Too Cool for School
Beloved Books
State Capitals
Nursery Rhymes
School Picture Day
100
What age do most kids start school? What age do they usually finish?
Kids usually state school around age 5 and finish around 18 years old.
Optional programs for children aged 3 to 5, not mandatory in most states, can provide a head start on school skills. For most children, this is the official start of their school career, typically around age 5. Every state has laws requiring students to attend school, though the specific age varies. Compulsory attendance usually starts between ages 5 and 7, with some states starting as early as 5 and others as late as 7. States set a compulsory school age that children must attend until, with the age limit often being 16, 17, or 18, depending on the state.
100
What author created Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn?
Mark Twain
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer is an 1876 novel by Mark Twain about a boy growing up along the Mississippi River. It is set in the 1840s in the town of St. Petersburg, which is based on Hannibal, Missouri, where Twain lived as a boy. In the novel, Tom Sawyer has several adventures, often with his friend Huckleberry Finn. Originally a commercial failure, the book ended up being the best selling of Twain's works during his lifetime. It was one of the first novels to be written on a typewriter.
100
The only royal palace in the United States is in which capital city?
Hint: The state is Hawaii.
Honolulu!
Ź»Iolani Palace represents a time in Hawaiian history when King KalÄkaua and his sister and successor, Queen LiliŹ»uokalani, walked the halls and ruled the Hawaiian Kingdom. The Palace complex contains beautiful memories of grand balls and hula performances, as well as painful ones of LiliŹ»uokalaniās overthrow and imprisonment. Since the overthrow of the Hawaiian Monarchy, the Palace has undergone many changes as it once served as the Capitol for almost 80 years and was later vacated and restored to its original grandeur in the 1970s.
100
When itās raining and pouring whatās the old man doing?
Snoring!
The old nursery rhyme is believed to be a cautionary tale to remind us that when it's raining and pouring, don't drink so much that you bump your head or you could end up dead from brain trauma!
100
This era was heavily influenced by progressive education reforms, now having compulsory attendance for young children and age-graded classrooms replacing one-room school houses.
1920s
Following a trend towards progressive education which began earlier in the twentieth century, reforms continued in school curricula, teacher training, and styles of instruction during the 1920s. In accordance with the progressive education movement (which focused on educating the whole person instead of enforcing the memorization of key facts), educators conducted laboratory studies, tracked educational statistics, and published the results of their findings. The resulting body of work described the habits and performance of the American student. Meanwhile, with the return of American troops at the end of World War I in 1918, many new babies were born. That population increase led to larger elementary school enrollments in the 1920s.
200
True or False: Some French schools served wine at lunch until the 1980s.
True!
Children in French schools were historically served wine at lunch, with wine being available to them until 1956, at which point a ban on alcohol for students under 14 took effect. However, alcohol was not completely banned from all French schools until 1981, when then-Minister of National Education Alain Savary issued an instruction to prohibit the sale of alcoholic beverages in all school canteens. Some believed that drinking moderate amounts of alcohol was beneficial and killed germs, making it a safer alternative to water, which was often not sanitized.
200
The Hound of the Baskervilles is a crime novel featuring which fictional detective?
Sherlock Holmes
Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a "consulting detective" in the stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with observation, deduction, forensic science and logical reasoning that borders on the fantastic, which he employs when investigating cases for a wide variety of clients, including Scotland Yard.
200
True or False: There are an even 25 state capitals west of the Mississippi River and 25 capitals east of it as well.
False! There are 24 capitals to the west and 26 to the east.
The Mississippi River is the primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it flows generally south for 2,340 mi to the Mississippi River Delta in the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains all or parts of 32 U.S. states and two Canadian provinces between the Rocky and Appalachian mountains. The river either borders or passes through the states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Louisiana.
200
What did Peter Piper pick?
A peck of pickled peppers!
A peck is an old English weight measurement. The lyrics would suggest that Peter Piper was a rather lazy worker who boasted that he had picked more pepper than he actually had.
200
Schools in this era were highly structured and strict with discipline and punishments regularly administered, with core subjects like reading, writing and arithmetic being taught. Among these new lessons was the "duck and cover" drill in fear of nuclear attacks.
1940s
American education was transformed in the 1940s. At all levels it became better organized, better funded, and more standardized across the country. Universities were modernized. In subjects such as literature, history, and the arts, the college curriculum was made more professional and was more carefully thought out. The sciences took a higher profile than before. These changes in higher education soon filtered down to the public schools. The main reason for these changes was World War II (1939ā45). The war exposed many problems within American education. In total, the army rejected five million recruits, some because of poor health, but many because they could not read and write.
300
Who is regarded as the founder of modern schooling?
a. Joyce Guyy
b. Horace Mann
c. Silas Ladd
d. Randall Dudee
b. Horace Mann
Horace Mann was an American educator, the first great American advocate of public education who believed that, in a democratic society, education should be free and universal, nonsectarian, democratic in method, and reliant on well-trained professional teachers.
300
What story has the character Ichabod Crane?
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
The book is actually a companion piece written by Washington Irving to Rip Van Winkle. The two stories are written based on New York town however with varying towns as Rip Van Winkle is in Catskill Mountain and the Legend of the Sleepy Hollow is in Tarry Town.
300
Which of these is not a state capital?
a. Frankfort
b. Annapolis
c. Albany
d. Washington D.C.
d. Washington D.C.
While D.C. is the federal capital of the United States, it is not considered a singular state capital. Washington D.C. is considered a district, with D.C. standing for District of Columbia. Its creation comes directly from the US Constitution, which provides that the district, "not exceeding 10 Miles square," would "become the Seat of the Government of the United States." Congress established the federal district in 1790 to serve as the nation's capital, from land belonging to the states of Maryland and Virginia. The Constitution dictates that the federal district be under the jurisdiction of the US Congress.
300
How much wool did Baa Baa Black Sheep have?
Three bags full!
While it primarily revolves around the titular black sheep being questioned about how much wool it has, there have been different interpretations of "Baa Baa Black Sheep" over the years. One such interpretation is that the rhyme revolves around the Crusades and the wool tax that King Edward I had implemented.
300
This era of schooling was rife with questions of whether or not to integrate black and white schools, as well as the launch of Sputnik by the Soviet Union being seen as proof that educators were not focusing enough on basic learning skills.
1950s
School in the 1950s featured a strict, discipline-focused environment with traditional subjects, corporal punishment, and gender-segregated classes. Students often wore uniforms, with boys in button-down shirts and trousers and girls in skirts. Technology was limited to film-strips and ditto machines, and learning relied heavily on textbooks, lectures, and rote memorization. Following the Sputnik launch, the curriculum shifted to emphasize math and science, while student life included morning Pledge of Allegiance, recess, and school cafeterias.
400
Where were school uniforms invented?
Bonus: How long ago were they invented?
England
England is the originator of the school uniform. In 1222 the Cappa Clausa cloak was the first recorded use of specific clothing in an academic setting. During the 16th century, charity schools required a uniform for their students. These schools allowed orphans or other less fortunate children to attend school taught by clergymen through funding from Londonās wealthy citizens.
Bonus: 500 years ago
400
She is the most translated author of all time and a famous English detective novelist and playwright.
Agatha Christie
Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fictional detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. She also wrote the world's longest-running play, the murder mystery The Mousetrap, which has been performed in the West End since 1952. A writer during the "Golden Age of Detective Fiction", Christie has been called the "Queen of Crime". She also wrote six novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott. In 1971, she was made a Dame by Queen Elizabeth II for her contributions to literature. Guinness World Records lists Christie as the best-selling fiction writer of all time, her novels having sold more than two billion copies.
400
There are four states with capitals named after American presidents: Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska and Wisconsin. What are their capitals?
Jackson (Mississippi), Jefferson City (Missouri), Lincoln (Nebraska) and Madison (Wisconsin).
Several state capitals were named after presidents who were important at the time of the city's founding or statehood. Jackson, Mississippi was named for Andrew Jackson in 1821. Jefferson City, Missouri was named for Thomas Jefferson when Missouri achieved statehood in 1821, as he had recently purchased the land that would become the state through the Louisiana Purchase. Madison, Wisconsin was named for James Madison by a territorial judge in 1836, after the recent death of the former president. Lincoln, Nebraska was renamed for Abraham Lincoln in 1869, four years after his assassination.
400
On top of spaghetti (all covered with cheese), what poor thing did I lose when somebody sneezed?
My poor meatball!
The original nursery rhyme was actually "On Top of Old Smokey"! As the tune suggests, Old Smokey is a high mountain, likely in southern Appalachia. Historical possibilities include Clingmans Dome, which was named āSmoky Domeā by local Scots-Irish inhabitants. But exactly which mountain the song points to, if thereās one specific one, has been lost to history.
400
School in this era was marked by a youthful, rebellious and idealistic student culture influenced by movements like anti-war and women's rights campaigns, as well as a focus on distinctly individual fashion and music trends.
1970s
The 1970s was a decade of transformation in education. Efforts were made to increase opportunities and improve performance of previously disadvantaged minorities: African Americans, immigrants, the disabled, and, to a certain degree, women. A growing debate then arose between traditionalists and progressives on how best to educate American children. Traditionalists (sometimes called back-to-basics proponents) argued that students learn best when given lots of structure, specific standards of performance, and a heavy dose of memorization of key facts and concepts. On the other hand, progressives believed just as strongly that students need freedom and time to pursue questions that interest them, and that sometimes structure hinders student learning.
500
On which continent does each example of students live?
1. Students clean the school themselves everyday in an effort to help build teamwork, character and respect for their environment.
2. Students go to school for about 5 hours each day and have little to no homework (although they usually have private lessons after). They are ranked as one of the best school systems in the world.
3. Students in a remote village choose between a dangerous 2-hour hike or a zipline to get to school, flying over a dense jungle.
4. Students learn via radio as they live too far away from each other to go to a normal school, getting their assignments via post.
1. Asia - Japan
2. Europe - Finland
3. South America - Columbia
4. Oceania - Australia
500
Oakland, California has a neighborhood named after what author of The Call of the Wild?
Jack London
The Call of the Wild is a short adventure novel by Jack London, published in 1903 and set in Yukon, Canada, during the 1890s Klondike Gold Rush, when strong sled dogs were in high demand. The central character of the novel is a dog named Buck. The story opens at a ranch in Santa Clara Valley, California, when Buck is stolen from his home and sold into service as a sled dog in Alaska. He becomes progressively more primitive and wild in the harsh environment, where he is forced to fight to survive and dominate other dogs. By the end, he sheds the veneer of civilization, and relies on primordial instinct and learned experience to emerge as a leader in the wild.
500
What two state capitals start with the name of a month?
Bonus: What two state capitals have no vowels in common but rhyme?
Juneau (Alaska) and Augusta (Maine).
At 3,255 square miles Juneau, Alaska is the largest capital city. It's larger than the entire state of Delaware. It's also the second-largest city in the United States, second only to Sitka, Alaska. America's oldest wooden fort can be found in Augusta, Maine. Old Fort Western was built in 1754 and was later used by Benedict Arnold before his invasion of Canada. This was back in the old days, when Central Maine was the west.
Bonus: Austin and Boston!
500
An old lady swallowed a fly, then a spider, what came next?
Bonus: What gifts did mama give her baby in "Hush Little Baby"?
A bird!
Followed by a cat, a dog, a goat, a cow and last but not least: a horse!
Bonus: A mockingbird, diamond ring, looking glass, bill goat, rocking horse, dog named Rover, horse and cart.
500
This era in public education was one of the last before the rise of the internet in schooling, with more freedom of expression in clothing as well as instances of students smoking in designated areas and the DARE (to say no to drugs and alcohol) program posters lining hallways.
1980s
Students wore their own clothes, though some schools had PE uniforms. Styles included bold, colorful clothing, neon accessories, big bangs, and mullets. Students wrote notes to friends, and Valentine's Day cards were given as a social contest rather than a mandatory classroom event. After school, students enjoyed activities like roller skating, bowling, and hanging out at the mall. The internet was not widespread, so research was done using card catalogs in the library. Chalkboards were common, with the "computer lab" featuring early computers like the Apple IIe. Cursive writing was taught and practiced extensively, while calculators were often forbidden in math classes.