Week 13

This week we discussed the rights of the people as defined in the 6th, 7th and 8th Amendments. The basic rights are: no excessive bails or fines, fair and timely access to the courts, legal defense and trial by a jury of one's peers, and no cruel and/or unusual punishments for crimes. Although it might be our natural impulse to want to punish criminals severely, our founders had the divinely-inspired wisdom and compassion to ensure that even the least among us had basic rights given to them by God, and above all, that they deserve to have the same opportunities to defend themselves and repent of their ways.

PRESENTATIONS: We will be pleased to hear presentations given by Lucy and Reina.

OPINION PAPER: Should a murderer be sentenced to die by the same means as his victim?**Also, if you haven't turned in all your opinion papers, make sure you do so by May 11th if you want to receive your ribbon!

READING: We will be discussing The Proper Role of Government by Ezra Taft Benson next week, May 4th. I would like to assign Dean to lead the discussion.

DEVOTIONAL: Assigned to Paige

NEWS: Your homework is to come to class with one story that is relevant to what we are learning in class. There's a lot going on, so this should be super easy!

AWARD REQUIREMENTS: Get 'em done! You have only 2 weeks left--May 11th is the last day to pass them off! Please take time on Thursday to check your keys and ribbons and make sure you have everything you earned, so I don't have to try to track all of this down outside of class.

I think Reina borrowed A More Perfect Union, so please be sure to bring it back as soon as possible so the next scholar in line can borrow it!

Have a fabulous weekend, and I'll see you when I get back from The Golden Triangle (and if you can tell me what that is, I might have a prize for you)! -Mrs. Hellyer

Week 11

Super job to all of you in the Constitution Bowl! Mrs. Brennan and I, and your parents are all so proud of you for all the hard work you put in to learning about the Constitution! Think back to September and how little you knew about the founding of our country and see how much you've learned over the past 7 months. You all are becoming great scholars!

Due to the field trip this week, we've had to bump the class schedule down a week. We won't be doing any Hero presentations this week, so the new presentation schedule will be as follows:

• 4/27 - Ethan & Leila
• 5/4 - Lucy & Reina
• 5/11 - Taylor & Paige (and Dean, fingers crossed!)

Please be sure to get your Hero Report turned in if you haven't yet!!!!

Also, we will have another debate on 4/27. The topic will be: Should a business have the right to refuse service to anyone for any reason? We will draw sides in class on Thursday.

Assignments this week are:

OPINION PAPER - According to the first Amendment, does a person have the right to go to a public park and swear around children?

CONSTITUTION JOURNAL - Finish so you can go on the field trip! I really hope you all can go on this outing; it's going to be a great time! Let me know before Thursday if you've completed it: so far, I know that Lucy, Leila, and Paige are done and have earned the field trip reward!

***Now that the Constitution Bowl is behind us, please focus on getting your award requirements competed and passed off. We're running out of time, and I know you'll want to proudly display your keys brimming with ribbons. (Also, I would like you all to make sure you have all the ribbons that you have earned, because some of them have fallen off and/or been misplaced.)

Press forward, scholars, and I hope to take you all out to the museum and ice cream on Thursday!
-Mrs. Hellyer

Week 10

I hope you all had a fun spring break! Mine was super busy and I could definitely use another week off, but that's the life of a parent! Anyhoo, this week you have a few assignments due, so here they are:

HERO REPORTS: please turn them in this Thursday, April 13th. If you need a reminder about the guidelines, please see last week's blog post. Presentations will begin April 20th, and the schedule is as follows:

• 4/20 - Ethan & Leila
• 4/27 - Lucy & Reina
• 5/4 - Taylor & Paige
• 5/11 - Dean?

CONSTITUTION JOURNAL: Amendments 24-27. Please have your journals completed by 4/20 if you want to go on the field trip. I haven't decided on a date for the field trip, but it may have to be 4/20, so I'll let you know as soon as I get in contact with the museum.

OPINION PAPER: What would life be like without the Constitution? We read a book about this--Freedom Factor--so I think you all can FILL THE PAGE with some pretty creative ideas and opinions!

DEVOTIONAL: Leila's turn!

The Constitution Bowl is this Thursday evening, 6:00-8:00pm at Bethlehem Lutheran Church. Please dress up (that means no jeans, t-shirts, hoodies, tennis shoes, etc.)! Also, this will be a potluck dinner, so please bring a dish to share. If you or your parents have any questions, please email me.

Study hard, and I'll see you Thursday! -Mrs. Hellyer

Week 9

Last week we discussed the amending process of the Constitution--Article 5. There are 2 ways...1) the Congressional, 2/3 vote in each house, then on to the states for ratification by 3/4 of the state legislatures way, or 2) the convention of states way. Study your notes and get these processes locked in to your gray matter, because there will be questions about this in the Constitution Bowl, guaranteed! Please take some time to check out the website below to find out more about the convention of states project, too. If this project succeeds, this will be he first time in our nation's history that we will have ever done this, and you could be a part of it! That is AWESOME! What a great story to be able to tell your posterity!

https://www.conventionofstates.com/

 

Thanks to everyone who participated in the air soft battle on Friday. Tons of fun was had by all, and you're all invited to participate again next year! Mrs. Poyer and Mrs. Schmieder took lots of pictures to be used for black mail! JK!







 

• For Devotional this week, I'd like to assign Taylor. Also, keep those news stories coming; there's lots going on that you should be paying attention to! 

• OPINION PAPER: If you were to make an amendment to the Constitution, what would it be? Remember to FILL the page with your interesting ideas (NOT with size 30 font!). 

• CONSTITUTION JOURNAL: Amendments 18 - 23

• HERO REPORT: These are due April 13th, the same day as the Constitution Bowl, sorry! They should be 2 to 4 pages long, typed or hand-written (in pen), but they need to be proof-read and edited. Pages need to be numbered and you must include a title page a bibliography with at least 2 sources (1 source is fine if you are conducting live interviews). For more information on how to format a bibliography, please see this link: http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project_mla_format_examples.shtml

• AWARD REQUIREMENTS: You're going to want to get these done before tech week in Shakespeare class! You should all be able to pass off the preamble to the Constitution, and maybe even a scripture or two. Also, since we don't have a book discussion for a while, this would be a good time to work on George Washington's Farewell Address and vocabulary.

• READING: Our next book discussion will be on The Proper Role of Government by Ezra Taft Benson on May 4th. I would like Reina to lead this discussion. I recommend that you print the article from your computer (it's only about 14 pages) so you can highlight, make notes, and bring it to class with you for discussion. Here is the link for the article: http://www.latterdayconservative.com/ezra-taft-benson/the-proper-role-of-government/

And last, but never least...

 

STUDY FOR THE CONSTITUTION BOWL! 

 



Week 8

Here is the video Mrs. Brennan was trying to show in class on Thursday:

 

 

I'm sorry to disappoint you all, but my post is going to be short and sweet this week. Here's what's going on...

 

• NO OPINION PAPER this week! YAY!
• CONSTITUTION JOURNAL - Amendments 11-17
• READING - Finish The Great Little Madison for our book discussion this Thursday. Ethan will be leading us, and I will bring the refreshments for those who finish the book!
• CONSTITUTION BOWL: STUDY, STUDY, STUDY!

 

Don't forget about the Air Soft Battle this Friday! Be there or be square! (Details will be in an email and/or on previous blog posts.)

 

 



Week 7

The Judicial Branch! So many interesting things to learn, so little time! We discussed the powers of the judicial branch, as well as its jurisdiction (the areas of law the courts have authority over, like state vs. state disputes, foreign diplomats' legal issues, maritime crimes, and more.) We also discussed the Marbury v. Madison decision which established Judicial Review, or the power to rule any law unconstitutional. I encourage you all to read/study about other landmark court cases, because these often mark major turning points in our nation's history, define public policy for generations, and also show the progression of the court's usurpation of power that Thomas Jefferson was so afraid of. (Some examples are Brown v. Board of Education, Roe v. Wade, Plessy v. Ferguson, Dred Scott v. Sanford, etc.) Click on this link to read about many landmark cases: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/supremecourt/pop_landmark_cases/index.html

The video below is about Marbury v. Madison, for those who want to review:

 

ASSIGNMENTS:

 

 

OPINION PAPER: Have the Supreme Court rulings helped or hindered our nation? Explain. (For this one, you will probably want to familiarize yourself with some Supreme Court rulings--those listed above would be a great start--and cite them in your paper.) Remember to FILL THE PAGE with all your amazing insights!

 

DEBATE: Should the minority be allowed to win over the majority? Read your articles (and bring them back to class), do some internet searches, take some notes, and be prepared to argue!

 

CONSTITUTION JOURNAL / BOWL STUDY: Amendments 1-10 (That's the whole Bill of Rights, folks). We really need to practice this week, so let's try to stay on task in class so we can have time at the end.

 

DEVOTIONAL: And the winner is...Reina!

 

NEWS: Keep those news stories coming! You guys brought a tear to my eye last week when you were discussing the John Deere tractor story...I'm so proud to see you all debating this stuff!

 

READING: Book discussion on The Great Little Madison will be next Thursday, March 23rd, and led by Ethan. There will be treats for those who finish the book!

 

****Check back to the Week 6 post for info about the air soft battle on March 24th.****

 

Signing off--Mrs. Hellyer

 

 

 

 

 

 



Week 6

Last Thursday was all about the powers of the Executive branch. I hope you all took good notes and are studying your Constitution so you can lock this stuff in to memory!

ASSIGNMENTS:

Opinion Paper: According to the Constitution, Congress has the power to declare war, but for the last 60 years, the President has declared war. Which branch in your opinion should have the power--Legislative or Executive?

Debate: Should the Supreme Court have the power to make laws/decisions on moral issues?
I didn't write down who was on which side, sorry; just make sure you do some internet searches to prepare your arguments, and also familiarize yourself with the opposing side so you can be ready for what they might throw at you!

Reading: Our next book discussion will be on March 23 (that's 17 days from today!) about The Great Little Madison by Jean Fritz. I would like Ethan to lead the discussion on this one.

Constitution Journal: Articles 5 - 7

Devotional: I think we're back to the beginning, which means it's Dean's turn again!

News: We had a great discussion last week on news topics! I'm so proud of you all for paying attention to what's happening in the world, and realizing that you can have your own opinions about current events. Keep up the good work, scholars!

Award Requirements: Don't forget to work on getting things passed off...we have only 9 classes left!

Hero Reports: Papers are due April 13th. Here's the list of presentations and their corresponding dates:

• April 20 - Ethan (Martin Luther King, Jr.) & Leila (Joan of Arc)
• April 27 - Lucy (Uncle Howard) & Reina (Eleanor Roosevelt)
• May 4 - Taylor (Ushta Mehta) & Paige (her grandfather)
• May 11 - Dean (still considering ;) )

UPCOMING EVENTS:

March 24th is the Annual Air Soft Battle with Sword of Freedom/Hero Project at 10:00 to 1:00 at my house in Graham. Ammo and snacks will be provided, but you will need to bring the following items:

• an air-soft (not bb) gun
• eye protection
• waterproof boots
• a sack lunch
• You may also want to bring an extra pair of socks and pants in case you get wet

This event is open to siblings who are 12 and up and any parents who want to participate as well. This will be an all outdoor event, so please no unattended small children!











April 13th is the Thomas Jefferson Birthday Celebration and Declaration of Independence reciting contest. I hope you all brush up on your Declaration and give it your best shot! Make us Key mentors proud!

That's all, I hope! See you Thursday! - Mrs. Hellyer