Posted on 05/05/2006 7:39:17 AM PDT by zerosix
American Minute with Bill Federer, May 4
Selling a million copies a year for over 100 years, McGuffey's Readers were the mainstay of public education in America.
Generations of school children read them, making them some of the most influential books of all time.
They were written by William McGuffey, who died May 4, 1873. A professor at the University of Virginia and president of Ohio University, he began one of nation's first teachers' associations.
In the foreword of McGuffey's Reader, 1836, he wrote:
"The Christian religion is the religion of our country. From it are derived our prevalent notions of the character of God, the great moral governor of the universe. On its doctrines are founded the peculiarities of our free institutions."
In McGuffey's 5th Eclectic Reader, 1879, is a lesson by William Ellery Channing, Religion The Only Basis of Society:
"How powerless conscience would become without the belief of a God...
Erase all thought and fear of God from a community, and selfishness and sensuality would absorb the whole man. Appetite, knowing no restraint...would trample in scorn on the restraints of human laws...
Man would become...what the theory of atheism declares him to be-a companion for brutes."
Now they rely on "phoniks, self-esteem, writin in jornals, an such for edukashon."
How much better society is with children learning about oral sex, condom use, "Heather has Two Mommies", all flags are equal and plotting to kill their fellow students, teachers, principals, etc. to celebrate Adolph Hitler's Birthday.
Are these the Dick and Jane books?
No, the "Dick and Jane" books came later but still worked at getting kids to read (in First Grade, I might add.)
Yes, do check these out. Very interesting. Not for the faint of heart :-)
[/SARCASM]
I love to point out to my Lib friends that none of the founders, not even "Saint" Thomas Jefferson, ever said a single world against teaching kids to read by using the Holy Scriptures. You would think that since they were SOOOOOO concerned about that "Wall of Separation" that somebody would have complained.
The answer is, of course, it is only 20th Century Libs who have the problem with God...
So when we brag about "Being the first generation to graduate college" many of our grandparents with only an Eighth Grade education were better educated than we are.
We love the McGuffey Readers in our home!
These readers are used as part of *our* school along with other books from that era (Practical Arithmetics, Harvey's Grammar etc...)
Check out Mott Media for mote info...
Okay...check out this test...
Can our 8th graders pass this one today???
This an actual 1895 test from a school in Selina, Kansas.
Grammar (Time, 1 hr)
1. Give nine rules of the usage of capital letters.
2. Name the parts of speech and define those that have no modifications.
3. Define verse, stanza, and paragraph.
4. What are the principal parts of a verb? Give principal parts of the words "lie", "play", and "run".
5. Define "case"; Illustrate each case.
6. What is punctuation? Give rules for the principal parts of punctuation.
7-10. Write a composition of about 150 words and show therein that you understand the practical uses of the rules of grammar.
Arithmetic (Time, 1:25 hrs)
1. Name and define the fundamental rules of arithmetic.
2. A wagon box is 2 ft. deep, 10 ft. long, and 3 ft. wide. How many bushels of wheat will it hold?
3. If a load of wheat weighs 3942 pounds, what is its worth at 50 cents/bushel, deducting 1050 pounds for tare?
4. District No. 33 has a valuation of $35,000. What is the necessary levy to carry on a school seven months, and have $194 for incidentals?
5. Find the cost of 6720 pounds of coal at $6.00 per ton.
6. Find the interest of $512.60 for 8 months and 18 days at 7 percent.
7. What is the cost of 40 boards 12 inches wide and 16 ft. long at $20 per metre?
8. Find bank discount on $300 for 90 days (no grace) at 10 percent.
9. What is the cost of a square farm at $15 per acre, the distance of which is 640 rods?
10. Write a bank check, a promissory note, and a receipt.
U.S. History (Time: 45 minutes)
1. Give the epochs into which U.S. history is divided.
2. Give an account of the discovery of America by Columbus.
3. Relate the causes and results of the Revolutionary War.
4. Show the territorial growth of the United States.
5. Tell what you can of the history of Kansas.
6. Describe three of the most prominent battles of the Rebellion.
7. Who were the following: Morse, Whitney, Fulton, Bell, Lincoln, Penn, and Howe?
8. Name events connected with the following dates: 1607, 1620, 1800, 1849, 1865.
Orthography (Time: 1 hr) [How many of us even know what that is??]
1. What is meant by the following: Alphabet, phonetic, orthography, etymology, syllabication.
2. What are elementary sounds? How are they classified?
3. What are the following, and give examples of each: Trigraph, subvocals, diphthong, cognate letters, linguals
4. Give four substitutes for caret "u".
5. Give two rules for spelling words ending with a silent "e". Name two exceptions under each rule.
6. Give two uses of silent letters in spelling. Illustrate each.
7. Define the following prefixes and use in connection with a word: bi, dis, mis, pre, semi, post, non, inter, mono, sup.
8. Mark diacritically and divide into syllables the following, and name the sign that indicates the sound: car, ball, mercy, sir, odd, cell, rise, blood, fare, last.
9. Use the following correctly in sentances: cite, site, sight, fan, feign, fain, van, vain, vein, raze, rays, raise.
10. Write 10 words frequently mispronouced and indicate pronounciation by use of diacritical marks and by syllabication.
Geography (Time: 1 hr)
1. What is climate? Upon what does climate depend?
2. How do you account for the extremes of climate in Kansas?
3. Of what use are rivers? Of what use is the ocean?
4. Describe the mountains of North America.
5. Name and describe the following: Morovia, Odessa, Denver, Manitoba, Hecla, Yukon, St. Helena, Juan Fernandez, Aspinwall, and Ornioco.
6. Name and locate the principal trade centers in the U.S.
7. Name all the republics of Europe and give the captial of each.
8. Why is the Atlantic coast colder than the Pacific coast at the same latitude?
9. Describe the process by which the water of the ocean returns to the sources of rivers.
10. Describe the movements of the earth. Give the inclination of the earth.
Note that this test took 5 hours to complete and was required to graduation the 8th grade!!
That's the one!!!
1. Teachers each day will fill lamps, clean chimneys.
2. Each teacher will bring a bucket of water and a scuttle of coal for the day's session.
3. Make your pens carefully. You may whittle nibs to the individual taste of the pupils.
4. Men teachers may take one evening each week for courting purposes, or two evenings a week if they go to church regularly.
5. After ten hours in school, the teachers may spend the remaining time reading the Bible or other good books.
6. Women teachers who marry or engage in unseemly conduct will be dismissed.
7. Every teacher should lay aside from each pay a goodly sum of his earnings for his benefit during his declining years so that he will not become a burden on society.
8. Any teacher who smokes, uses liquor in any form, frequents pool or public halls, or gets shaved in a barber shop will give good reason to suspect his worth, intention, integrity and honesty.
9. The teacher who performs his labor faithfully and without fault for five years will be given an increase of twenty-five cents per week in his pay, providing the Board of Education approves
ping
What a hoot! Never saw that one before...looks like I need to save that as well!
Thanks!
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