Wednesday, September 21, 2016

Victoria Woodhull ...

... was the first female candidate to run for President of the United States.  Ms. Woodhull was the nominee of the Equal Rights Party in 1872. 


What was the political platform of the Equal Rights Party in 1872?  Do you agree with the Equal Rights Party of 1872's platform?  Why do you agree or disagree?  What type of societal mores do you think contributed to the voter's acceptance or rejection of the Equal Rights Party of 1872's platform?


Who were the other presidential candidates in 1872, and which political parties did they represent?


Who won the presidential election of 1872?  The election of 1872 was filled with scandal and strife.  Please explain some of that scandal and strife.


If you were a voting citizen in 1872, who do you think you would have cast your presidential vote for and why?


We've been home educating our children since 2002.  Often folks ask, "How do you do that?"  The past three posts and today's post is a very small example of how home education often works. My questions in the last three posts just happen to be about U.S. election history.  But, the questions can be about anything - current events , both domestic and abroad, language arts, science, short term goals and long range dreams, ...  I personally think that once you've garnished a student's interest in a topic, asking the student "why they agree or disagree", "what caused a certain outcome",  "how something works", etc., is, not only important, but one of the easiest methods of developing critical thinking, reasoning and analytical skills.  These sorts of questions require a student to think about, process and communicate various facts to support his /  her conclusions which is vital to learning critical thinking, reasoning and analytical skills.


We've used a plethora of home school curriculum but I must confess three of my favorites are Progeny Press literature curriculum for grades 4-12,  Bob Jones University Press history curriculums for grades 9-12 and Apologia Sciences grades elementary through high school.  These curriculums consistently ask the "How?', "Why?" and "What do you think?" questions that I think are vital to developing critical thinking, reasoning and analytical skills.


Regardless of a family's educational choices, I believe  it is important for all families to regularly engage their children with "Why?" and "How?" questions.  In doing so, our children will develop strong critical thinking, reasoning and analytical skills that will ultimately assist them in becoming successful and productive adults.

7 comments:

  1. Amazing! Now I will have to look up some of this history.
    I can see how homeschooling is quite advantageous, and I agree that no matter what type of schooling, parents should engage their children in those difficult questions! Our world needs all the critical thinkers it can get!
    On a different subject, I like how you have decorated your blog for autumn.

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    1. Hi Jo,
      Thanks for stopping by and taking time to comment.
      Thanks for the compliment on my blog décor. I change it each season. The header photo is of our driveway throughout the year; spring/summer, autumn, and winter. Autumn is my favorite as I enjoy all the red, gold and orange colors. Unfortunately, it is the shortest season up here on the Montana prairie.

      Blessings,
      Mrs.B

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    2. P.S. - When our Songbird was asked whom she thought she may have cast her vote for in the presidential election of 1872, she replied she wouldn't have voted. When asked why? She explained that U.S. women were not granted the right to vote on the national theater until 1920. Therefore, she would not have been allowed to vote in the presidential election. She most likely would have supported her husband's or father's choice of candidate. If she disagreed, the dynamics of her family would have mandated whether she expressed her disagreement or kept silent. Of course, any disagreement with her husband or father would have most likely been expressed only within the privacy of the immediate family. Publicly disagreeing with her husband or father would have brought social disgrace and shame upon her and the family. She also added that anyone supporting Victoria Woodhull was most likely viewed as shameful, as Mrs. Woodhull was quite the scandalous character during this era.

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  2. Hi Mrs. B,
    Sorry I have been MIA on my reading of your posts. Life got crazy and busy here and we have been trying to spend all the time we can with our son Josh while he is home on leave and I refused to get on the computer for the time we were on vacation on Montana. :)

    Critical thinking skills are so important and it sounds like you Songbird really thought things through given her response that you shared in the replay above this. Great job Mom and Songbird! We loved Apologia for Science and also used some of the Bob Jones curriculum for History. Another subject we taught was Logic and it has served my sons well over the years.

    Be blessed!
    Debbie

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    1. Hello Debbie,
      Time with your youngins is a top priority. There is never a need to apologize for spending time with and focusing on your family.
      Vacationing in Montana ... If I had known we should have met up for tea or cocoa. I hope you had a wonderful vacation.

      Blessings,
      Mrs.B

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    2. That would have been wonderful! We were there for about 3 days and were in the Bigfork area with a quick side trip to Whitefish and Columbia Falls. :)

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    3. Oh, My ... Y'all were close to my Dad's out west. Next time I'm heading out that way, I'll have to notify you; who knows, y'all may be visiting that area also.

      Hugs,
      Mrs.B

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Thank you for taking time to read my blog and leave a comment. I try my best to respond to each one. God Bless You, Mrs.B