Happy Birthday Benjamin Franklin!

 

Benjamin Franklin (January 17, 1706 – April 17, 1790) was a leading figure in early American history who made lasting contributions to the nation. 

He served as a U.S. diplomat, helped write the Declaration of Independence, and was the oldest member of the Constitutional Convention. Franklin was the first Postmaster General of the United States, a respected inventor, and the author of Poor Richard’s Almanac. He also promoted education and public access to knowledge by founding the first free public libraries in America. 

As leading Founding Father, he is known as "the First American" because he helped make the Thirteen Colonies into one nation.

Learn more:

LOC.gov: Benjamin Franklin, the Pragmatic Innovator

PBS: Benjamin Franklin | A Film by Kens Burns video playlist

PDS Learning Media: Who was Benjamin Frankin?

USCIS: Benjamin Franklin

USCIS: A More Perfect Union: Memorial to the Signers of the Declaration of Independence

POP Quiz: 

100:68.  What is one thing Benjamin Franklin is famous for?

128:85.   Benjamin Franklin is famous for many things. Name one. 

National Religious Freedom Day

Religious Freedom Day remembers the day the Virginia General Assembly approved the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom on January 16, 1786. 

The law was written by Thomas Jefferson and later guided through the legislature by James Madison. 

This statute became the foundation for the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, which protects freedom of religion for all Americans.

USCIS Civics:

100:10.  What is freedom of religion?  

▪  You can practice any religion, or not practice a religion.

100:51.  What are two rights of everyone living in the United States?  

▪  freedom of expression  ▪  freedom of speech  ▪  freedom of assembly  ▪  freedom to petition the government  ▪  freedom of religion  ▪  the right to bear arms

100:58.  What is one reason colonists came to America?  

▪  freedom  ▪  political liberty  ▪  religious freedom  ▪  economic opportunity  ▪  practice their religion  ▪  escape persecution

128:65.   What are three rights of everyone living in the United States? 

• Freedom of expression • Freedom of speech • Freedom of assembly • Freedom to petition the government • Freedom of religion • The right to bear arms

128:73.   The colonists came to America for many reasons. Name one. 

• Freedom • Political liberty • Religious freedom • Economic opportunity • Escape persecution

128:87.   Thomas Jefferson is famous for many things. Name one. 

• Writer of the Declaration of Independence • Third president of the United States • Doubled the size of the United States (Louisiana Purchase) • First Secretary of State • Founded the University of Virginia • Writer of the Virginia Statute on Religious Freedom

Happy Birthday Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.!

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was born on January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia.  

Learn more about his life and works at the U.S. Citizenship Resources for Martin Luther King, Jr Day page.

 

2025-2026 MAE Citizenship Class 17

NY Historical Society: Voting Rights

This our second class in 2026, but the semester ends late Januaty.  Then we will begin to study the 2025 Civic questions.  Stayed tune!

Homework:

• Residence and Voting plus Quiz 15: Civil Rights
• Part 16: Oath of Allegiance
• Interview with Krestos Negasi (Addis Ababa, Ethiopia) on MLK Day pdf
• Voices of Freedom: Ch 12: Citizens Rights and Responsibilities
• Preparing for the Oath:  Responsibilities 

Learn more:

• USA Learns.org Citizenship
• U.S. Citizenship Resources for Martin Luther King, Jr Day page

Happy Birthday, Alexander Hamilton!

 

PBS Learning Media: Who Was Alexander Hamilton? 

Explore the life of Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757 – July 12, 1804), a key Founding Father and influential figure in early American history. Designed for grades 3-8, this video from PBS LearningMedia delves into Hamilton’s contributions as a writer and his pivotal role in drafting the Federalist Papers, which advocated for the ratification of the Constitution. Through an analysis of primary sources, students will gain insight into Hamilton’s vision for the nation’s government and his lasting impact on American political thought.

2025-2026 MAE Citizenship Class 16

NY Historical Society: Oath of Allegiance

This our first class in 2026, but the semester ends late Januaty.  Then we will begin to study the 2025 Civic queestions.  Stayed tune!

Homework:

• Part 9: Questions 31 to 37: Attachment to the Constitution (printing fixed)
• Voices of Freedom: Ch 12: Citizens Rights and Responsibilities
• Preparing for the Oath:  Responsibilities 

Learn more:

• USA Learns.org Citizenship
• U.S. Citizenship Resources for January

Five year anniversary of Jan. 6

 

WUSA9: Five year anniversary of Jan. 6  

On Jan. 6, 2021, a pro-Trump mob stormed the Capitol demanding the results of the 2020 presidential election be overturned.

Two American Saints

Elizabeth Ann Seton (1774–1821) was an American educator and a Catholic leader. She was born in New York and raised as an Episcopalian. She married William Seton and had five children. In 1805, she became Catholic. She later opened the first Catholic school for girls in the United States in Emmitsburg, Maryland. She also started the Sisters of Charity, the first religious community for women in the country.

Elizabeth Ann Seton became the first person born in the United States to be declared a saint by the Catholic Church.  Her feast day is celebrated on Jan. 4.

John Nepomucene Neumann CSsR (March 28, 1811 – January 5, 1860) was a Bohemian-born American prelate of the Catholic Church.

An immigrant from Bohemia, he came to the United States in 1836, where he was ordained, joined the Redemptorist order, and became the fourth Bishop of Philadelphia in 1852. In Philadelphia, Neumann founded the first Catholic diocesan school system in the US. Canonized in 1977, he is the only male US citizen to be named a saint. Her feast day is celebrated on Jan. 5.