Makes ya think

[SilverTongue]

I am sure this also goes for you guys and gals up north also

8th Grade Final 1895



Remember when our grandparents, great-grandparents, and such stated
that they only had an 8th grade education? Well check this out. Could any
of us have passed the 8th grade in 1895?

This is the eighth-grade final exam from 1895 in Salina, KS. USA.
It was taken from the original document on file at the Smokey Valley
Genealogical Society and Library in Salina, KS and reprinted by the
Salina Journal.



************************************************** ************************


8th Grade Final Exam: Salina, KS -1895

Grammar (Time, one hour)
1. Give nine rules for the use 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 do,
lie, lay and run.
5. Define Case. Illustrate each Case.
6. What is Punctuation? Give rules for principal marks of Punctuation.
7 - 10. Write a composition of about 150 words and show therein that
you understand the practical use of the rules of grammar.

Arithmetic (Time, 1.25 hours)
1. Name and define the Fundamental Rules of Arithmetic.
2. A wagon box is 2 ft. deep, 10 feet long, and 3 ft. wide. How many
bushels of wheat will it hold?
3. If a load of wheat weighs 3942 lbs. What is it worth at 50
cts./bushel, deducting 1050 lbs. for tare?
4. District No. 33 has a valuation of $35,000. What is the necessary
levy to carry on a school seven months at $50 per month, and have $104
for incidentals?
5. Find cost of 6720 lbs. 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 meter?
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
around 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, one hour)
1. What is meant by the following:
Alphabet, phonetic, orthography, etymology, syllabication?
2. What are elementary sounds? How 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 with final '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: Card, ball, mercy, sir,
odd, cell, rise, blood, fare, last.
9. Use the following correctly in sentences: cite, site, sight,
fane, fain, feign, vane, vain, vein, raze, raise, rays.
10. Write 10 words frequently mispronounced and indicate
pronunciation by use of diacritical marks and by syllabication.

Geography (Time, one hour)
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: Monrovia, Odessa, Denver,
Manitoba, Hecla, Yukon, St. Helena, Juan Hermandez,
Aspinwall and Orinoco.
6. Name and locate the principal trade centers of the U.S.
7. Name all the republics of Europe and give capital of each.
8. Why is the Atlantic Coast colder than the Pacific in 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 inclination of the
earth.


This gives the saying of an early 20th century person that "she/he
had "only" an 8th grade education" a whole new meaning. Sorry, no
answers included. (Don't want to spend the rest of my life in the
library)

[Big Mike]

Sure an 8th grader could do that in 1895 but could they name all the Pokemon critters?....lol

It's funny how they say kids are getting smarter and yet school marks don't seem to be rising along with that trend.

[Kurzix]

I think alot of us would fail that test if we had to take it right now!

[SilverTongue]

yeah

[Cornelsworld]

I dont think I would know the answers to most of those questions. But if you were raised in that time frame it would probably be a different story. Back then they probably wouldn't understand some of the math the they teach today

Greg

[SilverTongue]

that is true, nore the phisics or the chemistry ect ect. But the majority of that test was basic grammer.

[sophia]

Silver, Can I send that to my child's teacher??? I home schooled her last year and she was three years ahead of her class when she went back to public school, now in 9th grade they're using a 6th grade science book and a social studies book that just makes me cringe it's so riddled with errors! Her grammar teacher now is an honors teacher who realizes how undereducated the entire system is and it's good to see a truly academic 'high school' teacher for once, I think she'd enjoy that and want to share it with the kids!

I know I couldn't pass it and language has always fascinated me, particularly the etymology of words.

Thanks Silver that was 'truly' interesting.

Tay

[SilverTongue]

Go right ahead Tay. I feel the same way. The only thing keeping me from homeschooling my daughter is the fact that I want her to make friends and have a lil childhood normalcy in life and 2nd I would go absolutly nutts!

[sophia]

Silver,
I know what you mean... She had alread attended public school for so long that I felt guilty, and since I'm not Christian and most Home schooling organizations here are, there was really no one for me to network with. I believe in a completely academic curriculum and the Christian homeschoolers include far too much religion in their academic materials making it, well, less than academic and I while that's okay for them, it's what they believe, but it makes it very hard to find materials of a non-religion criteria for homeschooling.

As to going nuts!!! YES, but it 'was' nice to get up and have school in our pajamas while I drank coffee, and it was great to give her a sense of individuality which she needed terribly. The whole public school domain is about creating a 'sheep' mentallity, little, overly patriotic, automotons, so our homeschooling and summer away from NC really did the trick for that kid, she knows exactly what she wants and who she is. She has plans to go in the Navy and has now for two years, a plan I hope doesn't change as her hormones gear up to a full rage! LOL

She will argue a teacher down if their facts aren't correct, especially with regard to the patriotic BS they like to teach and call 'American Political Systems'!!! What a load of garbage that course is, but thankfully she has a good teacher in that course as well this year, he's Green Party, like her mother *G* and extremely jaded, I really like that man, he's such an antagonist! LOL I don't know how long the school will like him however and we'll see, he speaks his mind and as you know, that doesn't go over so well in the fundamentalist setting of the south, it tends to make life harsh, but that's the way I tend to live my life anyway. Might explain why I can count all of my real friends and beloved family members outside my household on one hand huh? LOL I could care less, in that regard I have a very Taoist attitude, I let it roll off my back whether they like it or not, life is too short to worry about pleasing anyone other than yourself and the truth is, if you're pleased with yourself, people tend to like you more, and that security means that you won't argue your beliefs and you won't be moved either without imperical evidence to the contrary, so they can't exactly fight with you and make your life miserable now can they*G*. It's all about perception.

If you don't mind the mixing of religion and academics though Silver, you might find any number of organizations there in Texas that you could network with so the children wouldn't have to be lonely. They get together for laboratory work and math clinics and sometimes field trips and many of them participate in sports together. At least that way there would be others for you and the children, if you're like me you could probably care less about your social aspect, it's more the kids we worry about, just an idea. If you're not Chrisitan you might check to see if there is a network of homeschoolers that ascribe to the beliefs that you and your family do and unlike me, you might luck out and be able to join one. I've thought about starting one here for wayward heathens, but who knows how well that would go over *G*..

Tay

[SilverTongue]

I think I will consider all that, but for the moment I am happy with the Elementary school she is in. When she is going into JrHighschool I will propose to her her options. I just think that though Elementary school is the building blocks for the atomaton-like lifestyle most will follow...I also think that is is just pure fun! These are mostlikely the only years she will truely enjoy and love school and the wanting to learn.

[sophia]

I agree, I loved those years, but the Jr High!!! WHEW! what a shambles that place was in.
Tay

[SilverTongue]

LoL I dont even know what teachers I had in JrHigh I think they passed me because they were scared I would have to stay longer!

[sophia]

LOL believe me, as much as I hate to admit it, that was probably the case with me too. I was bored and a hellraiser!

Tay

[Tim_Cranwill]

I think Jr high teachers deserve danger pay and free psychiatric care. We were soooo brutal to them.

[SilverTongue]

LoL no kidding! That has to be the WORST set of school years to teach! I would certainally never do it, unless they let me bring a stun gun to to work!!