To know God and to make Him known
Jul 24, 2012

Do not grow weary in homeschooling!

“And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not” (Galatians 6:9, KJV). This summer many of you were renewed at a Classical Conversations’ Parent Practicum. Some of you may still be weary, and many of you may just...

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Jul 17, 2012

Formation, not Information

Matt Bianco and I were making an ANI chart the other day, on reasons to read the classics. This was in response to some quandaries people have raised about Leigh’s use of the Sanskrit word, mandala, in her new academic endeavor, the Mandala Fellowship. This link will allow you to read an...

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Jul 16, 2012

Making a Place for the Method of Loci

“For those early writers, a trained memory wasn’t just about gaining easy access to information; it was about strengthening one’s personal ethics and becoming a more complete person. A trained memory was the key to cultivating “judgment, citizenship, and piety.”” Joshua Foer, Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of...

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Jul 13, 2012

The Campus Experience and the Fourth of July

My wife and I just finished the mid-continental homeschool conference circuit. You would be amazed at how many times I was told that the campus experience was vastly overrated. As with anything you hear repeatedly among peers, it gives you pause. I reflected on the notion, “Was the campus...

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Jul 10, 2012

The Other Side of Leadership

History is the story of leaders.  Civilization remembers events revolving around leadership.   Any list of great leaders includes the malevolent as well as the benevolent, such as, Mohandas Gandhi, Winston Churchill, Nelson Mandela, Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, Adolf Hitler, Margaret Thatcher, Fidel Castro, Mao Zedong, Jesus, Martin Luther, Bono,...

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Jul 09, 2012

Considering the Universe Next Door

“s I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship…” (Paul speaking to the Athenians) “Wandering about in a twilight where all cats are grey is not seeking truth.” (Lesslie Newbigin, The Gospel in a Pluralist Society) Will our children grow up to be thinking adults who understand...

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Jul 02, 2012

Dialectic Lessons for Patriots

The reason so many academics miss the real history of America is that they assume that ideas don’t matter and that there is no such thing as virtue. –Introduction to A Patriot’s History of the United States1   This quote contains two parts that we must consider when reading Larry...

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Jun 27, 2012

Religious by Definition

To continue the discussion on Atheism which I began on June 14 <read here>, I want to examine some dictionary definitions of religion and argue that Atheism fits within these definitions. My hope is that, if you have any Atheist friends, this article will equip you with some conversation points...

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Jun 26, 2012

Preparing for Next Year’s Latin Class. . .

It is time to start thinking about organizing your class materials for next year! I love the feeling of a new year—new information to learn and several trips to Staples. Here are some things I recommend beyond Henle Latin Grammar: 1. A vocabulary notebook. This is a great idea created by an...

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Jun 25, 2012

Summer Socrates

It is late August—Day 1 of school for your Challenge kids. You, the tutor, ask the question, “What sort of cool things did you learn over the summer that challenged your thinking? What did you learn that made you defend your beliefs?” Hands shoot up all over the classroom,...

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