the better. Taxation, the government taking money from the people, should be kept to a minimum. Laws against torte may be necessary, but laws against sin are intrusive. The less the government meddles with economics the better.

Exam Questions

We're doing AO exams this week. I'm no expert, and when I see the exam questions that Charlotte Mason's students were given in her books, I feel very inadequate. But, for what it's worth, here's what we're doing. I wrote out ten questions for each student while looking over their list of books they read this year. They'll do just two questions a day. I'm taking dictation with the younger two, and Tim is typing in his own into the computer.

These are the questions:

AO Year 3
1. Tell about Queen Elizabeth's reign
2. What is the Union Jack, and how did it come about?
3. Why was Pocahontas friendly with the settlers?
4. Trace Minn's journey on a map.
5. Tell about how otters live.
6. What invention do you think most changed the world? What can you tell about how it came about?
7. Tell about a tall tale
8. How did Jason get the Golden Fleece?
9. Tell about what life was like for a woodsman during the exile of Charles II.
10. Tell why Timoleon was heroic, OR tell why Othello wasn't.

AO Year 5
1. Was Victoria a good queen? Give some examples.
2. Why was the Civil War fought?
3. Tell about one event in modern history (from the 20th Century book)
4. Trace Lewis and Clark's route on a map.
5. What attributes made Teddy Roosevelt heroic?
6. Complete Book of Marvels - tell about your favorite place he visited.
7. How did Lobo the wolf die?
8. How can water and ice sculpt in nature?
9. Tell a little bit about the caste system of India's society OR child labor in Dickens' London
10. What led Othello to kill his own wife? OR What made Timoleon a successful leader?

AO Year 9
1. What were the Americans primarily fighting for in the Revolution?
2. What was important to the Founding Fathers in setting up their own government?
3. Tell about the doctrine of predestination.
4. What were some of Gearge Washington's strengths?
5. Briefly trace the events of Ben Franklin's OR Napoleon's life
6. Trace Richard Halliburton's travels in Europe
7. What are the four loves?
8. What is a liberal? What is a conservative? What is a libertarian?
9. What were some of the similarities and differences between the French and American Revolutions?
10. How did Othello end up killing his own wife?

I'll add some answers later. I don't know that I'll post all of them. But I'll post something.

Last Week of School

We're in our last week of school. Then we'll do a week of exams, open-ended essay questons that I'll make up based on the books the boys read during the term. I'll post some of the results of that here next week. Tim is in ninth grade so this is the first year we deal with high school grades and credits. I spent a couple of nights researching online, pretty freaked out about it. But I got some information and read this and then Tim and I went over the credits he'll need and divided them up between the four years, and I think we'll do fine. In September, he'll be starting a program at our local co-op in Creative Writing. He's looking forward to that, it was the subject he wanted. It will be good for him to have the experience of listening to a normal teacher lecture, and meeting the requirements of someone besides his mom.

Book Tag!

I got tagged, I got tagged!! I was tagged by The Common Room to answer this question posted on another blog:

New book tag:
Imagine that a local philanthropist is hosting an event for local high school students and has asked you to pick out five to ten books to hand out as door prizes. At least one book should be funny and at least one book should provide some history of Western Civilization and at least one book should have some regional connection. The philanthropist doesn't like foul language (but will allow some four-letter words in context, such as expressed during battle by soldiers). Otherwise things are pretty wide open. What do you pick?

Hmmm, this won't be so easy. I'm really not as well-read as everyone else I know doing this. In fact, in the 'how many books do you own?' contest, I have only a third of the so-far-winner's 6000.

Funny book
--Tremendous Trifles, a collection of essays by GK Chesterton
--A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain

some history of Western Civilization - I'd take a leap and presume that many high-schoolers are as clueless about history as I am and would like something accessible and enjoyable, but not insultingly easy.
--Lives by Hendrick Van Loon, since history is always more interesting when read via biographies
--The Story of Mankind by Hendrick Van Loon

some regional connection
--Walden by Henry David Thoreau
--Hawaii's Story by Hawaii's Queen, Lili'uokalani

I'll also give:
--America's Favorite Poems by Pinsky and Dietz since everyone wants to appreciate poetry, and most of us could use some friendly help
--The Royal Road to Romance by Richard Halliburton, a fun, fun travel book
--Families Where Grace is in Place by Jeff VanVonderen to enhance anyone's family relationships no matter what their role in the family
--Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis, which everyone should read at least once

--Eating in the Raw by Carol Alt - okay, maybe this would end up being a consolation prize, or a booby prize. But, in the event that someone was interested in a really healthy, healing diet, this is an accessible, non-extreme introduction to a raw diet.

And now I'm tagging Camille, BetsyPage, Lighthouse Academy, and Homeschooling4Jesus.