To know God and to make Him known

Challenge II

Age 15+

Freedom Provides Opportunities for Noble Choices

Flowing from the examination of freedom in Challenge I, the Challenge II program leads high school-aged students to weigh the value and impact of choices executed by literary figures and heroes, historical leaders, artistic greats, and other men and women of influence.

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A student presenting at a community

Looking Back to Move Forward

Students study the flow and development of ideas that shaped Western thought and culture and how they have impacted twenty-first century thinking. British literature, Latin 2, traditional logic and Socratic dialogue, algebra and geometry, Western cultural history, and biology provide the academic core. Advances in language skills, research, writing, dialogue, and debate continue as Challenge II moves into a more rhetorical format than earlier Challenges. Elocution or “style” in written and oral presentations gains importance as students learn and practice new types of rhetorical skills, including persuasive, impromptu, and debate presentations.

Supported by their local community group, parents continue to gain confidence in homeschooling their child through the traditional high school years. Students are also able to earn college credits through our CC Plus program, should they desire.

There is No Growth Without Challenge

The Six Strands to Challenge II

Math is all around us if we know where to look. Each week, students further their understanding in math as the conversation centers around the ideas of numbers, laws, relationships, shapes, simple proofs, equations of higher orders, knowns and unknowns, and variables. Students recognize math in the geometry of nature, the proportions of art, and the ratios of music.

Learn to appreciate the beauty and complexity of God’s creation. Through this biology course, students study the beauty and complexity of God’s creation, including a hands-on laboratory science experience that correlates with text concepts. The weekly community group seminar experiments reinforce the scientific method, teaching microscope use and dissection techniques, all while remaining firmly rooted in a biblical, Christian worldview. Students sketch their observations, record their methods and data in their journals, and complete formal laboratory reports from selected experiments.

Challenging our present understanding can reveal gaps in our knowledge and build wisdom. In the first semester, studying Traditional Logic II, students continue with the logic ideas that they began in Challenge I. They begin to look at hypothetical rhetoric and complex syllogisms. At home, students study the text and complete daily exercises. In community seminar, students study new forms and examine arguments or philosophical ideas for logical thought and validity.

In the second semester, homeschool students are introduced to Socratic dialogue by reading Plato’s Crito aloud together in class. Then, they embark on a more in-depth study of Plato’s Meno dialogue. They attempt to define virtue and discuss whether it can be taught.

To aptly contemplate present ideas, we must examine their origins. With a year-long emphasis on Western cultural history, students will sift through the origin of ideas as they discuss, debate, and present analyses of Western culture and its defining influences from a Christ-centered worldview.

Using the skills of research, exposition, and logic, students reflect on the works of featured artists and composers and consider how the arts influence and are influenced by culture. The creation of a multi-year, ongoing timeline enables students to integrate major persons and events with the art periods and philosophical ideas of the time. Throughout the year, students work on enhancing their elocution, or rhetorical style, through a variety of formal speaking events, including team policy and Lincoln-Douglas debates.

Meticulous practice brings us closer to mastery. This course builds on the framework of language and mastery of vocabulary, rules, and endings established in the Challenges A, B, and I programs. Students progress to advanced Latin grammar and sentence structure, allowing for more complex translation and the ability to learn the Latin vocabulary in the context of Roman history. In the second semester of this homeschool program, students integrate the overarching theme of Challenge II and layer it with Western cultural influence as they read, translate, and discuss the conquests of Caesar in seminar.

By studying others, we better understand ourselves. This community seminar, as in Challenge I, allows homeschool students to develop strong exposition, composition, and rhetorical skills using classical British literature. Through the study of literary terms, the practice of Socratic discussion, and the refinement of persuasive essay writing, students examine the literature and scrutinize the value of their own opinions.

We embrace a real-world approach in all aspects of our education. Local directors can choose to offer a yearly formal event for Challenge students to better learn how to interact with their communities and each other.

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CLC has been great in helping me follow a form in preparing my lessons at home . . . I think through the lessons . . . and how to relate them to the students and create a desire to learn the material. The questions have been very helpful in assessing that the students are following the lessons, too.

Angela

The CLC has had the single largest positive impact on my growth as a classical educator. It is the reason my class feels successful on community day, and it has changed how I give assessment.

Laura G.

CLC was the perfect amount of time: every other week for two hours, with six meetings. It was manageable and the cost was well worth it! The lessons my mentor presented each time were great, and it was a growing experience.

Kristen

The encouragement and support from other parents is vital. I enjoy learning from those before me in their journey, encouraging those beside me, and sharing with those coming behind.

Laura
CC Parent

I am a grandmother homeschooling my 9-year-old granddaughter who has been through a lot of trauma with both parents. The moms, Tutors and Director have truly been encouraging and most accepting of this old grandma and her granddaughter. We are going into our 5th year at CC.

Cindy
Grandmother

My CC community breathes flavor, energy, and structure into my homeschool. The steady support, motivation to learn perpetually, and sweet fellowship is vital to me personally and to my family.

Cecile
CC Parent

As a longtime homeschooler, you can find 350 Classically-centered curricula on the market. What sets CC apart isn’t the carefully crafted history sentences, the infectious list of pronouns the kids chant, or the way you can tweak it to be whatever you want at home. It’s the community.

Heather
CC Parent

But what about socialization? I have to admit, I heard this question a couple times when I first decided to homeschool, but most people I come across don’t ask it anymore. If they do inquire about how I keep my kids socialized, I get to tell them about the amazing community God brought into our lives with Classical Conversations.

Wendy
CC Parent

My CC Community has been an integral part of our homeschool experience. I can’t imagine being on this journey alone, as a ‘lone wolf.’ I love how CC covers aspects of homeschooling that I would not get to on my own, such as weekly science experiments and art projects, and memorizing a world history Timeline of events. CC provides a ‘one stop shop’ for all of my homeschooling needs.

Autumn
CC Parent

Community is a very valuable part of CC. What other curriculum has weekly modeling lessons for us parents?

Heather
CC Parent

Our CC family is so much more than a group of fellow homeschoolers. They are the family who can truly understand my daily struggles as a homeschooling mom. They are the family who supported me emotionally and mentally when my husband passed away. They are the family that welcomed me with open arms when we had to move out of state and join a new CC family! There is nothing comparable to our CC family. I am so truly grateful.

Janelle
CC Parent

My director and fellow parents are tutors are more than colleagues; they’re friends. I’m thankful for the support, accountability, and friendship they offer.

Melissa
CC Parent

My community is my tribe. They are an extension of my family and make a difference in my success as a homeschooler.

Niki
CC Parent

We needed accountability and a group. Then CC came to my area. I could focus on enjoying learning alongside my children! My kids flourished, recognizing the education they were receiving in a CC community was different than many of their peers.

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