PSAT
Reminder!
|  | Be sure to check with your local high school or principal and register for the PSAT. The PSAT is held each year and only
during the month of October. Click here for more information. |
Leigh's BlogTalk
Radio Program
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Listen to Leigh's interview with Mark Bauerlein, author of The Dumbest Generation, as
they discuss young Americans who have not received a classical,
Christian education and what is becoming of them plus our children's
future. Original air date: 2/18/2009. Click here to go to Leigh's interview with Mark Bauerlein >>
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Greetings from Leigh Bortins,
Founder of Classical Conversations |  This summer has been full with gatherings of families at our house on the lake, traveling, and of course, Parent Practicums from Florida to California.
Parents come to CC's Practicums to learn about classical education, and they leave with the sense that they can be powerful because I ask two questions: 1) Why do you let the state dictate your standards of education? and 2) Why would you send your children to the same school system that prepared you to NOT be able to teach Algebra or foreign languages to a child?
As parents wrestle with the answers to these questions, they begin the detachment process from the state and feel the desire to become what C.S. Lewis called "men with chests," people whose hearts now attach their brains to their bodies and allow them to become whole.
As soon as a person's educational paradigm shifts toward personal freedom, his or her financial and political and philosophical paradigms soon follow. What do we get? We get families hungry for the freedom of self-government in all arenas. We get revolutionaries.
One such revolutionary was in the news last summer. You may have seen the headline, "Teen Circumnavigator Sails for Home," when Zac Sunderland, a then 17-year-old, completed a solo sail around the globe on July 16, 2009. Zac's education had been centered at home. His story is a reminder of how low society's expectations for teenagers often are, and how high they could be.
Not only did Zac navigate perilous circumstances, he completed his senior year of high school and documented his experiences on his own website.
From his website: "...a dream of adventure, discovery, and challenge is one of the simple truths of being human...It is a simple testament to what is important, to working towards your goals. Most of all, with perseverance and faith in God, anything is possible."
Young people are capable of much more than what our society expects. If given a sound foundation, the basic tools they need: a biblical worldview through classical, Christian education and dedicated parents, by their late teens, they will be capable of creative self-expression, good judgment, and effective expression...essentially, they will have become "men [and women] with chests"---revolutionaries!
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CC Bookstore: Monthly Online Specials are Back!
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SEPTEMBER ONLINE SPECIAL: Constitution Package
In honor of Constitution Day (September 17), the CC Bookstore is offering a special $50.00 package throughout the month of September.
Constitution Package ($50.00) includes:
- WAS: American Documents - A collection of 44 articles, speeches, poems, and legal documents that shaped American government. Includes questions for thought and review.
- A Patriot's History of the United States - A sweeping, well-researched account of America from the discovery of the continent up to present day that puts the spotlight back on America's role as a beacon of liberty to the rest of the world.
- How to Read the Federalist Papers - A road map to help illuminate the major issues treated in The Federalist essays and their continued relevance for today.
- Reading the Right Books - A practical list of thoughtful and accessible books recommended to provide a firmer structure of political knowledge.
Offer valid through September 30. Online orders only.
No substitutions, please.
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CC MultiMedia: Updated Student Planner
| CC Student Planner  | CC's Student Planner - New and Improved!
The newly-revised CC Student Planner is not just for high school students anymore--homeschoolers of any age can use this planner!
"Good record keeping is essential for homeschoolers---especially during
the high school years. This student planner will allow you and your
student of any age to keep lesson plans, attendance records, grades, extracurricular hours
and activities, literature lists, and more in one handy book, making transcript completion
easy at the end of the year. Don't start your school year without it!"
Click here to purchase.
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Back to School:
Exploring the Core of Classical Education
|  Greetings from the State Manager of Oklahoma!
The school year has officially begun. In our home, this means that we have the privilege of diving into an inviting pile of new books. Every year, I make it a personal goal to read a book about classical education, and I challenge all of the Oklahoma directors to do the same. This year, I would like to challenge all of our CC families to read Leigh's newest book The Core: Teaching Your Child the Foundations of Classical Education.
If you are new to Classical Conversations, reading Leigh's book will help to answer those questions you will begin to have after the first meeting of your community. Questions like: "What have I gotten myself into?" "What do I do with my children at home?" "How can I begin to give my kids a classical education when I didn't have one myself?"
If you are a Classical Conversations veteran, you will be delighted to dive into Leigh's vision for classical education in our communities. Reading The Core will crystallize your understanding of why we employ the methodologies that you have already followed in Foundations, Essentials, and Challenge classes.
If you belong in either group, you will have clear answers to give your friends, family, and church members about classical education. For the next several issues of Postcards, we will examine the need for the classical model, the method of employing the model, and the core knowledge associated with the model, i.e., reading, writing, math, geography, history, science, and fine arts. Let's start the series by examining why we need classical education (a brief summary of Chapters 1 and 2 of The Core.)
Why do we need classical education? What makes it different from modern education?
- Classical education teaches children how to think.
- Classical education provides children with caring mentors.
- Classical education prepares children to work to their true potential.
- Classical education trains up leaders who participate in the great conversations of history.
Classical Education Teaches Children How to Think
In the digital age, our children are inundated with images and ideas. Now, more than ever, it is important to teach them critical thinking skills. A classical education focuses on teaching children study skills instead of subjects. These skills, along with the principles of logic, enable them to be lifelong learners and clear thinkers.
Classical Education Provides Children with Caring Mentors
At the heart of a classical education is the relationship with parents, tutors, and other mentors who transmit their knowledge and their wisdom. A modern education which employs computers and worksheets does not build a relationship. When we commit to wrestling with a math problem, puzzling over a Latin paradigm, or applying a literary work to contemporary issues, we communicate love and respect for the children while transmitting the wisdom of our experiences.
Classical Education Prepares Children to Work to Their Potential
It has been said that teachers overestimate students' experience and underestimate their abilities. Our modern standards in literacy and numeracy fall far short of the expectations of previous generations. (For literacy statistics, please see The Core, Chapter 1.) In contrast, a classical education is rigorous and thorough.
Classical Education Trains Leaders Who Participate in the Great Conversations of History
Understanding classical languages and history allows our children to understand our culture. Our current ideas did not drop out of the sky; instead, they have deep roots in history and philosophy, in man's previous actions, theories, and discoveries. Discussing literature, debating philosophy, analyzing history, and repeating science experiments allow students to join in this ongoing conversation of humankind, preparing them to make their own discoveries, redeem the culture, and serve as ministers of the Gospel in any vocation.
Relish your calling and
savor the journey!Jennifer Courtney,
Oklahoma State Manager  |
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Postcards from CC Communities
|  Some upper challenge seminars in Challenge III and IV give students the opportunity to facilitate and lead discussions. These are the exposition and rhetoric strands. The subject material is Shakespeare and philosophy for Challenge III and ancient literature and theology for Challenge IV. These seminars prepare the students to organize, outline, plan, and execute the emphasis of the study material for the week. Keeping within a framework, students can safely practice and gain skills to dive deeper into material and have flexibility to be creative and pursue their ideas. The seminar leader determines the lead questions and guides the group through engaging discussion. Over time, both the leader and the group members grow in skill comfort and gain memorable and rich dialogue of the material.
After observing some years of modeling, the students (armed with syllabus, texts, and a study commentary), set out to lead and implement discussion. Some students are intimidated at first, and others have been waiting, it seems, to have the soapbox for a day. The latter are quite enthusiastic to direct the questions to the vein of discussion they have been anticipating.
There was a period of two years when a certain student would lead philosophy or theology--even in literature for Oedipus Rex--and inevitably the topic would sooner or later turn into a discussion of free will versus predestination. It became a given that we would end up there by some twist of logic. Although we would laugh by the end of the seminar that we were "there" again, we did have to admit that this student did consistently "seize the day." And we certainly had ample opportunities to discuss and ruminate our position almost to mastery.
Linda Tomkinson
North Carolina
We love to hear from you! Please send us a note about or photo of your Classical Conversations Community and what it means to you.
Click here to send us an "e-postcard" about your CC Community >>
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Equipping Events at Great Wolf Lodge
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Join Classical Conversations Families at the Great Wolf Lodge this Fall!
Call
the Great Wolf Lodge in either Williamsburg, VA or Mason, Ohio, and tell them you
are with Classical Conversations to receive a huge discount on your
room/water park admission. Plus, you'll meet fun, like-minded families! What a great opportunity for your family!
Williamsburg, Virginia: September 19 - 24, 2010
From
September 19-24, Classical Conversations will hold its fifth annual
get-together at the Great Wolf Lodge and Colonial Williamsburg in
Virginia. Enjoy unbelievably discounted rates and great CC fellowship
as we discover our colonial roots in Williamsburg and spend time riding
the chutes at Great Wolf Lodge's indoor waterpark! To book a hotel room, call
1-757-229-9700 and mention Classical Conversations. For general
information about the lodge and Colonial Williamsburg, visit Great Wolf Lodge/Williamsburg link and www.colonialwilliamsburg.com.
Note: Problems registering at GWL? CC has added more rooms! Call and ask for Tamika Nicholson. Call soon!
Mason, Ohio: October 3 - 8, 2010
Classical
Conversations, Cincinnati is presenting their first annual Great Wolf
Lodge Getaway from October 3 - 8 in Mason, Ohio. To make reservations
for this event, please call Great Wolf Lodge at 866-954-9653 and use
group code 1010CLAS. In addition to the fun and fellowship at Great Wolf
Lodge, discounted rates will be available for the Cincinnati Zoo,
Newport Aquarium, and Creation Museum. For more information, e-mail Tammy James, OH/KY Administrative Assistant.
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Quotable Quotes from CC Moms
|  "Never before have we been more in need of intelligent, well-spoken young people who are able to see the world's events in light of a biblical worldview and who are prepared to engage the culture while contending for the Christian faith. I am convinced that what we are doing through Classical Conversations is so much bigger than just schooling!"
Jeri Mazur
Shreveport, LA |
Parting Words
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 "We win the war with the world when we write [and speak] with wise words." --Harvey and Laurie Bluedorn,
Teaching the Trivium
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