Chapter 4
The Exchange of Ideas
• Read the chapter opener, in which Galileo appears before Church
officials on a charge of heresy.
• Why would the Church of Galileo’s time consider his Sun-centred
theory to be heresy?
• The Church believed in a Creator God and so it made sense to them
that God would place Earth at the centre of the universe as they
knew it.
• According to the story, why was Galileo sentenced to house
arrest?
• Galileo was arrested for disagreeing with traditional, official church
teaching of a geocentric (Earth-centred) planetary system.
• With which elements of the worldviews icon did Galileo’s
knowledge conflict?
• His ideas conflicted with belief, although the Cardinals would have
said his ideas conflicted with knowledge
• Figure 4-1 What does Galileo’s experience tell us about how
difficult it is to change a worldview?
• It was many years before Galileo’s theories were adopted by
mainstream thinkers. Galileo had publicly renounced his beliefs.
Science: A New Way of Seeing
• read page 80
• On a T-chart, record the view of science that
existed at the beginning of the Renaissance in the
left column and the view of science held by the
humanists, including Leonardo da Vinci, in the
right column.
• Read da Vinci’s quotation out loud.
• How would this view of science, and the
introduction of the scientific method, change the
work of scientists.
Examine and discuss Figure 4-3 which
visually represents the scientific
method.
• Why do you think the
scientific method is so
effective.
• Step 7 is important
because it points to the
importance of verifying
results.
• think about how you
felt when an idea you
thought was true was
called into question
(e.g., Santa Claus).
• read page 81.
• suggest ways in which
the new ideas in
astronomy would have
threatened the old
worldviews that had
long been accepted.
• read pages 82 and 83
• Think about the following as you read how
new ideas in medicine helped to shape
worldview:
• - What idea in these pages did you find the
most surprising? Why?
• - Which idea do you think would have been
the hardest for people to accept?
• Video: Renaissance Science and Invention
• Homework questions
• What is the Scientific Method – explain in words and in a diagram.
• During the Renaissance in what areas were the most significant scientific
advances?
• Who was Ptolemy and what ideas did he introduce to the world?
• Who was Copernicus and what ideas did he have about the Universe?
• What did Galileo believe about the universe? Why were his ideas
controversial?
• Create a series of diagrams to demonstrate the differences in the theories
of the universe.
• During the Renaissance, Doctors did not know a lot about anatomy, how did
they come up with remedies for illness and disease?
• Who was Andreas Vesalius and what was he known for?
• Who was Francois Rabelais and what was he known for?
• Examine Figure 4-12 on page 83. How do you think knowledge of the
human body might have helped Michelangelo create his David on page 58?
• How did Mathematics develop during the Renaissance and how did
Mathematics play an important role in Europe’s changing economy?
• Answer questions on page 87 – Over to You # 1 & 2.
Political and Religious Leadership
• Generate a class list of qualities you look for in
a good leader.
• read all of page 88
• refer to the list of leadership qualities you
generated and identify those qualities that
Isabella D’Este possessed.
• most women in theRenaissance were not in
positions of power; they usually only gained
power as extensions of their husband or son.
• As you read page 89, consider Machiavelli’s ideas
under the headings, “Machiavelli the Good” and
“Machiavelli the Bad.”
• You can record ideas you agree with under “the
Good” and ideas you disagree with under “the
Bad.”
• answer the “Exploring Sources” question:
Compare Machiavelli’s ideas about leadership
with those of Isabelle D’Este. Which do you think
would be more effective? Explain your thinking.
• Changes in Leadership notes
• Get into groups of four…
• Momentarily, you will be numbered off one through 4. Each of
you will go to one of the 4 assigned EXPERT groups and complete
a brief summary. You will have approximately 10 minutes to do
this.
• Group #1 Page 92
• Group #2 Page 93
• Group #3 Page 94
• Group #4 Page 95
• When finished, return to your original group of four and share
your EXPERTISE with your other four group members. They will
do the same for you. When you are done, you will have
information on all four readings
• Read “Fast Forward” on page 96
and discuss, and answer the
questions.
• HOMEWORK
• Generate a list of contemporary
individuals who risk or have risked
imprisonment and even death for
expressing ideas they believe are
important—their worldview. Make
sure you can explain what these
worldviews or ideas where.
• do some research by talking with
your parents, other adults in their
community, or going online.
• Examples: Nelson Mandela, Salman
Rushdie, and Aung San Suu Kyi.
The Spread of Ideas
• Brainstorm ways that ideas and knowledge are spread
in today’s society.
• in this section, students will consider how ideas were
spread before we had all of the communication
technology that exists today.
• What factors that would have influenced the spread of
ideas during the Renaissance,
• e.g., the time it took to travel from one city to another.
• In what ways do you think modern communication
technology affects your worldview?
• During the Renaissance one
popular way to exchange ideas
was by gathering great minds.
• Read “Gathering Great Minds”
pages 97 and 98. As you are
reading, jot down words that
come to mind as you think
about what it might have been
like to be part of the gathering
of great minds.
• Perhaps words like exciting,
prestigious, intense.
• What similarities and
differences exist in people’s
views on the exchange of
ideas between the gathering
of great minds in the
Renaissance and the gathering
of people to exchange ideas
today?
• It was something only the
elite did during the
Renaissance, today people
from all walks of life have
opportunities to gather to
exchange ideas; in the
Renaissance and today,
scholars can be celebrities.
The Printing Press: A New Technology
• Together read pages 98–100 and identify three changes
that resulted from the development of the printing press.
• In partners read and prepare a response to “Think It
Through: consider a dilemma” (page 100).
• Read “The Printing Press—Its Role Today” and “Canadians
and the Internet” (pages 101–102).
• Read “Zoom In,” page 101, and discuss,
• What do you think are the important ideas in Michel de
Montaigne’s way of thinking, as described by Kathryn
Hinds.
• What can you, as a Grade 8 student, learn from his ideas
and apply in their own lives?