U.S Heritage Award

U.S Heritage Award

Our kids can not only earn their keys and ribbons for completing assignments in our Key of Liberty class but they can also receive the U.S Heritage Award medal for completing the requirements below. We worked on some of them today by playing "U.S History Bowl" which made it fun.

REQUIREMENTS: To earn the United States Heritage Award you must: 1. Tell when the Declaration of Independence was adopted. 2. Tell when the Constitution of the United States was signed. 3. Know the first two verses of the national anthem “The Star Spangled Banner.”     Tell who wrote it and when. 4. Know the Pledge of Allegiance. Explain what it means. 5. The United States Flag:     a. Tell what the thirteen stripes represent. Please list all thirteen.     b. From 1795 to 1818 there was something different about the US Flag.         Find out what it was and why it was changed.     c. Explain three proper ways of displaying the United States flag.     d. Tell how you show respect for the United States flag. 6. Do one of the following:     a. Find out what the parts of the flag are called. Draw a picture         showing the following: • Canton • Flag Staff • Fly •Grommet • Field (or     Ground) • Peak • Fly End • Union • Hoist • Truck • Finial • Halyard     b. Write a short story or poem about one of the following topics :         Why America Is Special To Me,         What It Means to Be An American,                   What It Means To Be Free, If I Were President. 7. Make a list of the 50 states of the United States of America. 8. Name the current President, Vice-President, and the Speaker of the House. 9. Name the two Senators for your state and the representative for your     congressional district. 10. Render a service that benefits a neighborhood or community.

     Can you believe a 14 year old girl wrote a book explaining each Article and Section of the Constitution in her own words?  Meet Juliette Turner at http://www.constitutingamerica.org/. Read her book  Our Constitution Rocks!

     We will be making a video in which our class will get a chance to recite parts of the Declaration they've memorized.  We divided the kids into groups and each group chose two injuries of King George listed in the Declaration that they will act out for the video.  We will then send the video to http://www.constitutingamerica.org/ to introduce our amazing class!  

Homework:

1.  John Adams colloquium postponed until November 1st.
2. Opinion paper: What is more important, your family or your country?

Presentation: Kaylee

Devotional: Timothy

A Declaration

John Adams

When attending Harvard as a young man John Adams often felt discouraged.

    . "I feel my own ignorance.  I feel concern for knowledge.  I have a strong desire for distinction...I never shall shine, 'til some animating occasion calls forth all my powers."  

Could he be searching for his life's mission? Perhaps the spirit of God is nudging his heart in preparation for "some animating occasion"? In the Doctrine and Covenants section 101 one can see that the Lord was clearly involved:

"...I established the Constitution of this land, by the hands of wise men whom I raised up..."

John Adams defended the British soldiers involved in the Boston Massacre.  "It's of more importance to community, that innocence should be protected, than it is , that guilt should be punished."

His mission first began to unfold as a lawyer with the intent to use "...all [my] knowledge, well digested and ready at command, to assist the feeble and friendless, to discountenance the haughty and lawless, to procure redress to wrongs, the advancement of right, to assert and maintain liberty and virtue, to discourage and abolish tyranny and vice."

John Adam's mission expanded to include a passion to fight for the independence of America from Great Britain

He would give the most powerful and important speech in Congress to persuade the delegates to vote for independence. Although no notes were kept of the meeting Monday July 1, 1776, John Adams would recollect :

"[I was] carried out in spirit, as enthusiastic preachers sometimes express themselves."

Thomas Jefferson would record that he spoke,  "with a power of thought and expression that moved us from our seats." 

 Richard Stockton praised him as, " the man to whom the country is most indebted for the great measure of independency...He it was who sustained the debate, and by the force of his reasoning demonstrated not only the justice, but the expediency of the measure."

When one does not fulfill their mission humanity suffers.

What is your mission?  How can you prepare?

Homework:

1. Book Colloquium is this Thursday Oct. 25th. 
2. Memorize, memorize, memorize!!
3. You can enter the We the people contest by writing a song or essay.  The official rules for 2013 entries will be posted November 1st!

Devotional: Lilly

Presentation: Kaylee 

Revolution

     "But what do we mean by the American Revolution? Do we mean the American war? The Revolution was effected before the war commenced.  The Revolution was in the minds and hearts of the people."

                                                                               ~John Adams

Battle of Lexington and Concord

Can you find at least two other sources that support or add to the facts in this documentary?

Midnight Ride of Paul Revere, 

by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

  

There are several myths about Paul Revere's Ride worth exploring.  

Under People's Law, government is kept under control of the people. Power is maintained in the balanced center with enough government to maintain security, justice and good order but not enough government to abuse the people.

"Under Ruler’s Law, problems are always solved by issuing more edicts or laws, setting up more bureaus, harassing the people with more regulators, and charging the people for these “services” by continually adding to their burden of taxes.”

5000 Year Leap, W. Cleon Skousen

Homework: 

1. Opinion paper:  Define the word stubborn. Is it good to be stubborn?
2. Continue reading: John Adams the Reluctant Patriot of the Revolution (Colloquium 10/25)
3. Memorize Declaration of Independence

Presentation: Jeremy

Devotional: Tyler

Unalienable Rights

What are your God-Given Rights?

Unalienable Rights

The right of self government

The right to bear arms for self-defense

The right to own, develop, and dispose of property

 The right to make personal choices.

The right of free conscience

The right to choose a profession

The right to choose a mate

The right to beget one's own kind

The right to assemble

The right to petition

The right to free speech

The right to a free press

The right to enjoy the fruits of one's labors

The right to improve one's position through barter and sale

The right to contrive and invent

The right to explore the natural resources of the earth

The right to privacy

The right to provide personal security

The right to provide nature's necessities-air, food, water, clothing, and shelter

The right to a fair trial

The right of free association

The right to contract

                                                                                      W. Cleon Skousen,   The  5000 Year Leap

Is Liberty possible without the exercise of conscience?

• Conscience is a person's "internal monitor" that dictates when a person has infringed on another person's inalienable rights

     Several families were invited to a party at a farm. There was a beautiful play area on the farm with a jungle gym, basket ball hoop and volley ball net.  Despite the variety of activities available, several children thought it would be more exciting to play in the nearby orchard. While playing in the orchard the children damaged the sprinkler system. As a result the farmer had to repair the sprinklers with his own time and expense.  The children’s pursuit of happiness infringed on the farmers “inalienable rights.” The next time the families came to the farm, strict rules were made and enforced to constrain the families in one area with the orchard totally off limits.  Since the boundary was not controlled by conscience, it had to be controlled by an external force.  Joseph Andrews, A Guide for Learning and Teaching The Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution

"Conscience is the most sacred of all property." James Madison

Homework: 

1. Read John Adams the Reluctant Patriot of the Revolution, by Leonard Falkner (Colloquium 10/25)
2. Opinion Essay:  When is it right to defend your Liberty with guns?
3. Continue memorizing the Declaration of Independence. You can register free to make a test here.