Week 2- First Physical Class

Hello Students and Family,
What a rewarding start of our year. Thank you all for your participation. This year is looking to be a great one, where we all will get to learn and grow together.

One large item we addressed this week was the presentation schedule. Below it is listed per student.

Zachary - 

• Week 3: French & Indian War
• Week 13: Role of spies in the Revolution

 
Eliana -

• Week 6: Lexington & Concord
• Week 11: Minutemen & the Militia 

 
Tillie -

• Week 5: Boston Tea Party & Sons of Liberty
• Week 13: Fashion of Colonial Days

 
Ethan -

• Week 7: Life as a Soldier in the Continental Army
• Week 10: Role of the Navy in the Revolutionary War

 
Micah -

• Week 8: Life as a Prisoner & Prisons
• Week 10: Weaponry of the Revolutionary War & Battle Tactics of the Time

 
Hannah -

• Week 4: Boston Massacre
• Week 9: Educational Background of the Founders

 
Gabe -

• Week 7: Hospitals & Doctors in the war
• Week 8: Francis Marion, the Swamp Fox

 
Emma - 

• Week 9: Betsy Ross & the first flag
• Week 12: Famous Women of the war

 
Zane -

• Week 3: Life as a Puritan/Salem witch trials
• Week 4: King George III

 
Isaac-

• Week 5: Acts of Parliament and the King
• Week 11: Roles of Tories, Loyalists, Hessians and Red Coats in the war

YOU are HIGHLY encouraged to not PROCRASTINATE on the creation of your presentations. Remember you are able to use all means for your presentation. If you would like to just make a poster, by all means. If you are inspired to bring a related treat for the class, again by all means. You hold the key to present your topics by the means you feel necessary. Get creative! Have Fun!  And DO NOT PROCRASTINATE! 

This week you have your first opinion paper this week. The topic is: What is your responsibility to America and Freedom? 

Remember to write this opinion paper based on your skill set. If your family has an academic standard for you personally, you are highly encourage to reach that as well. We want to hear your own personal thoughts and ideas in your opinion papers and we are also here to encourage your growth in writing. 

Mrs. Hellyer did a wonderful job giving us some helpful tips for taking notes while we have our lectures happening. Do not forget to look over the sheet when taking notes to help you in your note taking journey. She also jumped us off to a great start with our class lectures, this week she focused on: America Being Our Land. This led to a great discussion within the class. I did find one piece to hold the most value in my heart personally and that was of her discussing John Adams and his sacrifices. Below is the video (from the HBO's John Adams) of one of my favorite quotes from him. Thank you Mrs. Hellyer for the awesome Lecture Kick off. 

This week PLEASE arrive on time and prepared for class. We have a simulation! This simulation requires your participation but the reward is your KEY! I am looking forward to this week, it should be much fun and so informational. 

If anyone has any questions or concerns, remember you can always reach us. 

Thank you,

Teacher Amber & Teacher Carrie

KOL- First Class 2015

Hello Key of Liberty Parents and Students:

The count down is on, this week is our week! Class is Thursday! Are you excited? I know Teacher Carrie and I both are.

You should have received your binder, if you haven't already take a glance at it. Explore what is to come this year in Key of Liberty. If you find you have any questions be sure to write them down so you can ask during class.

Remember this week we have the following happening so be prepared:

-Signing up for Presentations
-Book Discussion for Red Scarf Girl by Ji-li Jiang

We will also hopefully have some time towards the end of class to start passing off anyone who is ready to start working on those Award Requirements!

Looking forward to class on Thursday. Please be on time and do your best to be as prepared as possible for class!

Thank you,
Teacher Amber & Teacher Carrie

Capitol Trip

I know...just when you thought you were done receiving these blog posts...ONE MORE! The upside is, NO ASSIGNMENTS!

We had an exciting trip to the Capitol, and learned quite a bit about how the legislative process works here in Washington State.

We even got to meet with a real live, flesh-and-blood, career lobbyist! That was sort of exciting/crazy/weird, huh? The Supreme Court Trial Simulation had to be the best, though, don't you agree? It was really interesting to learn about the Loomis case, find out how the judges decided, and see how our own court ruled.

I hope you enjoyed yourselves, as I know the TriCities group, LETRS, had a blast and were singing in revelry all the way home!

Enjoy these few pics from the day!

-Teacher Kelly

5/7 Class Update

Class was great yesterday!

Archie's presentation on the Currency Act was very enlightening. It was interesting to consider how the financial policy of one political entity can affect global trade and value of various commodities. Also, merchants get angry if they feel cheated!

I LOVED THE LAW! It was amazing. Best essay I have ever read...bar none.

Here is a YouTube video that sums it up:

Bastiat was ALL COMMON sense! Well...maybe not common sense, but RIGHT THINKING, for sure. I was so glad we got to discuss the implications of his political theory...and he was amazingly brave to refute the social justice and political ideologies of philosophers in his day. His essay was compelling.  I urge you all to read it again; just to let it really sink in and take hold. It will help guide you when you get to vote in not a few years!

If you like him and what he has to say, read another great work by him (below):

http://bastiat.org/en/twisatwins.html

We had a brief lecture on the necessity that a free people in a republic be virtuous and moral.

You can look around our country today and see for yourself. There are not many individuals that are truly free, educated, and independent that are not morally grounded. Our republic will only be prosperous and shelter a truly free people, if that people align themselves with what is good, right, and true.

ASSIGNMENTS for next week:

**FINISH all of your requirements for Key! Due date is next Thursday, midnight.....(spooky?)

*Practice for the Constitution Bowl

*Constitution Journal: Complete

*Washington’s Farewell Address and Vocab: Complete

*Opinion Paper – Is it an unalienable right to intoxicate oneself? Does the Government have the power                     to take away our unalienable rights? Explain.

*Prepare for quiz on Amendments – next week – last day of class (see your binder).

All right....have at it.  Email or call me with any questions, especially if you are unclear about what you have left to accomplish. We went over what assignments each of you are missing in class yesterday. But you or your parents are welcome to call and email to review that information again.

Have a great weekend, and GOOD LUCK on the PLAY!

-Teacher Kelly

4/30 Class Update

Sorry I missed a blog post last week guys. CRAZY busy with birthday season at our house!

We had a great class...an AWESOME presentation by Hannah. She could have taught the whole 2 hours with the amount of interesting info she gleaned on fashion during the colonial times! THANKS Hannah!

It was AMAZING and fascinating to learn! And aren't you boys glad that you aren't dressed in dresses as toddlers nowadays? Those poor colonials....  :)

We had a great discussion re: cruel and unusual punishments. It is fascinating to learn that there is no universal definition for the term, and that the courts have a lot of power in deciding how to apply it.

We practiced questions from the upcoming Constitution Bowl, and good thing too, because we just BARELY WON the practice bowl against those SMART Freedom Project ladies! That was so much fun! A big thanks to Teacher Genne and Teacher Betty for participating in and facilitating the event. We had a FANTASTIC time, and I think we know better WHERE WE NEED TO STUDY to prepare.

:)

Study to prepare. Did I mention, we should study more?

Kaleigh made a flashcard set you online, with which you can practice the questions for the bowl. AWESOME Kaleigh! Thank you! Check out the link below (after you've perused your assignments)!

http://www.flashcardmachine.com/3227454/3rk9 

Assignments:

**Finish "The Law" - book discussion next week
**Opinion Paper - "Should a murderer (criminal) die in the way he killed a person?"
**Finish your Constitution Journals
**Finish your George Washington Farewell address reading and vocabulary
**STUDY for the CONSTITUTION BOWL!

And ARCHIE - get your presentation ready! You present next week! Call or email me with any questions.


I know you all have a lot going on, especially with Shakespeare.

I really appreciate how much you are willing to spend time studying our class material. It is SO VITALLY important to the continued freedom in our country, for you, and for your future families. Every minute studying is worth it.

Keep up the outstanding work!

-Teacher Kelly

4/16 Class Update

Hey guys-

Missed you today! I heard Teacher BETTY rocked class though. :)

David and Adam gave killer presentations, showing off how much they learned about the Sons of Liberty and the Minutemen and Militia of the Revolutionary Times.

NICELY done young men!

Hannah - you're up next week, so get ready!

After round 2 of the Constitution Quiz, and some Constitution Bowl questioning, we see that we have still a good amount of work/study yet to do.  And yet some of you have already been putting your feet to the fire...working very hard to be prepared to help our team at the Bowl. THANK YOU to all of you who are SERIOUSLY working to understand this great document!

As for assignments, check this out:

1 -  For Hannah...finish up your presentation
2 - For all y'all....see this and below:  Constitution Journal - through Amendment 10
3 - Opinion Paper - Discuss why you think Free Speech is important
4 - Read THE LAW
5 - STUDY for the CONSTITUTION BOWL!

 Check out the link below...some study aids created by Carolyn Marriott (former member of our co-op)  https://quizlet.com/78563483/the-articles-flash-cards/original. IT IS AWESOME!

All right....that's it. I have got to get to bed. And I know what you're thinking..."I've got to hit the books!"

So, I'll let you at it.

Bonsoir!

4/9 Class Update

It was great to see everyone today!

We had a quiz on the Constitution - and it was a bit of a wake up call. That quiz took most of the class period, and most of us found we needed much better preparation and study. Wowser....

Well, WE'D all better STUDY! We'll have the practice Constitution bowl NEXT WEEK!

So, please study your Constitution Bowl Question Packet - includes the 92 questions in 3 separate sections.

We had a great discussion about items in the news of late, especially regarding standardized testing and the pros and cons involved.

We will have a debate about this next week, so PLEASE do your own research on this topic. GOOGLE it. :-)

What else.....that's really it. We had a lot more planned for class, but ran out of time. So we'll try to squeeze it in next week.

This Week's Assignment Recap:

1 - Read "The Law"
2 - Work on your presentations
3 - Complete Constitution Journal up through Amendment 4
4 - Opinion Paper – What Would Life Be Like Without the Constitution
5 - Read about and prepare for next week's debate topic “Standardized Testing…good or bad?”
6 - Read about and prepare to tell me about the process of ratification the several states went through - include dates / as well as why the Constitution must be the Supreme Law of the Land               

It looks like a lot, I know. But if you do one thing per day (including today), you will be all ready and prepped for next week!

You can do this.

But don't do it for me.

Don't do it for your parents.

Do it for yourself. Preserving your freedom is of the UTMOST importance. And what we study is the KEY to just that.

Cheers!

Teacher Kelly