By Pike and Dyke Study Guide

What is the historical setting of By Pike and Dyke?

By Pike and Dyke tells the story of William I, called William the Silent, and his flight to free the Netherlands from Spanish rule during the years 1572-1584. The people of the Low Countries had embraced the Protestant faith, and the long arm of the Spanish Inquisition, embodied by the Duke of Alva and his troops, was determined to subdue the heresy at all costs. In England, Elizabeth I was on the throne, Francis Drake was raiding Spanish ships, Walter Raleigh was planting a colony on Roanoke Island, and one of the greatest eras in English literature was beginning to flower. By Pike and Dyke provides a glimpse of the mighty struggle for freedom in which the Dutch city-states were engaged just across the sea from Elizabeth's England.

What is included in this study guide?

As children read each chapter of the book, they answer several Chapter Questions designed to make sure they are following the main events of the story and understanding why these events occur. Besides checking reading comprehension, these questions require children to make inferences that go beyond what is written and to use knowledge that they have learned from other sources.

The Think It Over Questions focus on deeper issues that come up in each chapter. These questions give children an opportunity to think critically about moral and spiritual matters, and to discuss them with their parents.

Because the vocabulary in Henty's books is so rich, every lesson has a short list of Vocabulary Words taken from the chapter and an exercise to help children learn them. After every five lessons, children review the words in a game format. At the very end of this guide, all the vocabulary words are listed in alphabetical order and the puzzle solutions are given.

All chapter lessons include Activities involving such things as work with maps, further research on related topics, or Just for Fun projects.

Interspersed among the chapter lessons are In-Depth Lessons focused on special topics.

For what grade levels is this study guide designed?

This study guide is designed for middle school students, but Henty's books can be read profitably by children from the upper elementary grades through high school.

How is this study guide designed to be used?

This study guide is designed to be flexible—make it fit your school, instead of the other way around. A suggested approach, however, is to your child complete one lesson each day. At that pace, the entire study guide takes about six weeks to finish. The time required to complete a lesson—including the assigned reading—is usually between one and two hours. Children can either write the answers to the Chapter Questions or answer them orally as you choose. Although the Think It Over Questions are designed for discussion, they also make good essay topics. Writing answers may take children longer, but allows them to work more independently. Answering the questions orally requires more of the parents' time, but allows parents/teachers to be more involved in their children's learning.