One Smart Mama

We've Moved!

2011-06-22T09:42:00.006-04:00

We've moved!

Please wait - in 10 seconds you should be redirected to my new blog page, http://leighbortins.com/blogger. If your browser does not automatically redirect you, click the link to access the new site.

Thanks for visiting!

Head Over to LeighBortins.com

2011-06-21T06:00:00.005-04:00

Dear Readers,

I'm excited to announce that the site has moved! Head on over to www.leighbortins.com/blogger to keep up with the latest posts and updates. Leave a comment to let me know what you think of the new site! Here's a peek at what it has to offer:

Don't forget to update your subscriptions by email or on Google Reader! After today, you will be automatically redirected to the new site from this page, but you still need to update your subscriptions.

Go to google.com/reader, log in with your Gmail account, and from the home page, click "Add a subscription" in the upper left corner. (See image.)

Paste leighbortins.com/blogger in the box, and click "Add."

I hope you enjoy the new site.

Classical Dads

2011-06-17T06:00:00.003-04:00

My son, do not despise the LORD's discipline
and do not resent his rebuke,
because the LORD disciplines those he loves,
as a father the son he delights in.
Proverbs 3:11-12

To conclude this week's fathers day theme, today I want to introduce you to two great articles from the CC Writers Circle by dads who are actively involved in their home schools.

Dads Who Dare is by Matt Bianco, a Classical Conversations dad who tutors in our local community and loves to spend time with his kids. Here's his call to fathers of families who homeschool:

"Fathers ... go to work for eight to ten hours a day and find that mother does a superb job of caring for the home and raising up godly children. That mothers do this is to be commended and celebrated. Indeed, it is not my intention to undo or change this. Rather, it is, my intention to call fathers to a deeper awareness of the awesomeness of this task and to call attention to their part in it." (...Keep Reading...)

Confessions of a Homeschooling Dad is by David Bailey, another Classical Conversations dad, who shares his initial reluctance, and growing joy, as a leader of his home school:

"My wife plugged in as a Challenge tutor and tapped into her passion for learning and teaching. Gradually I have come along, too. I am learning that the education of my children is not just my wife's responsibility - it's mine, too. In fact, it's mine primarily. God gives dads the role of spiritual leadership. He commands us to teach our children. That's a key concept of Deuteronomy 6 and in many other places through the Scriptures." (...Keep Reading...)

As we celebrate the fathers, grandfathers, uncles, surrogate fathers, and other mentoring men in our lives this weekend, let's be deliberate about looking for ways to affirm their commitment to educating their children, supporting their families (in whatever shape that takes), and seeking the Lord's guidance in their leadership.

Happy Fathers Day!

Dad at Home (2)

2011-06-16T06:00:00.003-04:00

There you saw how the LORD your God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place.
Deuteronomy 1:31

What role do fathers play in their family's home school? As you think about celebrating Fathers Day this weekend, read more stories from Smart Dads who share in and lead their families' home schools. (Read the first post in the 1 Smart Mama father's day series.)

More stories from Smart Dads who share in and lead their family's home school.

Dad @ Homeschool

We forget the size of the shadow we cast, and who it falls on. As fathers, our actions affect so much more than just ourselves. It ripples down to our children and our grandchildren. It’s not just a single act for good or ill. It’s a series, a pattern we imbue on our children. We can’t just show up at graduation and say, "I’m here. Good job, son." It’s being there, day after long and weary day, for each of our children. Fatherhood is less quality time and more quantity time with quality thrown it from time to time. Friendships, hobbies, and career goals die a quiet death as fathers decide that they will make time for their children. It is a noble calling to be a father, and it is worth everything you put in. (Read More...)

HomeSchool Dads

...God does things in me so he can do things in my son. Relationships run in two ways. When setting out to train a son, you begin with a very imperfect little boy. But that’s not the only problem. You also have a very imperfect little daddy in the equation. In this discipleing relationship, I have on many an occasion come face to face with a challenging question, “Do you really love this boy?. . . How much do you love him?” (Read More...)

HSD: Home School Dad

In late August of 2008 I became the 2nd full time teacher in the history of the Izola Becker Home School. I have never felt more suited for a job in my life. I love the commute. My students are like members of my own family. I am far from perfect. I yelled at my children last semester more than I ever yelled at them in their entire lifetime before. Sometimes just getting through the day with the three of them is all I can handle. But with all that said, this is the best job I have ever had! (Read More...)

Dad at Home (1)

2011-06-14T06:00:00.007-04:00

He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers...
Malachi 4:6

(Read the first post in the 1 Smart Mama father's day series.)

Like every Smart Mama who homeschools, every Smart Dad has a different story. These blogs and websites offer a window into the wide range of experiences dads have with home schooling.

During a Classical Conversations retreat at Great Wolf Lodge, VA, five dads talked about the journeys that brought them into home schooling, and what it has done for their families.

Dad's Homeschool Blog

Welcome to Dad’s Homeschool Blog. Yes, Dad’s Homeschool Blog and that does in fact mean that I, Dad will be the home schooling parent. I have been the stay at home Dad since the boys, now 7 and 8 were born. So how did I come to be the stay at home Dad and now the homeschool parent? (Read More...)

Danny Homeschooling Dad

Japanese-American Dad who's home educating (and trying to avoid schooling) 2 boys with his beloved Japanese wife. Self-educating -- the essence of home education -- since 1980 starting with calculus and computer programming in my 10th grade. (Read More...)

My Life as a Homeschool Dad

While home schooling seems to be atypical as compared to public and private schooling, home schooling with the father as principle teacher is certainly atypical to the mom-as-teacher approach. When my wife tells people at her work that we home school our kids, many of them envision her leaving them unsupervised at home with assignments, before they are told that I am the one staying at home teaching them. The home school support group at our church has monthly mom meetings for the teachers. Suffice it to say I have never attended. (Read More...)

Stay tuned for more stories as we continue our celebration of homeschool dads. Want to share your own story? Leave a comment!

1 Smart...Dad?

2011-06-13T06:00:00.012-04:00

Here at 1 Smart Mama, we spend a lot of time speaking to moms, because moms are at the forefront of so many home schools. This week, as we approach Fathers Day, I want to shift the focus and speak to the homeschool dads who are sometimes left out of the picture.

The National Fatherhood Initiative has done a study called "Pop's Culture," surveying dads across the country about their views on fathering. The survey produced some challenging results. According to NFI, "91 percent of respondents agreed there is a father absence crisis in America. Only slightly more than half of the fathers agreed that they felt adequately prepared for fatherhood. 'Work responsibilities' was named as the largest obstacle to being a good father, and over 50 percent of respondents agreed that fathers are replaceable by mothers and other men."

In another NFI study, "Mama Says," 1533 moms shared their views on fathering. The results were surprisingly similar. "Nine in ten mothers (93%) agree that there is a father absence crisis in America today. Mothers - even those that indicated that they were 'not at all religious' - indicated that 'churches or communities of faith' are the best places for fathers to learn about fatherhood."

The National Home Education Research Institute reported that in 2009, more than 97 percent of homeschoolers were in married-couple families, so it might be easy to conclude that the "father absence crisis" doesn't affect our community.

And yet, an article in The Old Schoolhouse Magazine pointed out that moms make up 99 percent of the primary teachers in home education.

Mom's ability to stay at home with the kids may depend on Dad's working long hours away from home. On the other hand, as the nature of work in America shifts, some families are blessed to have both parents working, at least part time, from home. Mom and Dad may share teaching responsibilities, or Dad may be the primary teacher, or Dad may not know how to get involved.

The question I think we have to ask in all of these situations is how parents, churches, and homeschool communities can support entire families.

One of the first steps is to ask a lot of questions: What is the biblical role of a father in his children's education? What practical limitations of work and money does our family have to work with? What small changes can we make to help dad fulfill his God-given role? As a larger community, how can we invite fathers into what can be a mom-centered conversation about homeschooling?

It's exciting and encouraging to see homeschool dads stepping out and exploring their role in their family's home schools, and this week, I want to share some of their stories with you.

Won't you join us?

You may find The Home Schooling Father, by Michael P. Farris, a good place to start the conversation.

Celebrity and the Home School

2011-06-09T06:00:00.006-04:00

If you search for homeschooling on the national news media, one of the first stories that comes up this week is "Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt Snub Modern Education, Opt to Homeschool."

They're not the first celebrity couple to homeschool. Actors travel a lot, making it difficult to establish children in a regular school schedule. But every time one of these headlines appears, there's a predictable flurry of commentary calling the publicity good or bad for serious homeschooling families.

Instead of focusing on what this means for the future of homeschooling, I want to use the opportunity to take us back to a very important, very basic, (very challenging) question: why do we homeschool?

Ask any homeschool mom or dad, and they'll tell you that homeschooling is hard work. It demands the investment of time, money, and energy. It requires families to make hard choices that depart from the downstream pull of government-run education.

If the only reason we homeschool is a negative one (I don't want my child in a public school), then homeschooling can become drudgery, as enslaving to the mind as the school systems we've rejected.

If, on the other hand, we homeschool because we want to raise our children to be whole people who understand what it means to be free, if we homeschool because we want to nurture our children's souls along with their minds, then we have something to hold on to when Algebra seems impossible, when the 2-year-old won't obey, when the house is a mess, and when there are no celebrities on the news to make homeschooling look glamorous.

We can keep going at that moment because we know it's not about immediate results or the fads of the day. It's a life-long journey that we're taking along with our families as we seek to know God and to make Him known.

Even if that means we spend a lot of the journey on our knees instead of on TV.

CiRCE Conference: Coming in July!

2011-06-07T06:00:00.002-04:00

The theme of the 2011 CiRCE Institute Conference is "What is Man: A Contemplation of the Divine Image." It will be held this year in Arlington, Texas from July 20 to July 23.

According to C.S. Lewis, we live in “the world of post-humanity which, some knowingly, and some unknowingly, nearly all men in all nations are at present laboring to produce.” If he is right, then we must each face the disheartening fact that we could be helping construct this “post-human” world.

If this was the case more than fifty years ago, when Mr. Lewis wrote, how much more true is it today? And if Mr. Lewis is right, we must each face the troubling possibility that we could each be helping construct this “post-human” world.

Modern pedagogy builds its educational structures on the patterns of the modern age, in a way that removes the chests of our children. In fact, modern pedagogy does not believe there is such a thing as human nature and it teaches like it. Do you?

Or do you teach like you believe your students are made in the Image of God? Do we?

What a rewarding question to ponder this summer.

Speakers at this event will include author and literary critic Gregory Wolfe, Dr. Vigen Guroian, Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Virginia, CiRCE's Andrew Kern, and Martin Cothran, author of Traditional Logic. On Friday, Classical Conversations' own Heather Shirley will be leading a workshop on "Cultivating the Ideal and Tending the Real."

If past conferences are any indication, this will be a rich and revitalizing event.

Register today online at www.circeinstitute.com/conference, or by phone at 704.786.9684. If you're a member of a Classical Conversations community, call or email before June 15th to ask about a special discounted price.

2011-06-03T10:00:00.002-04:00

National Spelling Bee Results
Congratulations to homeschoolers Veronica Penny, for her 6th place finish, and Samuel Estep, for his 13th place finish!
Home-schooling: Mom-and-me instills volunteer spirit
Read about a Tennessee mom's volunteer group for 8- to 12-year-old girls.
Home school, Private School or Public School: Touchy Subject
Jen@Balancing Beauty & Bedlam shares her approach to talking about it.
How to Read a Great Book (Gorgias as Type)
Andrew Kern talks about the structure and signposts of reading.
Homeschooling and the clueless Miss Marple
WND: What do the statistics say about homeschooling in West Virginia?
The Vital Place of the Sciences in the Classical Curriculum
"...philosophy and religion begin, in terms of inquiry, where empiricism reaches its natural or practical end...."
Homeschool Mom Interviews: Molly Balint
Re-posted from The Pioneer Woman.

Spell F-r-e-e-d-o-m

2011-06-02T06:00:00.005-04:00

This morning is the semi-final round, and tonight is the final round of the 2011 Scripps National Spelling Bee. You might have seen the photos from the preliminary rounds: faces showing elation, anxiety, despair. (Of course, such things make better copy for the media.)

Of the 50 semifinalists, 13-year-old Veronica Penny is a homeschooler from Ontario, Canada. Grace Remmer from Florida, age 12, is also home schooled. So are 13-year-old Gina Solomito from Indiana and 13-year-old Samuel Estep from Virginia.

They're spelling words like "febrifugal," "tchotchke," and "profligacy." Everyone can see how smart and dedicated these kids are, but not everyone thinks of advanced spelling as a valuable skill.

A blogger called "Geek Mom" has written an excellent post answering the question, "What is the value of the national spelling bee in the age of spell check and predictive text?" The whole piece is well-worth reading, but in particular, Geek Mom gives a great illustration of what it means to improve your vision through spelling mastery.

I was once given the word S-I-L-I-C-I-F-E-R-O-U-S in a spelling bee. I’d never heard the word before. I asked for the definition. Containing silicon. I asked for the etymology. Latin. I asked for the part of speech. Adjective. With this information, I was able to construct the word in its entirety. I knew about silicon, and thus had the S-I-L-I-C-I beginning. The Latin root told me that the middle part of the word would be F-E-R rather than P-H-O-R and the fact that it was an adjective, not a noun, told me that the word ended in O-U-S rather than U-S. Siliciferous. One word can encapsulate an entire education.

Last week, we focused on words and sentences. Isn't it amazing how much there is to see within individual words?

As learners, we start our examination of language with our naked eyes. We learn to speak and read simple words. Then we pull out a magnifying glass. We study basic grammar. We memorize common spelling words. Finally, we use a powerful microscope. We learn about word origins and study foreign languages. We compare the nuances of synonyms and contrast active and passive verbs. We use all of these tools to become good readers, writers, and speakers.

We don't forget about the big picture, but we learn how to appreciate and understand it more fully by celebrating the details.

It's the details like these help us become whole (inviolate, replete), free (untrammeled, emancipated) people.

For more information about teaching spelling classically, read chapter 4 in The Core. Another great resource is Spelling Plus, by Susan C. Anthony.

Essentially Yours

2011-05-31T06:00:00.005-04:00

Hi Friends,

If you're part of an Essentials community, I have good news! The new Essentials of the English Language - 4th Edition is now available to ship! Visit the Classical Conversations Bookstore to order your copy! You can get a special discount price at Parent Practicums this summer or by ordering online today. You will need to enter your director's name for verification when you check out.

If you've just happened across my blog and you're not in an Essentials community, you might be wondering what it's all about.

An "essential" (going back to the Latin esse, "to be") is something that is absolutely necessary or foundational.

The Classical Conversations Essentials program (read more about it here) is all about the essentials of language, writing, and arithmetic. By memorizing core information and then analyzing it and asking questions about it, students -- and parents -- learn to identify and apply the structure of language arts and mathematics.

What's so important about that?

Well, first, knowing the structures of language and math prepares you to use them well. You learn to write coherently, speak persuasively, and calculate complex equations once you master the basics. From there, you might go on to testify before Congress, write a book that touches millions, or use mathematics to advance cancer research.

But there's another, equally important reason to seek out this kind of knowledge.

The intermediate origin of the word "essential" is the word "essence," or "being." Until the 1600s, essence was understood not just to mean the basic nature of something, but to point back to the Trinity. You see, the root of "es," in the earliest languages, means "I am."

So when we study the structure of languages and mathematics, we do so to discover more about God's creation. As Proverbs 25:2 says, "It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of kings."

Stop and think about that for a moment. Memorizing parts of speech and the multiplication tables can be the glory of kings. Imagine that!

That's why we get excited about the Essentials.

Who Do You Remember?

2011-05-30T06:00:00.003-04:00

Today, May 30, 2011, is Memorial Day.

Who do you remember and honor today?

American poet Walt Whitman wrote a poem called "Dirge for Two Veterans," which was published in 1900 in Leaves of Grass. As you read his words, think about how you can say thank you to those among your family and friends who have served or are serving in the U.S. military.

"Dirge for Two Veterans"

The last sunbeam
Lightly falls from the finish'd Sabbath,
On the pavement here, and there beyond it is looking,
Down a new-made double grave.

Lo, the moon ascending,
Up from the east the silvery round moon,
Beautiful over the house-tops, ghastly, phantom moon,
Immense and silent moon.

I see a sad procession,
And I hear the sound of coming full-key'd bugles,
All the channels of the city streets they're flooding,
As with voices and with tears.

I hear the great drums pounding,
And the small drums steady whirring,
And every blow of the great convulsive drums,
Strikes me through and through.

For the son is brought with the father,
(In the foremost ranks of the fierce assault they fell,
Two veterans son and father dropt together,
And the double grave awaits them.)

Now nearer blow the bugles,
And the drums strike more convulsive,
And the daylight o'er the pavement quite has faded,
And the strong dead-march enwraps me.

In the eastern sky up-buoying,
The sorrowful vast phantom moves illumin'd,
('Tis some mother's large transparent face,
In heaven brighter growing.)

O strong dead-march you please me!
O moon immense with your silvery face you soothe me!
O my soldiers twain! O my veterans passing to burial!
What I have I also give you.

The moon gives you light,
And the bugles and the drums give you music,
And my heart, O my soldiers, my veterans,
My heart gives you love.

Weekend Reading

2011-05-27T09:57:00.005-04:00

It's the end of the month, and some folks have an extended weekend ahead. In addition to enjoying the sunshine and spending time with your family, it's the perfect time for you smart moms and dads to catch up on your reading, reflect, and renew your minds.

Why not start with some of this month's articles from the CC Writers Circle?

The articles in this series reflect on the reasons we homeschool, how to homeschool more effectively, how to homeschool classically, creation and science, Latin, classical education, homeschool sports, and getting into college. The writers are alumni, directors, state managers, and individuals outside Classical Conversations.

Here's a list of articles from the month of May. You can find a complete archive on the Classical Conversations website under "Articles."

Toward the Quadrivium: Event Review - Matt Bianco
Book Review: How to Write a Sentence: And How to Read One, by Stanley Fish - Matt Bianco
What Should Homeschoolers Read During the Summer?
Understanding Stories to Understand the City of God - Matt Bianco
Rigorous Academics: Preparation for Christian Service? - Jennifer Courtney
Getting Our Bearings: Setting in Literature - Andrew Adams
Spirituality in Physics - Jonathan Bartlett
Is Your Writing Organic or Rational? - Andrew Kern
The Beauty of Homeschooling - Andrea Newitt
Classical Conversations Social Media: Link to a Group Near You
Lessons from Vacation: The World Classroom - Jennifer Courtney
A Day in the Life of the Bianco Homeschool - Patty Bianco
The Eternal Pursuit of the Knowledge of God (and the liberal artist's head start) - Aaron Hebbard, Ph.D.
Late Bloomers - David Bailey
How Latin Helps You Make Friends and Influence People - Kathy Sheppard
Time to Reflect, Renew, Refresh - Jennifer Courtney
Instead Of - A Homeschool Mother's Day Poem
National Day of Prayer
Beauty in the Eye of the Beholder - Tobin Duby
Beautiful Treasures: The Core of Fine Arts - Jennifer Courtney

Have a great weekend!

How Do You Remember?

2011-05-26T06:00:00.003-04:00

How do you remember?

For many Americans, Memorial Day weekend is about grilling out, going to the beach, and having picnics and get-togethers. While there's nothing wrong -- and a lot right -- with celebrating community, on Memorial Day (Monday) Americans are called to remember the men and women who have died serving their country.

In 1867, Mrs. Nella L. Sweet dedicated a hymn to southern women who decorated their husbands' graves after the Civil War. Her lyrics describe one version of remembrance. Read them closely, and take time to really think about what she's saying. Do you agree?

"Kneel Where Our Loves are Sleeping"

Kneel where our loves are sleeping,
Dear ones loved in days gone by,
Here we bow in holy rev'rence,
Our bosoms heave the heartfelt sigh.
They fell as brave men, true as steel,
And pour'd their blood like rain--
We feel we owe them all we have,
And can but kneel and weep again.

Kneel where are loves are sleeping,
They lost, but still were good and true,
Our fathers, brothers fell still fighting,
We weep, 'tis all that we can do.
(Historic American Sheet Music, Duke University)

What, or rather who, do you remember? And not only that, but how do you remember? What does it look like to honor someone's sacrifice?

These are the big questions we're invited to ask ourselves and our families this weekend.

Visit www.usmemorialday.org for more about the history and purpose of this national holiday.

We're Moving!

2011-05-25T06:00:00.004-04:00

Hi Smart Mamas, Dads, and friends,

As part of changes designed to make it easier for you to access information and get connected with other like-minded families and individuals, I'm excited to announce that the 1SmartMama blog will soon be moving over to Wordpress!

You can still visit 1smartmama.blogspot.com, but starting in June, you'll be re-directed to www.leighbortins.com/blogger. Stay tuned for notifications about exactly when the change will take place.

Don't forget to update your subscriptions when it happens!

If you have suggestions or recommendations for the new site, email TellUs@classicalconversations.com or 1smartmama@gmail.com. I welcome your feedback.

Thanks for being a part of our online community!

What Do You Remember?

2011-05-23T06:00:00.007-04:00

This week, as we approach Memorial Day, Americans are invited to think carefully about what it means to be free.

In a 1983 address, President Reagan spoke about what a day of remembrance means. This is what he said:

...Today, as in the past, there are problems that must be solved and challenges that must be met. We can tackle them with our full strength and creativity only because we are free to work them out in our own way. We owe this freedom of choice and action to those men and women in uniform who have served this nation and its interests in time of need. In particular, we are forever indebted to those who have given their lives that we might be free.

I don't have to tell you how fragile this precious gift of freedom is. Every time we hear, watch, or read the news, we are reminded that liberty is a rare commodity in this world.

This Memorial Day of 1983, we honor those brave Americans who died in the service of their country. I think an ancient scholar put it well when he wrote: 'Let us now praise famous men...All these were honored in their generation, and were the glory of their times. Their bodies are buried in peace; but their name liveth for evermore.' As a tribute to their sacrifice, let us renew our resolve to remain strong enough to deter aggression, wise enough to preserve and protect our freedom, and thoughtful enough to promote lasting peace throughout the world.

This year at Classical Conversations, one of our driving questions has been, "What does it mean to be free?"

Our goal as parents is to give our families a liberating -- freeing -- education. That means training our brains through the study of history, philosophy, science, mathematics, literature, and art. But it also means asking hard questions about what we remember and why, so we can evaluate each new idea in light of truth.

It can be a daunting task, can't it? Yet, it's also an exciting and fulfilling one. This week, I want to take advantage of the chance to talk about memory, freedom, and sacrifice.

Won't you join me?

What Do You See?

2011-05-20T06:00:00.006-04:00

This summer at our Parent Practicums, we're talking about improving our vision in two ways--both in terms of the big picture and in terms of the details: our ability to see. (Listen to our conversation about these topics on the CC Parent Practicum Podcast.)

We learn phonics by looking at the building blocks of words; we learn grammar by looking at the building blocks of sentences; we learn Algebra by looking at the building blocks of arithmetic.

Why, then, do we assume that we can understand and respond to complex ideas and arguments about freedom, education, and beauty without looking at the building blocks of ideas?

Let me ask you again: how's your vision?

If you look at a poem or a math problem--they're not as different as you might think--what do you notice? Do you pay attention to the details? Let's try it out.

One of the most-read poems in America is Robert Frost's "The Road Not Taken." The funny thing is that a lot of people call it "The Road Less Traveled." Think about those two titles for a minute. They're pretty different, aren't they? That just goes to show how blurry our vision can be.

Now look at the poem. Remember, don't stop at the end of the line; read to the punctuation marks. How does that change your reading?

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

Ask, where are the nouns? Where are the verbs? What does a semicolon tell us as readers? How many sentences are there? Are they imperative, interrogative, or a declarative sentences? Who is speaking? To whom is he/she speaking?

These are the building blocks not only of being a good reader, but also a good thinker.

When you encounter a new idea, you should ask similar questions: what does this argument assume to be true about the world (nouns)? What would happen if we applied the logic of this argument to other situations (verbs)? How does this argument get from point A to point B (punctuation)? If we accepted this argument, what would it push us to believe or do (purpose)? Do we trust the person making this argument (speaker)?

It's amazing how many basic questions modern readers gloss over and yet still "know" a poem, memorize a math equation, or support a political position.

In order to have a grand vision, sometimes we have to visit the eye doctor first. Come join us as a bunch of smart moms and dads diagnose our vision at Parent Practicums this summer!

Improving Your Vision

2011-05-18T06:00:00.007-04:00

How's your vision?

I don't just mean your eyesight. It's the end of another school year, and if you're like the rest of us, your inspiration and vision for your home school may be running on empty.

This summer is the perfect time to improve your vision for your home school at one of our 1- or 3-day free Parent Practicums. You'll learn more about the relationship between freedom and education and be reminded of the high calling you've chosen to pursue with your family.

Just this week, 3-day practicums are taking place in Ohio, Colorado, and Virginia. Click here to find one in your state!

When your heart and mind need to be renewed, the fellowship of other like-minded (and like-wearied!) individuals is a great encouragement. You're not tackling this alone.

Read Jen @ Balancing Beauty and Bedlam's response to a 3-day practicum she attended: Brain Power: How Deeply Do You Think?. Listen in to the CC Parent Practicum Podcast (say that three times fast!) with Matt Bianco, Tobin Duby, and Heather Shirley. Then watch the video:

2011-05-14T10:00:00.001-04:00

Brain Power: How Deeply Do You Think?
Read Jen's thoughtful response to a 3-day Classical Conversations Parent Practicum.
Fair Trade: Are Good Intentions Good Enough? (Acton)
Are you interested in economics and aid? Read commentary on this popular solution.
Film Spanks U.N. Treaty on the Rights of the Child
Find out more about a recent documentary produced by Generation Joshua.
Recent Brain Research Offers Insight into Math Anxiety
"No one walks around bragging that they can't read, but it's perfectly socially acceptable to say you don't like math..."
Disappearing Words, Part IV: What do we do about it?
The final piece in Susan Wise Bauer's series on the decline of the word.
Report: U.S. college freshmen less prepared nowadays, presidents say
It's more important than ever to ask hard questions about what it means to be truly educated. For example, see...
What is a Love of Learning? (CiRCE)
Andrew Kern works through a model for inspiring lifelong learning. Also...
The Mother of Learning (CiRCE)
Read more about the historical importance of memory as the foundation of learning.

Understanding Civitas

2011-05-12T06:00:00.009-04:00

This week has seen another of the rash of articles decrying American students' lack of knowledge about civics and government.

The Washington Post says only a quarter of high school seniors are "proficient" in civics knowledge and skills, even though many are now old enough to vote (Many students lack civics knowledge, study shows).

"Knowledge of our system of government is not handed down through the gene pool," retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor said in a statement. "The habits of citizenship must be learned. ... But we have neglected civic education for the past several decades, and the results are predictably dismal"... (Read more)

An article in EdWeek (Is Your Civics Knowledge a) Advanced, b) Proficient, c) Basic, or d) Below Basic) gives a sample of the questions from the latest NAEP exam. They include:

8th grade:
The Bill of Rights was added to the Constitution of the United States to:
a) Ensure that the federal government would be run by a system of checks and balances
b) Set up two parties that would share control of the federal government
c) Establish and protect various civil liberties
d) Guarantee that large states would not overpower smaller ones
46% answered correctly (__)
The First Amendment guarantees people in the United States the right to:
a) Own property
b) Own firearms
c) Speak freely
d) A fair trial
74% answered correctly (__)
(See the answers...)

How did you do? Did this exercise make you feel anxious?

If so, you're not alone.

At Classical Conversations, we study history and civics in more than one way. We memorize a time line of world events.We learn sentences about major eras in history. We read a lot of stories about history. We copy and write paragraphs from histories. We read original documents from the foundations of American government. We debate topics in current events.

We do all of these things because we know it's by returning to the same information from different angles that we keep our knowledge limber and readily available to us.

We do all of these things because we want our children to grow into their rights and responsibilities as citizens, just as we're growing into ours.

Finally, we do all of these things because we want our children to be eager -- not afraid or apathetic -- to participate in our system of governance, so they can change it for the better.

Unapologetic Parents

2011-05-10T06:00:00.006-04:00

What is our culture telling you about what it means to be a parent?

This week, Jay Mathews wrote in The Washington Post about his experiences as a public school dad (Who says I'm an over involved dad?). Mathews shares his frustration with the current paradigm for parental involvement in education:

I think our schools, and our culture, have the wrong attitude about mothers and fathers who have skills and knowledge to share.
If I were a former college pitcher and spent much time helping my daughter perfect her rhythm on the mound, would anyone object? No. I might even get an award from the local Little League if she got us to the finals.

But if my wife and I, both journalists, edited our children’s school essays, or if our Paris-born neighbors corrected all the errors in their children’s French homework, or if my cousin the trial lawyer prepped his daughter for her graded classroom debate in U.S. government, many people, including some well-meaning teachers, would say we were going over the line.

Mathews identifies a core problem of schooling (at home or in a classroom) when it stops being a relationship between committed learners -- some further along the road, others just starting out.

Whether it's a parent proofreading without stopping to teach the child the difference between a passive and an active verb or a teacher providing just enough information to pass the End-of-Grade test, we've lost something. We've given over to the factory; we've lost sight of the human.

Every parent has knowledge and skills to share, but more than that, every parent has a relationship to build with their children. Mathews concludes,

In 2007 the National Survey of Student Engagement found that college students whose parents frequently intervened on their behalf “reported higher levels of engagement and more frequent use of deep learning experiences.” Helping your child learn should not be something shameful. Let’s say out loud that we are going to pass on what we know, no matter what anyone else thinks about it. (Read more)

Let's say more than that. Let's say we are going to give our children the chance to watch us struggle with learning, so they can copy our perseverance and character. Let's say we are going to give our children consistent, ongoing guidance that recognizes them to be whole human beings in need of nurture, not just programming.

Let's say we aren't afraid to be parents.

Happy Mothers Day!

2011-05-08T06:00:00.001-04:00

Happy Mothers' Day!

Today we honor all the mothers, mothers-to-be, and surrogate mothers who dedicate time, energy, and enthusiasm to training their children to be life-long learners.

Thank you for all that you do!!

"Teach your children to choose the right path, and when they are older, they will remain upon it."

~ Proverbs 22:6

2011-05-06T09:24:00.003-04:00

Is a Gap-Year the Right Thing for Your Christian Student?
Information from CiRCE on the Center for Western Studies, a college-level gap year program that provides training in Christian worldview and the historical foundations of Western civilization.
The Royal Wedding - Using it as a Homeschool Lesson
One Canadian mom talks about her wedding-based "teachable moment."
Doctrine of Lord's Supper: Recommended Readings
Ligonier Ministries shares some of their favorite readings on this theological issue.
Disappearing Words: Part I, Part II, Part III - Part IV to come!
A thoughtful new series by Susan Wise Bauer about the decline of the print book.
Beyond the Walls of the World (CiRCE)
An interview with Jeffrey Overstreet on the value of fairy tales & fantasy.
Review: Author Tells of Reading Jane Austen
Check out this review of William Deresiewicz's A Jane Austen Education: How Six Novels Taught Me About Love, Friendship, and the Things That Really Matter.

National Day of Prayer

2011-05-05T06:00:00.007-04:00

Today, Thursday, May 5, we here at CC encourage you to join people all around the nation who will be praying for our country. As the Scripture says, "where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am with them" (Matthew 18:20). Gather together to send up prayers for our families, churches, states, and nation.

The National Day of Prayer Task Force reminds us:

Prayer has always been used in this country for guidance, protection and strength-even before we were a nation or a handful of colonies. The Pilgrims at Plymouth relied on prayer during their first and darkest winter. Our founding fathers also called for prayer during the Constitutional Convention. In their eyes, our recently created nation and freedoms were a direct gift from God. And being a gift from God, there was only one way to insure protection-through prayer.
President Abraham Lincoln knew this well. It was his belief that, “it is the duty of nations as well as men, to owe their dependence upon the overruling power of God.” When it came to the fate of the nation, he practiced what he preached. Before the battle of Gettysburg, he turned to God in prayer. “I went to my room one day and I locked the door and got down on my knees before Almighty God and prayed to him mightily for victory at Gettysburg.” Won by the Union, Gettysburg was one of the turning points in the war that ended slavery and kept the states united. Today the need for prayer is as great as ever. Our nation again faces battlefields, along with an epidemic of broken homes, violence, sexual immorality and social strife. As the heroes of our nation did in the past, we must again bow our heads in prayer. We must ask the Lord to bless our leaders with wisdom and protection, and that we will have the fortitude to overcome the challenges at hand. If Roosevelt, the Pilgrims and Lincoln never underestimated the power of prayer, neither should we. (Read more...)

For more information on this event, please visit the National Day of Prayer website. You can also listen to the archive of my interview with Executive Director John Bornschein.

To read more of what Scripture says about prayer, you can start with 1 Thessalonians 5.17-18, Hosea 10.12, Colossians 3.2, and Philippians 4.6-7.

Leigh! at Lunch Cancelled

2011-05-03T11:41:00.004-04:00

We are sorry to announce the May 4th and May 11th Leigh! at Lunch shows have been canceled. The shows are being canceled so that Leigh can remain at her mother's side. Her mother, Pat, has been fighting a battle against cancer for some time now, a battle that is close to concluding.

Please keep Leigh's mother and family in your prayers, the Lord knows their needs. Leigh! at Lunch will resume in the fall.

Stanley Fish on Leigh! at Lunch

2011-05-03T06:00:00.007-04:00

We're sorry, but this show has been canceled. Blog Talk Radio will resume in the fall.

~~Wednesday, May 4 at 12 noon~~ on Leigh! at Lunch, I'll be talking to Dr. Stanley Fish, a well-known public intellectual, writer, and commentator for The New York Times.

Click here to go directly to the show.

Stanley Fish is the Davidson-Kahn Distinguished University Professor and a professor of law at Florida International University, in Miami, and dean emeritus of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He has also taught at the University of California at Berkeley, Johns Hopkins and Duke University, in Durham, N.C.

Mr. Fish is the author of 10 books, including How Milton Works, The Trouble With Principle, Professional Correctness: Literary Studies and Political Change, and There's No Such Thing as Free Speech, and It's a Good Thing, Too. His essays and articles have appeared in The Chronicle of Higher Education, Harper's Magazine, Esquire, The Atlantic, and The New York Times.

Join us at noon on Blog Talk Radio and call or chat in with your questions for Dr. Fish!

Toward the Quadrivium - Thank You!http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

2011-05-02T06:00:00.008-04:00

Many thanks to all who joined us this weekend at Toward the Quadrivium: A Classical Conversation with Nancy Pearcey and Leigh Bortins!! Thank you for helping us make the first "Toward the Quadrivium" event a success!

Missed it? Read Matt Bianco's Event Review.

Are you excited to learn more? Start with these articles...

These and other resources are available at TowardtheQuadrivium.com.

What are your thoughts on the quadrivium or on this weekend's event? We'd love to hear them! Email TellUs@classicalconversations.com.

2011-04-29T08:45:00.005-04:00

Kids Train for Triathlons (TN)
Read about some of the amazing challenges home school families are taking together.
There is Hope for the Organizationally Challenged (Patch)
One mom shares her journey toward a workable schedule for her home school.
Today's lesson: Home-school the kids in financial literacy (Canada)
Children learn their most valuable lessons about budgeting and relating wisely to money at home.
Christian Ministries and Southern Tornadoes (Acton)
See how the Church is stepping up to help in the aftermath of this week's devastating storms.
150 Years Later: Primary Sources, Technology Bring the Civil War to Life (EdWeek)
Check out these resources to help your students to first-hand accounts of the Civil War.
How will state pay for home schooling? (WA)
ALE (alternative learning experiences) give the government authority over families' home school choices: "'We are concerned that these programs are redefining ‘home schooling’ as something now offered through the public school,' Scott Brannan, president of the Christian Homeschool Network, wrote in a letter to the superintendent’s office."
Embracing a Classical Education (Washington Post)
One Catholic school turns to the classical model to train students in the good, the true, and the beautiful.
New Museum Will Strive to 'Reveal the Wonders' of Math (EdWeek)
Start planning your visit to the new Math museum in NYC! Opens in 2012. Visit MoMath.org for more information.

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 4/27/11

2011-04-27T13:00:00.011-04:00

If you're interested in topics that came up during this week's show, here are a few links and tips from Leigh at Lunch on Blog Talk Radio 4/27/11, "Thomas Woods on Leigh at Lunch" (Click on the title to listen to the show archive).

Had a question for today's show you didn't get to ask? Email 1smartmama@gmail.com or comment on this post for an answer!

Coming soon from 1 Smart Mama

Tune in next Wednesday, May 4, at 12 noon EST to talk with Leigh and Stanley Fish, a professor of humanities and law at Florida International University, and a prominent writer and New York Times commentator.

Ongoing events

Join us THIS WEEKEND for "Toward the Quadrivium," with Leigh Bortins and Nancy Pearcey, about science and teaching the quadrivium: April 29-30 in Manassas, Virginia. Tomorrow is the last day for the lower-price early registration.

Register as a friend on BlogTalkRadio to be eligible for our weekly drawing! Click "follow" so you'll get updates about spontaneous and pre-recorded shows.

Send questions to Leigh for her next book on the dialectic via AskLeigh@ymail.com.

Email us at TellUs@classicalconversations.com to let us know what topics you'd like to see on upcoming Blog Talk Radio shows!

Notes from today's show

Get ready for next week's guest, Stanley Fish, by reading How to Write a Sentence, available from the CC Bookstore. (Another great read on this subject is Our Mother Tongue).

Thomas Woods is the author of Rollback and Meltdown, among others. See the full list here.

Check out a list of other sound recordings and articles by Woods at the Mises Institute.

Visit the Ludwig von Mises Institute to find out more about his work in economics and check out all the available resources.

Purchase your own copy of today's prize, Whatever Happened to Penny Candy?, from the CC Bookstore.

To learn more about the student loan crisis, check out these articles: Another Debt Crisis is Brewing, This One in Student Loans (NYTimes), The $555,000 Student-Loan Burden (WSJournal), and Student Loans Leave Crushing Debt Burden (CSNBC).

Visit Woods' site at TomWoods.com to read free chapters of several books and find more articles, videos, and information.

Starting in September, look for Woods' online high school and college curriculum from a group of expert faculty on western civilization and U.S. history.

Check out the economic books by Richard Maybury and others available from CC: Economics in a Box, Bluestocking Guide to Economics, and Whatever Happened to Penny Candy?.

Read Walter Block's "A Future of Private Roads and Highways" from the Mises Institute. Also see his book The Privatization of Roads and Highways. Hear him talk about the book on YouTube.

"The Current Financial Crisis -- and After" by Kevin Dowd from the Mises Institute describes the fiscal crisis Woods describes.

Start reading about the philosophy of "agorism" via this Wikipedia article.

Read The Politically Incorrect Guide to American History by Woods and other Politically Incorrect guides from Regnery Publishing.

Thomas Woods on Leigh! at Lunch

2011-04-27T06:10:00.007-04:00

Dear Friends,

This Wednesday, April 27 at 12 noon on Leigh! at Lunch, I'll be talking to New York Times bestselling author Thomas Woods.

Click here to go directly to the show.

Thomas E. Woods, Jr., is a senior fellow of the Ludwig von Mises Institute. He holds a bachelor's degree in history from Harvard and his master's, M.Phil., and Ph.D. from Columbia University.

He is the author of eleven books, most recently Rollback: Repealing Big Government Before the Coming Fiscal Collapse and Nullification: How to Resist Federal Tyranny in the 21st Century.

His other books include the New York Times bestsellers Meltdown: A Free-Market Look at Why the Stock Market Collapsed, the Economy Tanked, and Government Bailouts Will Make Things Worse and The Politically Incorrect Guide to American History, as well as Who Killed the Constitution? The Fate of American Liberty from World War I to George W. Bush (with Kevin R.C. Gutzman), Sacred Then and Sacred Now: The Return of the Old Latin Mass, 33 Questions About American History You're Not Supposed to Ask, How the Catholic Church Built Western Civilization, and The Church and the Market: A Catholic Defense of the Free Economy.

His critically acclaimed 2004 book The Church Confronts Modernity was recently released in paperback by Columbia University Press. A collection of Woods' essays, called W obronie zdrowego rozsadku, was released exclusively in Polish in 2007. Woods' books have been translated into Italian, Spanish, Polish, French, German, Czech, Portuguese, Croatian, Slovak, Russian, Korean, Japanese, and Chinese.

Join us at noon on Blog Talk Radio, and call or chat in with your questions!

Book Sales and Savings

2011-04-27T06:00:00.002-04:00

Looking for that older-edition book you just can't seem to find? Wanting to add to your collection of great literature? Check out some of these upcoming events for reduced-price curriculum and books.

Thurs., April 28-May 1, St. Louis, MO, Greater St. Louis Book Fair
April 28-30, Winston-Salem, NC: Shepherd's Center Book Sale
Fri., April 29, Alpharetta, GA: Homeschool Used Book/Curriculum Sale
April 29-May 1, Greenville, SC, Greenville Friends of the Library Book Sale
May 5-7, Burke, VA, King's Park Library Book Sale
May 18-22, Centreville, VA, Friends of Centreville Library Book Sale
July 15-17, Reading, PA, Book Bonanza 2011

Don't miss the April and closeout sales at the CC Bookstore! Also, check out BookSaleFinder.com to find sales in your area!

What's Your Story?

2011-04-25T06:00:00.003-04:00

This week, the website Take Part featured an interview with three very different moms who have chosen to home school their children for a variety of reasons: When Parents Teach: Three Moms Talk Homeschooling. Take a look:

Until recently, home schooling was considered a fringe phenomenon—something done by religious families seeking to oversee their children’s spiritual and moral education.

But from hip urban communities in Brooklyn to small towns in the rural south, more and more parents are pulling their children out of public schools and assuming the role of full-time teacher...

Why are so many parents opting for home schooling? And what’s it like to become your child’s teacher? TakePart spoke with three home-schooling moms to find out.
(Read More...)

Each of these moms has a unique story about her route to home schooling, and the journey on which it's taken her and her family. Well, guess what? So does each one of the thousands of moms and dads who participate in Classical Conversations - including you! Click here to read some of their stories.

Have you told your story?

Remember, each of our stories, and those of our family and friends, are part of a larger story. Not only that, but our experiences of joy, forgiveness, and grace echo back His story: His joy over us (Zephaniah 3:17); His mercy (Isaiah 30:18); and His gift of grace (Romans 5:7-8).

So go ahead--tell your story, and echo in celebration as a family today!

The folks at CC love to hear your stories. Post one on the CC Facebook page, leave a comment on this post, Tweet it (#ClassicalConversations or @CC_Bookstore), or send us an e-mail at TellUs@classicalconversations.com!

The Door of the Sepulchre

2011-04-24T06:00:00.001-04:00

And when the sabbath was past, Mary Mag'dalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salo'me, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him.

And very early in the morning, the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun.

And they said among themselves, Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulchre?

And when they looked, they saw that the stone was rolled away: for it was very great.

And entering into the sepulchre, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted.

And he saith unto them, Be not affrighted: ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: he is risen; he is not here: behold the place where they laid him.

But go your way, tell his disciples and Peter that he goeth before you into Galilee: there shall ye see him, as he said unto you.

And they went out quickly, and fled from the sepulchre; for they trembled and were amazed: neither said they any thing to any man; for they were afraid.
-Mark 16:1-8

From the Sixth Hour...

2011-04-22T06:00:00.001-04:00

And when the sixth hour was come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.

And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, E'lo-i, E'lo-i, lama sabach'thani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? [Ps. 22.1]

And some of them that stood by, when they heard it, said, Behold, he calleth Eli'jah.

And one ran and filled a sponge full of vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink, [Ps. 69.21] saying, Let alone; let us see whether Eli'jah will come to take him down.

And Jesus cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost.

And the veil [Ex. 26.31-33] of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom.

And when the centurion, which stood over against him, saw that he so cried out, and gave up the ghost, he said, Truly this man was the Son of God.

-Mark 15: 33-39, KJV

Readings on Easter

Cal Thomas: Commentary
R.C. Sproul: The Passion of Christ
Peter J. Leithart: Tomb and Tomb

Classic Easter Poetry

John Updike: Seven Stanzas at Easter
Edmund Spenser: Easter
George Herbert: Easter Wings

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 4/20/11

2011-04-20T12:55:00.001-04:00

If you are interested in topics that came up during this week's show, here are a few links and tips from Leigh at Lunch on Blog Talk Radio 4/20/11, "Leigh at Lunch with Dr. Darrel Cox of Patrick Henry College" (Click on the title to listen to the show archive).

Had a question for today's show that you didn't get to ask? Email it to 1smartmama@gmail.com or comment on this post for an answer!

Coming soon from 1 Smart Mama

Tune in next Wednesday, April 27, at 12 noon EST to talk with Leigh and economic historian Tom Wood, author of Meltdown and Rollback.

Ongoing events

Register now for the first in the series "Toward the Quadrivium," with Leigh Bortins and Nancy Pearcey about science and teaching the quadrivium: April 29-30 in Manassas, Virginia.

Register as a friend on BlogTalkRadio to be eligible for our weekly drawing! Click "follow" so you'll get updates about spontaneous and pre-recorded shows.

Send questions to Leigh for her next book on the dialectic via AskLeigh@ymail.com.

Email us at TellUs@classicalconversations.com to let us know what topics you'd like to see on upcoming Blog Talk Radio shows!

Notes from today's show

We recommend reading How to Write a Sentence by an upcoming guest on Leigh! at Lunch, Stanley Fish. (For more on this subject, see Our Mother Tongue).

Buy your own sets of Classical Acts and Facts science flash cards from the CC Bookstore.

Visit Patrick Henry College (phc.edu) to learn more about the school and its mission and vision.

Dr. Cox has also worked with Emmanuel College in Georgia and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. He has ties to Elim Bible Institute, Roberts Wesleyan College, Regent University, and Trinity Evangelical Divinity School at Trinity International University.

Read for yourself the Chalcedonian Creed, Athanasian Creed, and Nicene Creed to see early established doctrines of "mere Christianity."

Want to know more about the theological debates Dr. Cox mentioned? Click here to learn about philosophies of Complementarianism and Egalitarianism. Visit this site to find basic information about Arminianism and Calvinism.

Learn more about the Challenge program for upper high school students at ClassicalConversations.com.

As the main resource for high school students' biblical studies, Dr. Cox recommends the primary source--the Bible--with solid secondary sources only as support.

Plans for Toward the Quadrivium

2011-04-18T14:14:00.008-04:00

On April 30, 2011 in northern Virginia, Classical Conversations is offering a one-day seminar in which we will consider how to move "Toward the Quadrivium" as we complete our understanding of the seven liberal arts.

(Click here for more information and to register!)

We have all asked and answered many questions about the Trivium. I find as the classical education movement, I, and my family mature, my questions must also mature. And so, I want to begin a new conversation as many of us move toward the Quadrivium. Answers about the Quadrivium will come too late for my own children's childhood education, as that is ending soon, but I believe the knowledge will arrive at the perfect time for their journey as life-long learners.

Our ancestors tell us the Quadrivium is significant. I want to know how and why. How do I teach it? How will it help me be more human? What do I do with it? What is the Quadrivium?

My current understanding is that it is the study of harmony or music, arithmetic or algebra, geometry, and astronomy. When do we study the Quadrivium? If you were an ancient Roman or Greek, you would have studied it before the Trivium of grammar, logic, and rhetoric. But since medieval times, it was studied after the Trivium. When should we as post-moderns study the Quadrivium? I think that the answer currently lacks consensus among those who think about it, and that is the main reason for this seminar: to engage in the dialectic as we work toward answers.

A headmaster of a classical school told me the reason Classical Conversations is so successful. He said, "When Christians learn to think, they want to think with the Body. We are created for relationship and reconciliation." I don't want to think about the Quadrivium alone. I have all of you and your wealth of thoughts to guide me. I need to be influenced by the body of Christ. Since 1997, I've been asking you to talk with me about the Trivium. Now it is time to talk about the Quadrivium. So once again, I invite you to share in a classical conversation, a conversation new to me and many reading this blog, but old to the world. To be unable to study history and learn from it is to be always a child. I'd like to be able to grow up.

So, here is the schedule for April 30. Should the conversation prove successful, I'd like to schedule additional conversations as we move Toward the Quadrivium.

We have many special guests.

First, Nancy Pearcey will speak on her book Total Truth, a book that is significant to our free summer Parent Practicums where 14,000 parents will spend 3 days in hundreds of locations across the country discussing the Trivium. We need to summarize what we've learned so far and establish the Christian context that embodies the seven liberal arts.

Next, Nancy and I will have a conversation related to another of her books, The Soul of Science, which CC has used since 1998, and which was significant in developing the philosophies of Classical Conversations. I expect more classicalists will read this book over and over again as they gain a better understanding of the importance of the Quadrivium.

Then, a panel of our students will talk with me about their experience as their families try to recover a classical education through the Trivium. We will discuss how the Trivium has prepared them for the Quadrivium.

After lunch, Nancy will speak about the arts and her new book, Saving Leonardo. The heart hungers for beauty, and the seven liberal arts equip us to pursue excellence in all things. We live in a material world - a world of atoms and machines and processes. We need to honor the created world. We can do so by teaching our children how to imitate its magnificence.

Next, Charles Carpenter will speak to us about the university accreditation process. He will give us an honest assessment of the goals of modern universities so that we will be informed as we develop expectations from advanced education for the classically educated student.

When these folks are finished leading the conversation, I will end with some summary points and ideas on the direction we may want to take as we move Toward the Quadrivium.

Remember, this is a classical conversation, not a monologue, so we will make time for questions and participation from the audience.

I can't wait to hear your part of the conversation.

Love, Leigh

Darrel Cox on Leigh! at Lunch

2011-04-18T06:00:00.004-04:00

Dear Friends,

This Wednesday, April 20 at 12 noon on Leigh! at Lunch, we'll be talking to Dr. Darrel Cox, professor of Biblical Studies at Patrick Henry College.

Click here to go directly to the show.

Before coming to Patrick Henry College, Dr. Cox was an Associate Professor of Bible and Theology at Emmanuel College in Franklin Springs, GA. He has served as Chairman and Associate Dean of a School of Christian Ministries and as a faculty liaison for new academic programs with SACS (Southern Association of Colleges and Schools). He teaches core and upper level courses in Biblical Studies and writes curriculum for online classes.

Dr. Cox lives near Winchester, Virginia, with his wife and seven children.

Join us Wednesday on BlogTalkRadio.com/1smartmama! Chat or call in with your questions for Dr. Cox, or send an email to 1smartmama@gmail.com before the show.

Teaching through Taxes

2011-04-15T08:09:00.005-04:00

Are you thinking about taxes this weekend? The real question is, are you thinking about taxes as a family of learners? What do I mean by that?

I mean taking a few minutes of time to turn this (often unpleasant) experience into a conversation for the whole family about history, civics and government, or even activism. Here are some interesting tidbits to start you off:

16th Amendment: The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to any census or enumeration.
In 1895, in the Supreme Court case of Pollock v Farmer's Loan and Trust (157 U.S. 429), the Court disallowed a federal tax on income from real property. The tax was designed to be an indirect tax, which would mean that states need not contribute portions of a whole relative to its census figures. The Court, however, ruled that the tax was a direct tax and subject to apportionment. This was the last in a series of conflicting court decisions dating back to the Civil War. Between 1895 and 1909, when the amendment was passed by Congress, the Court began to back down on its position, as it became clear not only to accountants but to everyone that the solvency of the nation was in jeopardy. In a series of cases, the definition of "direct tax" was modified, bent, twisted, and coaxed to allow more taxation efforts that approached an income tax.

Finally, with the ratification of the 16th Amendment, any doubt was removed. The text of the Amendment makes it clear that though the categories of direct and indirect taxation still exist, any determination that income tax is a direct tax will be irrelevant, because taxes on incomes, from salary or from real estate, are explicitly to be treated as indirect. The Congress passed the Amendment on July 12, 1909, and it was ratified on February 3, 1913 (1,302 days). (Read more at USConstitution.net...)

Visit this page from Justia to learn more about Supreme Court cases dealing with questions of taxation:

By the terms of the Constitution, the power of Congress to levy taxes is subject to but one exception and two qualifications. Articles exported from any State may not be taxed at all. Direct taxes must be levied by the rule of apportionment and indirect taxes by the rule of uniformity. The Court has emphasized the sweeping character of this power by saying from time to time that it “reaches every subject,”⁵¹⁹ that it is “exhaustive”⁵²⁰ or that it “embraces every conceivable power of taxation.”⁵²¹ Despite these generalizations, the power has been at times substantially curtailed by judicial decision with respect to the subject matter of taxation, the manner in which taxes are imposed, and the objects for which they may be levied. (Read more...)

The Internal Revenue Service is the government agency that oversees taxation. Visit their website to learn more about the agency's history, policies, and practices.

The roots of IRS go back to the Civil War when President Lincoln and Congress, in 1862, created the position of commissioner of Internal Revenue and enacted an income tax to pay war expenses. The income tax was repealed 10 years later. Congress revived the income tax in 1894, but the Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional the following year. (Read more...)

Learn more about the "Tax Day Tea Parties" that swept the country a few years ago - try a Google search of "taxes" and "tea party" or visit TheTeaParty.net. Then make sure you know your history - check out the Boston Tea Party Historical Society to learn about the original historical event from which this movement takes its name:

On Monday morning, the 29th of November, 1773, a handbill was posted all over Boston, containing the following words: "Friends! Brethren! Countrymen!--That worst of plagues, the detested tea, shipped for this port by the East India Company, is now arrived in the harbor. (Read more...)

Whatever your approach to talking taxes in your family this weekend, don't miss the opportunity to ask the hard questions, wrestle with the big issues, and make this a teachable moment for yourself as well as your children. You can do it!

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 4/13/11

2011-04-13T13:00:00.008-04:00

If you are interested in topics that came up during this week's show, here are a few links and tips from Leigh at Lunch on Blog Talk Radio 4/13/11, "Leigh at Lunch with Bay Buchanan" (Click on the title to listen to the show archive).

Had a question for today's show that you didn't get to ask? Email it to 1smartmama@gmail.com or comment on this post for an answer!

Coming soon from 1 Smart Mama

Tune in next Wednesday, April 20, at 12 noon EST to talk with Leigh and Darrel Cox of Patrick Henry College.

Ongoing events

Don't forget to sign up for end-of-grade testing! Visit our new website, Homeschool Testing Services, to register and get test-prep materials.

Register as a friend on BlogTalkRadio to be eligible for our weekly drawing! Click "follow" so you'll get updates about spontaneous and pre-recorded shows.

Send questions to Leigh for her next book on the dialectic via AskLeigh@ymail.com.

Email us at TellUs@classicalconversations.com to let us know what topics you'd like to see on upcoming Blog Talk Radio shows!

Notes from today's show

Register now for the first in the series "Toward the Quadrivium," with Leigh Bortins and Nancy Pearcey about science and teaching the quadrivium: April 29-30 in Manassas, Virginia.

Purchase your own copy of How to Read the Federalist Papers at the CC bookstore.

Longtime political figure Bay Buchanan is the president of The American Cause, an organization that promotes traditional American values. She is also the co-chair of the PAC Team America, and she writes regular columns for Human Events Online.

Check out Bay's first book, The Extreme Makeover of Hillary Rodham Clinton.

For examples of students who have made a name for themselves in the media, read about Lila Rose, a former home school debater, and Brett and Alex Harris.

Keep your eyes open for Bay's new book about raising children as a single mom (coming out for Mother's Day next year).

Angela "Bay" Buchanan on Leigh! at Lunch

2011-04-11T06:00:00.003-04:00

Dear Friends,

This Wednesday, April 13 at 12 noon on Leigh! at Lunch, I'm back, and I'm very excited to host Bay Buchanan, former U.S. Treasurer and long-time political analyst.

Click here to go directly to the show.

Angela "Bay" Buchanan began her political career as the national Treasurer of Ronald Reagan's presidential campaigns in 1980 and 1984. This position catapulted her into a distinguished career beginning in 1981 when President Reagan appointed her to be Treasurer of the United States. At the age of 32, she was the youngest person to hold that position since it was established in 1775.

Buchanan served as the campaign chairman for all three of her brother Pat Buchanan's presidential campaigns. In 2008 she served as a senior advisor to Mitt Romney. From September of 1996 through August of 1999, she co-anchored Equal Time, a political talk show initially on CNBC, then MSNBC. In addition, she worked as a political analyst for Good Morning America throughout the general election in 1992. From 1996 to 1997 Buchanan hosted a two-hour radio talk show program covering current events. In the summer of 1996, George magazine recognized her as one of the top 20 political women in the nation. The Clare Boothe Luce Policy Institute named Bay Buchanan the 2007 Woman of the Year.

Currently Buchanan is a political analyst often seen on CBS's Morning Show, as well as on CNN, MSNBC, and Fox News. She writes a regular column for Human Events Online; is the president of The American Cause, an educational foundation dedicated to advancing traditional conservative issues; and co-chairman of Team America, a PAC dedicated to opposing amnesty for illegal aliens. Her first book, The Extreme Makeover of Hillary Rodham Clinton was published in 2007.

A native of Washington, DC, Buchanan has a Masters degree in mathematics from McGill University in Montreal, Canada, and has further studies at several universities, including the University of New South Wales in Australia. In 1981, she received an Honorary Doctor of Law Degree from Stanford University. She lives in Virginia and has three sons and two grandchildren.

Please join us via chat, by phone, or by emailing your questions to 1smartmama@gmail.com.

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 4/6/11

2011-04-06T13:00:00.008-04:00

If you are interested in topics that came up during this week's show, here are a few links and tips from Leigh at Lunch on Blog Talk Radio 4/6/11, "Leigh at Lunch with Nancy Pearcey" (Click on the title to listen to the show archive).

Had a question for today's show that you didn't get to ask? Email it to 1smartmama@gmail.com or comment on this post for an answer!

Coming soon from 1 Smart Mama

Tune in next Wednesday, April 13, at 12 noon EST to talk with Leigh and former U.S. treasurer and political analyst Angela "Bay" Buchanan.

Ongoing events

Don't forget to sign up for end-of-grade testing! Visit our new website, Homeschool Testing Services, to register and get test-prep materials.

Register as a friend on BlogTalkRadio to be eligible for our weekly drawing! Click "follow" so you'll get updates about spontaneous and pre-recorded shows.

Send questions to Leigh for her next book on the dialectic via AskLeigh@ymail.com.

Email us at TellUs@classicalconversations.com to let us know what topics you'd like to see on upcoming Blog Talk Radio shows!

Notes from today's show

Register now for the first in the series "Toward the Quadrivium," with Leigh Bortins and Nancy Pearcey about science and teaching the quadrivium: April 29-30 in Manassas, Virginia.

Read Nancy's interview with Jennifer Courtney from the CC Writer's Circle.

Find out more about Nancy's work with The Pearcey Report and Rivendell Sanctuary. She's also worked with Human Events, the Discovery Institute, the World Journalism Institute, and Philadelphia Biblical University.

Read Nancy's books!: The Soul of Science, Total Truth, and Saving Leonardo: A Call to Resist the Secular Assault on Mind, Morals, and Meaning. She is also co-author of How Now Shall We Live?. She contributed the foreword to The Right Questions, and chapters to Of Pandas and People, Mere Creation, Pro-Life Feminism, Genetic Ethics, Signs of Intelligence, Reading God's World, Uncommon Dissent, and Darwin's Nemesis.

Read philosopher Richard Rorty's article presented before the United Nations, "Human Rights, Rationality, and Sentimentality."

Learn more about neo-Platonism from this article in Encyclopedia Brittanica. Read Total Truth to find out more about the influence of this system of thinking on medieval Christianity.

See for yourself the etymology of "religion" and "vocation" as developed by Martin Luther.

Francis Schaeffer is the founder of L'Abri Fellowship International centers around the world.

Check out these books from CC to help you integrate the arts into your children's education: The Gift of Music; The Annotated Mona Lisa; State of the Arts; Discovering Great Artists; Classical Music for Dummies; and Drawing with Children.

Take a look at the Fuller Seminary Center for Youth and Family to see research about the challenges of maintaining faith during the transition to college.

Toward the Quadrivium

2011-04-05T06:00:00.007-04:00

Toward the Quadrivium A Classical Conversation with Nancy Pearcey and Leigh Bortins
When Friday, April 29th 6:30pm - 8:30pm Saturday, April 30th 8:30am - 5:00pm	Where Manassas Baptist Church 8730 Sudley Road Manassas, VA 20110

You are invited to the first of a series of events titled "Toward the Quadrivium", where author Leigh Bortins will partner with experts and talk about home-centered education and moving your children towards high school graduation. We are very pleased that author Nancy Pearcey is going to be our first guest and you should be too.

Come join Nancy Pearcey and Leigh Bortins for a day of learning, Saturday, April 30th in Manassas, Virginia, located in Northern Virginia just a short drive from Maryland, Washington D.C, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and North Carolina. Discuss the importance of God's truth in education and how to apply that to your students' studies. Nancy will be speaking on her books Soul of Science, Total Truth and her latest, Saving Leonardo. Leigh Bortins will speak on how you can apply the great information from Nancy Pearcey's books to your child's curriculum, as you move them toward the Quadrivium.

There will be a bookstore on hand, and a book signing after the event. This will be a great event for those who are interested in classical education or want inspiration for their homeschool.

You can view a complete itinerary for the event here.

Speakers

A homeschooling mother, Nancy Pearcey is the best-selling author of the just-published Saving Leonardo: A Call to Resist the Secular Assault on Mind, Morals, & Meaning. The book was hailed by Practical Homeschooling as "The Best Worldview Book EVER!" It was praised by homeschool leader Cathy Duffy as "a great read" and an "accessible presentation of the battle between worldviews." A former agnostic, Pearcey has spoken at Princeton, Stanford, Dartmouth, USC, and other leading universities across the nation, in addition to many Christian schools and colleges...(Read More)

A nationally acclaimed educator, Leigh Bortins is perhaps best known for her ability to demystify the fundamental tools of learning. As a teacher, author and commentator, Leigh is credited with helping to launch the "home-centered learning" education movement. After earning a degree in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Michigan, Leigh worked in the aerospace industry before beginning her work as an educator. In teaching study skills for almost 20 years to children and adults, she has written several books including...(Read More)

Won't you join us? Learn more at TowardtheQuadrivium.com.

Nancy Pearcey on Leigh! at Lunch

2011-04-04T06:00:00.002-04:00

Dear Friends,

This Wednesday, April 6 at 12 noon on Leigh! at Lunch, we're very excited to host Nancy Pearcey, the author of The Soul of Science, Saving Leonardo, and Total Truth, as we continue our conversation about faith and science.

Click here to go directly to the show.

Nancy R. Pearcey, editor-at-large of The Pearcey Report, is joining the faculty at Rivendell Sanctuary and will begin leading classes in the Fall of 2011. She is also a columnist at Human Events and a fellow at the Discovery Institute. Previously she was the Francis A. Schaeffer Scholar at the World Journalism Institute, where she taught a worldview course based on her book Total Truth, winner of the 2005 ECPA Gold Medallion Award for best book on Christianity and Society.

She has also served as professor of worldview studies at Philadelphia Biblical University, during which time she wrote her most recent book, Saving Leonardo: A Call to Resist the Secular Assault on Mind, Morals, and Meaning.

Nancy has addressed staffers on Capitol Hill and at the White House; actors and screenwriters in Hollywood; scientists at labs such as Sandia and Los Alamos; students and faculty at Stanford, Dartmouth, Princeton, USC, Ohio State, and the University of Georgia; as well as educational and activist groups, including the Heritage Foundation in Washington, D.C. She has appeared on NPR and C-SPAN.

In addition to Saving Leonardo and Total Truth, Nancy is author of The Soul of Science and co-author of How Now Shall We Live? (with novelist Harold Fickett and former White House operative Charles W. Colson). She contributed the foreword to The Right Questions, and chapters to Of Pandas and People, Mere Creation, Pro-Life Feminism, Genetic Ethics, Signs of Intelligence, Reading God's World, Uncommon Dissent, and the Phillip Johnson festschrift Darwin's Nemesis.

Nancy and Rick are homeschooling the second of their two sons.

We're thrilled to have her on the show. Please call or chat in to join our conversation! Also, start thinking about Toward the Quadrivium: A Classical Conversation with Nancy Pearcey and Leigh Bortins! Early registration closes April 28.

2011-04-01T10:00:00.003-04:00

Home schooling's appeal spreads to mainstream
(Reuters): "Studying at Harvard, meeting for group French lessons, volunteering at a hospital and spending a day in the wilderness are just a glimpse into a typical day of home schooling, which looks dramatically different today from just a mere decade ago..."
Greentree News is kids' homeschool project
(Kearney): Read more about these three home school students' project creating their own newspaper. Why not make your own?
Liberal arts help provide a look into our humanity
(Anchorage Daily News): "For it's in the liberal arts courses that the most fundamental aspects of the individual and society are addressed: love, justice, fairness, decency, wisdom. In another important commentary, 'The Core: Teaching Your Child the Foundations of Classical Education,' Leigh Bortins writes that students who have confronted these issues in liberal arts courses learn to make better decisions. Dr. Smatresk should probably read these books."
On the Art of Seeing
(CiRCE): To have a truly aesthetic sensibility, sometimes we have to stop and re-learn how to look.
Public School Math Doesn't Teach Students How to Reason
Interesting argument from mathematician Sanjoy Mahajan at the Freakonomics blog.

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 3/30/11

2011-03-30T13:00:00.005-04:00

If you are interested in topics that came up during this week's show, here are a few links and tips from Leigh at Lunch on Blog Talk Radio 3/30/11, "Matt Interviews Jonathan Bartlett." (Click on the title to listen to the show archive).

Had a question for today's show that you didn't get to ask? Email it to 1smartmama@gmail.com or comment on this post for an answer!

Coming soon from 1 Smart Mama

Tune in next Wednesday, April 6, at 12 noon EST to talk with Matt and Nancy Pearcey, the author of The Soul of Science. To get a taste of her passion for science and faith, check out her interview with Jennifer Courtney on the CC Writers Circle.

Ongoing events

Don't forget to sign up for end-of-grade testing! Visit our new website, Homeschool Testing Services, to register and get test-prep materials.

Register as a friend on BlogTalkRadio to be eligible for our weekly drawing! Click "follow" so you'll get updates about spontaneous and pre-recorded shows.

Stay tuned for more information about Leigh's upcoming tour to Hawaii.

Send questions to Leigh for her next book on the dialectic via AskLeigh@ymail.com.

Email us at TellUs@classicalconversations.com to let us know what topics you'd like to see on upcoming Blog Talk Radio shows!

Notes from today's show

Register now for "Toward the Quadrivium," a series of talks with Leigh Bortins and Nancy Pearcey about science and teaching the quadrivium: April 29-30 in Manassas, Virginia.

To purchase your own copy of Defeating Darwinism, visit the CC Bookstore.

Read more of Jonathan's articles on the CC Writers Circle.

Visit the Blyth Institute to learn about Jonathan's work on the research and study of biology.

Read more about 20th century scientist and philosopher Michael Polanyi's views on the origins of scientific thought. Also see this article: "The Biblical Insights of Michael Polanyi."

To understand the tension between the National Center for Science Education and Christian biologists, see the Center's "about us" page.

To get one perspective on the difference between intelligent design and creation science, check out this article from the Center for Science and Culture.

Read the NAS paper on the criminal justice system and choice: "The Lucretian Swerve."

Christian screenwriter Brian Godawa (To End All Wars) produced a short film "Cruel Logic" about choice and ethics (video from YouTube).

Read "From Evolution to Creation: The Testimony of Dr. Richard Lumsden." For more stories like this, check out the book Persuaded by the Evidence: True Stories of Faith, Science, and the Power of a Creator.

To get involved, interested students should read Defeating Darwinism, Understanding the Pattern of Life (specific to creation biology, for upper high school students), and The New Creationism.

Want to go into creation science as a career? Check out the Creation Biology Society conferences. Jonathan recommends that students who want to study creation science in college visit New Saint Andrews College, Patrick Henry College, Liberty University, and Cedarville University.

Also, contact Jonathan via the Blyth Institute (info@blythinstitute.org) if your students would like to write a book review for the Creation Biology Society newsletter.

Civil War Anniversary

2011-03-30T06:00:00.002-04:00

This year marks the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War. Visit the Civil War Trust to get ideas for turning this event into a teaching moment. Also, check out Reading the Civil War, from the CiRCE Institute, for helpful suggestions about how to approach what can be a daunting task: teaching your children about the Civil War.

Is one of your children a history buff? Then you might be interested in this opportunity from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and the History Channel:

...high school students who know their Civil War history will get a chance to compete for a college scholarship as part of an initiative announced today by education publisher Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and HISTORY, the cable network. The National Civil War Student Challenge, a timed online competition, will award more than $30,000 in college scholarships, including $15,000 for the grand prize winner.
The online quiz will be conducted April 7-9, with the 30 top-scoring finalists invited to take an in-school final exam. (source: Civil War Anniversary Spurs Educational Activities, EdWeek)

More information is available from History.com and Houghton Mifflin. The official rules call for students to be "enrolled" in 9th-12th grade, and there is no mention either including or excluding home school students. If you're interested, consider contacting the sponsor to find out if your students can participate.

Jonathan Bartlett on Leigh! at Lunch

2011-03-28T06:00:00.001-04:00

Dear Friends,

This Wednesday, March 30 at 12 noon on Leigh! at Lunch, while Leigh is traveling, please join host Matt Bianco and Jonathan Bartlett as they talk about the intersections between faith and science.

Click here to go directly to the show.

Jonathan Bartlett is the director of The Blyth Institute (blythinstitute.org), a nonprofit organization dedicated to research and education in new paradigms of biology. He also wrote the book Programming from the Ground Up, which was required reading at Princeton for a few years. Jonathan’s interest in biology and genetics came from his family’s battles with genetic illnesses, which required him to stay on top of the current medical and biological literature.

Last year Jonathan graduated with a Master of Theological Studies degree from Phillips Theological Seminary. Jonathan is married to his wife Christa, and they have had five children together - Daniel, Andrew, Nathan, David, and Isaac. Christa teaches in the Challenge program in Classical Conversations of Tulsa.

Click here to read one of Jonathan's articles for the CC Writers' Circle.

Call or chat in your questions and comments for Jonathan and Matt!

Bring on the Whole Family

2011-03-24T06:00:00.003-04:00

Today, I want to share with you an article from Tabletalk magazine. It's called "It Takes a Church to Raise a Child." The article gives you some practical ways you as a church member can reach out to other families in your congregation, and it also cuts to the heart of why we need the church:

Parenting is not for the faint of heart. It is also not something parents should attempt to do alone. Thankfully, those in the church don’t have to. They are part of an extended family — the family of God — that can play a vital role in the raising of children.... [Keep reading]

Ephesians 4:11-13 explains to the church, “It was He who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” The role of the church was to equip the adults to train their families to work in unity as they transformed culture.

That's still an important role of the church. That's why, at Classical Conversations, we base many of our campuses at local churches. We want pastors, parents, and students to be witnesses for each other as families strive to train (or re-train) their minds.

I'll close by sharing in the words of the author Mark Bates, "Thank God that He has given us the church to be the family of God and blessed us all with the privilege of raising children."

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 3/23/11

2011-03-23T13:00:00.004-04:00

If you are interested in topics that came up during this week's show, here are a few links and tips from Leigh at Lunch on Blog Talk Radio 3/23/11, "The NEW EEL GUIDE for 2011-2012 and other NEW products." (Click on the title to listen to the show archive).

Had a question for today's show that you didn't get to ask? Email it to 1smartmama@gmail.com or comment on this post for an answer!

Coming soon from 1 Smart Mama

Tune in next Wednesday, March 30, at 12 noon EST to talk with Matt and Jonathan Bartlett, a writer for the CC Writers Circle, about faith and science. The following week, we'll be talking to Nancy Pearcey, the author of The Soul of Science.

Ongoing events

Don't forget to sign up for end-of-grade testing! Visit our new website, Homeschool Testing Services, to register and get test-prep materials.

Register as a friend on BlogTalkRadio to be eligible for our weekly drawing! Click "follow" so you'll get updates about spontaneous and pre-recorded shows.

Notes from today's show

Visit ClassicalConversationsBooks.com to see these new products and more!

The Essentials Guide (4th edition) - On sale for $30 before Aug. 1! Get your hard copy in May. Also use this link for FAQs about the new edition.
Trivium Tables: English Grammar - Available April 1. Use this link to see sample images of the product.
Trivium Tables: Quid et Quo - Available April 1. Both tables are great for introductory Latin students as a refresher course on English grammar.
Classical Christian Education Made Approachable - Will be available mid-summer.
Compass of Classical Conversations - CDs will be available April 25th.
Words Aptly Spoken: American Documents, Short Stories, Children's Literature, American Literature, British Literature (second editions with all new designs!) - FAQ about the updates are available via these links.

Stay tuned for more information about Leigh's upcoming tour to Hawaii.

Send questions to Leigh for her next book on the dialectic via AskLeigh@ymail.com.

Email us at TellUs@classicalconversations.com to let us know what topics you'd like to see on upcoming Blog Talk Radio shows!

New Products Day on Leigh! at Lunch

2011-03-22T21:30:00.005-04:00

Dear Friends,

This Wednesday, March 23 at 12 noon on Leigh! at Lunch, while Leigh is traveling, please join host Matt Bianco and the CCMM team as they discuss new and revised products coming this year.

Click here to go directly to the show.

Classical Conversations MultiMedia team members Heather Shirley, Denise Moore, and Courtney Sanford will discuss the upcoming Essentials of the English Language 4th edition. Heather and Denise will discuss some of the revisions, updates, and friendly formats parents and tutors are sure to enjoy. They will also hit some FAQs that will help directors and parents in their decision to purchase the revised guide or to keep and mark up the old guide. Heather and Courtney will then discuss Classical Conversations' newest resources, the first two in our Trivium Tables Series: English Grammar and Quid et Quo. These easy to use, quick reference and dialectic desktops will serve Essential families and Challenge families in their family's language education.

Heather Shirley, Executive Director of Classical Conversations MultiMedia, has been homeschooling her three children since 2000. When she began her homeschooling journey, in spite of having an engineering degree, she was overwhelmed and undirected. The Lord graciously intervened and brought tools and people across her path to help her gain clarity and direction for her family's homeschooling journey. Classical Conversations provided the tools and the vision she had been looking for. Heather serves as an integral leader in Classical Conversations, making the vision a reality through marketing collateral, communications, and product development.

Courtney Sanford, studied writing and graphic design in college, and used both in her work in the software industry and in the arts. She has homeschooled for six years with Classical Conversations and has tutored Essentials for five years. She enjoys collaborating on creative projects with Classical Conversations and mentoring moms in grammar. She is married to Chris Sanford, Classical Conversations' Chief Technical Officer. They have three children: James 13, Ellie 11, and Joshua 7.

Denise Moore has been involved with Classical Conversations for eight years in various tutoring roles: Foundations, Essentials, and Challenge, as well as serving as the Challenge I Program Manager. For the past four years, Denise has been CC's Senior Program and Production Officer. She and her husband, Fred, have been homeschooling two of their four daughters, Kathryn (age 16) and Hannah (age 14), for the past twelve years. The Moore family, including daughters Rachael (age 30) and Sarah (age 27), moved to Raleigh, North Carolina in 1984.

Won't you join us? Call, email, or chat in your questions for the CCMM team!

Save on Classical Science Flashcards

2011-03-22T06:00:00.002-04:00

There's still time to save!

Check out the March sale going on now at Classical Conversations Books.

March 1 - 31

10% off all Classical Acts and Facts Science Cards!

*Online orders only
*DISCOUNT10 coupon can be used for an additional 10% off on purchases over $250.
*These promotions do not apply to prior purchases or open orders and the dates of the sale cannot be altered for any orders.

History, Stories, and Classical Education

2011-03-21T11:00:00.007-04:00

The blog "Curriculum Matters" recently posted an article about concerns that history teaching may be on the decline. One particular comment caught my attention: "At the primary level, the report [on history education in England] found that some pupils found it difficult to place historical episodes in a 'coherent, long-term narrative.'"

In light of that, I'm especially proud of our CC history students for their efforts to see history as part of a coherent, long-term narrative, and I want to recognize their hard work.

Between kindergarten and sixth grade, in the Foundations program, students memorize more than 200 points on a time line of U.S. presidents and world events. The video below from 3 years ago shows my son William reciting the 160 world events on that time line.

These "pegs" give students a broad framework so they can then build deeper, more complex ideas about history. Knowing the context of a particular event helps them understand it as part of a long-term narrative. We also read lots and lots of stories from history to reinforce the time line and get students excited about the stories that make up our past.

This prepares students for the Challenge Program, where our in-depth study of American and world history is part of a belief that subjects should be taught not in isolation, but in relationship to one another. Science ought to correlate to math, theology, history, philosophy, and literature. Math should find its application in the sciences. Literature analysis should not be separated from history, philosophy, and theology.

We want students to develop a narrative about how all knowledge works together to make the universe, not a disconnected "multiverse."

Want to know more about studying history using the classical method? Check out this article from the CC Writers' Circle: "Lessons from the Past: The Core of History," by Jennifer Courtney. Along with thoughts about the "why" of studying history, Jennifer gives great practical tips about the "how."

Do you have a video or other story about your history studies? I'd love to share it with our readers! You can leave a comment here or email it to 1smartmama@gmail.com.

Testing Season is Approaching

2011-03-21T06:00:00.002-04:00

Dear Friends,

It is not too late to save. Register more than one month before your local testing date and sign up for only $50. We have close to 130 testing sites posted and we are working on getting another 20-30 set up with local communities. Find your local testing group.

Confused about how to interpret test results?...

Visit our Test Result Page in order to help you if you test with us or someone else.

The end of the school year is approaching...

As the end of the year approaches do not forget to sign up for end-of-grade testing.
If testing is not in your area, it is not too late to sign up to be a site coordinator.

You can get all the information you need on our website: www.homeschooltestingservices.com. Just click on the Site Coordinator Info link at the top of the page.

Perks for Parents who host a testing site...

The parent who coordinates the testing will receive a percentage of the testing fee for their site. This offers you a chance to earn part of your tuition for the following year. The testing coordinator must meet at least one of these requirements: Have a BA or BS degree, receive our certified training, be a qualified teacher with a current certification, and also be organized, administrative, and able to problem solve.

We will walk our site coordinators through each step and answer any questions they have. Please contact Shannon Brown at sbrown@homeschooltestingservices.com for more information.

The benefits of providing this service in your community...

Offering end-of-grade testing strengthens your community by providing additional services, and promotes you and your community as local homeschool leaders. Classical Conversations has been providing the testing service for four years now and has streamlined the process.

Thank you for your service and leadership to your local homeschooling community.

Sincerely,

Robert Bortins

Giveaway from Old Schoolhouse® Magazine

2011-03-17T10:12:00.008-04:00

In case you aren't on our email list, I wanted to make sure you had a chance to see this special offer from The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine.

The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine has asked CC to contribute articles on classical education for their magazine and web sites. They also want to help us promote our free Parent Practicums.

The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine (TOS) is one of my favorite home school magazines because they offer a wide variety of teaching tips as well as focusing on the heart of a child and the family as the basic unit of society.

I also want to let you know about their subscription drives in which they do something fun for new subscribers and renewing subscribers. Periodically, they give away gifts worth hundreds of dollars during these drives. Receiving these gifts in the mail makes it feel like it's your birthday. These give-aways allow TOS to promote their advertisers, build their subscription list, and give homeschoolers lots of books and products.

So if you already receive TOS, look for more mentions of classical education. If you don't subscribe, you can do so now and receive their free gifts by visiting
http://thehomeschoolmagazine.com/TOSSpring19Gifts/index.html

Don't wait! The giveaway is limited to the first 5000 who take advantage of this offer and over 1300 are already gone.

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 3/16/11

2011-03-16T13:00:00.001-04:00

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

If you are interested in topics that came up during this week's show, here are a few links and tips from Leigh at Lunch on Blog Talk Radio 3/16/11, "Leigh! at Lunch with Lawrence Reed." (Click on the title to listen to the show archive).

Had a question for today's show that you didn't get to ask? Email it to 1smartmama@gmail.com or comment on this post for an answer!

Coming soon from 1 Smart Mama

Tune in next Wednesday, March 23, at 12 noon EST to talk with Matt Bianco and the CCMM Production Team about this year's new products from CC and how to incorporate them into your home schooling.

Ongoing events

Don't forget to sign up for end-of-grade testing! Visit our new website, Homeschool Testing Services, to register and get test-prep materials.

Register as a friend on BlogTalkRadio to be eligible for our weekly drawing! Click "follow" so you'll get updates about spontaneous and pre-recorded shows.

Send questions to Leigh for her next book on the dialectic via AskLeigh@ymail.com.

Email us at TellUs@classicalconversations.com to let us know what topics you'd like to see on upcoming Blog Talk Radio shows!

Notes from today's show

Visit the Foundation for Economic Education to learn more about Lawrence Reed's work.

Check out The Freeman magazine for yourself! Since The Free Market Reader is out of print, CC finds many of the same essays in the Bluestocking Press's Economics.

To apply for a Summer Seminar for High School students at FEE, visit http://www.fee.org/seminars/high-school. Don't wait - apply now! The deadline for this summer is March 31.

Interested in the history and tradition of FEE? - read about Leonard Read, the founder of FEE; Ludwig von Mises; The Road to Serfdom by Nobel prizewinner Friedrich von Hayek; and Henry Hazlitt and his Economics in One Lesson, available free for download from FEE.

Check out the FEE website, http:// fee.org/events, to find out about upcoming events.

Learn more about Solidarity and the Polish freedom movement in the 1980s.

For the study of economics, Mr. Reed recommends high school students look at Florida Gulf Coast University, George Mason University, Patrick Henry College, Grove City College, and Hillsdale College.

You can find some of Nicholas Winton's story on Wikipedia. Winton is known for his humanitarian work with refugees after Kristallnacht in 1938. A documentary of his life, The Power of Good, is available from Amazon.

Looking for a great film about freedom? Mr. Reed recommends East-West, Amistad, Shenandoah, The Greatest Game Ever Played, and Amazing Grace.

Lawrence Reed on Leigh! at Lunch

2011-03-14T06:00:00.004-04:00

Dear Friends,

This Wednesday, March 16 on Leigh! at Lunch, please join me at 12 noon as I interview Lawrence Reed of the Foundation for Economic Education (FEE).

Click here to go directly to the show.

Lawrence Reed became president of FEE in 2008. He was a founder and president for twenty years of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy in Midland, Michigan.

A champion for liberty, Reed has authored over 1,000 newspaper columns and articles, 200 radio commentaries, dozens of articles in magazines and journals in the U. S. and abroad, as well as five books. His articles have appeared in The Wall Street Journal, Christian Science Monitor, USA Today, Baltimore Sun, Detroit News and Detroit Free Press, among many others. His interests in political and economic affairs have taken him as a freelance journalist to 69 countries on six continents. You can read some of his articles in The Freeman here.

Mr. Reed holds a B.A. degree in Economics from Grove City College (1975) and an M.A. degree in History from Slippery Rock State University (1978), both in Pennsylvania. In his spare time, his interests include reading, travel, fly-fishing, hiking, skydiving, and animals of just about any kind.

Please join us at 12:00 noon EST and feel free to call in (347-215-6509) or chat to ask questions of me or Mr. Reed. You can also email questions ahead of time to 1smartmama@gmail.com.

If your students are studying history, current events, economics, politics, or debate in the Challenge programs, I especially encourage them to share their questions! This is a great opportunity to talk to someone with extensive experience in these areas.

I'm looking forward to our conversation! Won't you join us?

2011-03-11T14:05:00.006-05:00

Hundreds killed in Japan earthquake, tsunami
Today, our prayers go out to those who've lost, or are missing loved ones in Japan and other parts of the Pacific affected by this tragedy.

-----------------

Credentialing and Grade Inflation
From the CiRCE Institute - The metaphors we use for education matter.
What Counts When Choosing a College?
From Ligonier Ministries and R.C. Sproul - timely, since April decision-making for high school seniors is just around the corner!
Making students smarter AND better
Jay Mathews - someone needs to model for students "productive behaviors and attitudes, such as cooperating, being on time, making eye contact, speaking persuasively, offering suggestions and focusing on tasks." But whose job is that, if not parents'?
Home-schooling format changing
Families in Alabama work to bring the church back into a strong role in education.
Homeschool Teen's Documentary to Air Nationally
A member of Generation Joshua recently released a documentary about the state of education and the family in America.
WWII studies prompt fundraiser for veterans group
Turning learning into action: examples of the rhetoric stage.

Testing Fear against Freedom

2011-03-10T06:00:00.006-05:00

This week, USA Today ran a story called "When scores seem too good to be true" about a teacher who admitted he had cheated in order to raise his students' scores, and about school officials' uncertainty about the difference between scores improved by hard work and scores improved by unethical means. Take a look:

Seipelt's gains and losses are typical of a pattern uncovered by a USA TODAY investigation of the standardized tests of millions of students in six states and the District of Columbia. The newspaper identified 1,610 examples of anomalies in which public school classes — a school's entire fifth grade, for example — boasted what analysts regard as statistically rare, perhaps suspect, gains on state tests...

Given the mounting pressure on teachers, principals and superintendents to produce high scores, "no one has incentives to vigorously pursue" testing irregularities, says Gregory Cizek, a professor at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill who studies cheating. "In fact, there's a strong disincentive."

Although the emphasis in this story is not on placing blame, bloggers and commentators are now tossing accusations back and forth at supersonic speed. In the process, I think we've missed the point.

I've said it before, but it's worth repeating. Tests are just small steps in a life-long process. One of the joys of home-centered education is the ability to separate test scores from personal worth. We don't have to be afraid of test results because we know that as free people, the point of a test is to train for things that really matter. We use tests often as a way to measure learning, but we understand that a test is used for measuring where we are right now, not judging whether we've succeeded or failed.

So how can we show others in our community what it looks like to live, learn, and test in a spirit of freedom, not fear?

French writer Albert Camus once said, "The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion."

I love watching our CC students reciting history timelines, giving presentations, filling in geography maps, and even taking tests. They encourage each other and compete with each other, but we want them to know it's okay to make mistakes because that's how we learn.

In our CC Parent Practicums this summer, we'll be talking a lot more about what it means to be free and what freedom requires of us. Remember Galatians 5:1 - "It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery."

So, as we see and hear news stories about our nation's education anxieties, let's not forget our purpose. We have the privilege to know God and to make Him known, through learning, as an echo in celebration of our freedom in Christ!

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 3/9/11

2011-03-09T13:43:00.014-05:00

If you are interested in topics that came up during this week's show, here are a few links and tips from Leigh at Lunch on Blog Talk Radio 3/9/11, "Parent Practicums on Leigh at Lunch." (Click on the title to listen to the show archive now).

Had a question for today's show that you didn't get to ask? Email it to 1smartmama@gmail.com or comment on this post for an answer!

Coming soon from 1 Smart Mama

Tune in next Wednesday, March 16, at 12 noon EST to join the conversation with Lawrence Reed, the president of the Foundation for Economic Education.

Ongoing events

Click here to see the last few chances to catch Leigh's Midwest tour!

Don't forget to sign up for end-of-grade testing! Visit our new website, Homeschool Testing Services, to register and get test-prep materials.

Register as a friend on BlogTalkRadio to be eligible for our weekly drawing! Click "follow" so you'll get updates about spontaneous and pre-recorded shows.

Send questions to Leigh for her next book on the dialectic via AskLeigh@ymail.com.

Notes from today's show

Visit the CC Writers' Circle to read daily articles about classical education from our talented contributors.

Get ready for Leigh's meeting with Nancy Pearcey in April by reading Nancy's books The Soul of Science and Total Truth.

Information about Parent Practicums is available on the front page of the CC website, or go directly to the Parent Practicums web page.

Pass on the link to our 2011 Parent Practicums promotional video! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vv5J_VbFiCk). Keep watching for an upcoming podcast about the practicums.

This year's practicums will highlight the books Norms and Nobility by David Hicks and Nancy Pearcey's Total Truth.

Visit our online catalog to see more new resources from CC. Especially check out our new booklet Classical Christian Education Made Approachable and the Compass of Classical Conversations audio CDs, which will be available around the first of May. Also new for the Essentials Program are the Trivium Tables for English Grammar and Quid et Quo (dialectic work).

Coming out this year will also be a newly revised Essentials guide, and new editions of the Words Aptly Spoken guides, especially Words Aptly Spoken: American Documents as we discuss freedom in relation to American history.

There will be a special Blog Talk Radio show on March 23rd about the new products and your questions.

Email us at TellUs@classicalconversations.com to let us know what topics you'd like to see on upcoming Blog Talk Radio shows!

For more dialogue about these topics, register for the free portion of our CC Connected website and the CC Facebook page. Tobin also recommends St. Anne's Public House for online dialogue on Christ-centered issues.

Poetry and Patriotism

2011-03-07T23:03:00.003-05:00

Join me this week for my tour of the Midwest!

Teaching our students to cherish their freedom begins with instilling an understanding of what freedom truly is. What is patriotism? Of what or whom should we be patriots? This week, I'm talking with interested families in the Midwest about how to instill proper patriotism in our children in a country that is forsaking its roots, and how to give them an understanding of what Freedom is and what it requires of them.

There are still five chances to join our conversation!

March 8th - Plainfield, IN
March 9th - Bloomington, IL
March 9th - Moline, IL
March 10th - Des Moines, IA
March 11th - Nebraska, NE

(Click on the links for specific locations and host contact information)

2011 Parent Practicums Video

2011-03-03T17:23:00.007-05:00

Next week, while I'm on tour, Matt Bianco and Heather Shirley will be talking on my BlogTalkRadio show, Leigh! at Lunch, about the upcoming season of Parent Practicums and our goal of improving the vision of homeschool families through Classical Conversations.

To get in started thinking about these big ideas, I encourage you to watch our new promotional video and ask yourself, "What kind of vision is directing my steps as a parent, an educator, and a free person?"

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 3/2/11

2011-03-02T13:30:00.010-05:00

If you are interested in topics that came up during this week's show, here are a few links and tips from Leigh at Lunch on Blog Talk Radio 3/2/11, "Leigh! at Lunch with Bob and Geri Boyd." (Click on the title to listen to the show archive now).

Had a question for today's show that you didn't get to ask? Email it to 1smartmama@gmail.com or comment on this post for an answer!

Coming soon from 1 Smart Mama

Tune in next Wednesday, March 9, at 12 noon EST to join a special conversation with CC's Heather Shirley and Matt Bianco about upcoming Parent Practicums.

Ongoing events

Click here to see Leigh's Midwest tour dates and locations for next week!

Don't forget to sign up for end-of-grade testing! Visit our new website, Homeschool Testing Services, to register and get test-prep materials.

Register as a friend on BlogTalkRadio to be eligible for our weekly drawing! Click "follow" so you'll get updates about spontaneous and pre-recorded shows.

Send questions to Leigh for her next book on the dialectic via AskLeigh@ymail.com.

Notes from today's show

Visit the CC Bookstore to buy your own copy of Millstones and Stumbling Blocks by Bradley Heath.

Visit Bob and Geri's website, IssuesinEducation.org, to read more about their radio show. Bob and Geri won the 2010 Dr. Robert Dreyfus Courageous Christian Leadership Award.

Read more about G.K. Chesterton via this biography. Many of Chesterton's lectures are available from the American Chesterton Society.

Read about Robert Lewis Dabney, 19th century pastor, and his opinions on early models of state-run education from this anthology of his writings. Also contains links to a biography of Dabney.

The Home School Legal Defense Association covered the 2010 case of a German family seeking political asylum in the United States for the freedom to home school.

The full quote from Charles Colson about Christian education comes from page 338 of How Now Shall We Live, which is available from Amazon.

For a further conversation about the failings of the modern church, download one of Leigh's early podcasts, "If We are the Light, Why Aren't We Attracting Bugs?"

Register for Classical Conversations programs for next year at Classicalconversations.com. Under the drop down menu "Academic Programs," click on Forms and Fees to download the PDF file.

Updated Tour Information

2011-03-01T13:19:00.004-05:00

Next week, I'll be heading off on my Midwest tour, "Poetry and Patriotism." I hope you'll join me!

From March 7 to March 11 I'll be visiting West Virginia, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, and Nebraska to talk about freedom and patriotism, and what freedom requires of us.

Information about the specific locations where I'll be speaking is now available -- click on the "Speaking Schedule" tab to find out more.

I'm looking forward to seeing and talking with many of you in person next week!

Leigh! at Lunch with Bob and Geri Boyd

2011-03-01T08:36:00.003-05:00

Please join me this Wednesday, March 2 at 12 noon for Leigh! at Lunch. This week I'll be talking to Bob and Geri Boyd about the roles of government and freedom within education.

I'm very excited to have Bob and Geri on the show this week. Bob and Geri host a radio program called Issues in Education that focuses on Christian education and homeschooling in order to encourage families to see the importance of Christian education. Please feel free to call or chat in to ask your questions! (347-215-6509)

Click here to go directly to the show.

CC Writers' Circle

2011-02-28T06:00:00.002-05:00

New from CC!

Classical Conversations has formed a Writers' Circle! A number of writers from inside and out of the Classical Conversations Community will be turning out articles about the reasons we homeschool, how to homeschool more effectively, how to homeschool classically, creation and science, classical education, homeschool sports, getting into college, Classical Conversations alumni, directors, state manager and current student highlights, and Latin.

Contributing to our circle will be Andrew Kern, Adam Andrews, Alan Schaeffer, Aaron Hebbard, Matt Bianco, Kathy Shepard, Kim Walsh, Jonathan Bartlett, Tobin Duby, David Bailey, Chris Davis, Leigh Bortins, Lin Tomkinson and Jennifer Courtney.

To read more about these writers and see their latest articles, go to ClassicalConversations.com, click on CC Connected --> Guest --> Articles, or click here to go directly to the press release.

If you'd like to submit an article to the CC Writers' Circle, please send us an email!

Classical Discovery of Classicist's Books

2011-02-26T06:00:00.007-05:00

Does classical learning really take place outside a school context?

Absolutely! For a great example, check out this article about the detective work rare books librarians do ('Amazing' trove of Thomas Jefferson's books discovered), and read how the researchers involved model putting grammar and logic to work to achieve a valuable end.

This week, rare books librarians at Washington University of St. Louis revealed the discovery of 74 books from our third president's personal collection.

"It is so out of the blue and pretty amazing," said Washington University's rare books curator Erin Davis of the discovery that was announced on the U.S. holiday of President's Day. The books were among about 3,000 that were donated to the school in 1880 after the death of Jefferson's granddaughter, Ellen Wayles Randolph Coolidge, and her husband, Joseph Coolidge.

Part of the researchers' job was a kind of detective work that involved knowledge of the Latin alphabet and an understanding of printing conventions:

In the hand-pressed books that were common in Jefferson's day, printers would place the letters of the alphabet — called signatures — at the bottom of some pages so that when the books were bound, the pages would be placed in the correct order. One way Jefferson marked his books was to place a small "T" in front of one of the "I" signature, which was significant because "I" is "J" in the Latin alphabet.

The researchers had to piece together what they knew about Jefferson's family history (how the books ended up at Washington University), languages, Jefferson's personal habits, and printing conventions to solve the mystery.

Now, thanks to their efforts, scholars are able to study Jefferson's handwritten notes on the archaeology book he used to design the University of Virginia.

Jefferson himself famously received a classical education (see this article from Memoria Press): "Jefferson received early training in Latin, Greek, and French from Reverend William Douglas, a Scottish clergyman. At the age of fourteen, Jefferson’s father died, and, at the express wish of his father, he continued his education with the Reverend James Maury, who ran a classical academy. After leaving Douglas’ academy, Jefferson attended the College of William and Mary, where his classical education continued along with his study of law."

Today, scholars are applying similar methods to uncover more information about this classically educated man.

What a great model for learning that gathers knowledge, then relates different categories of knowledge to each other in order to discover something new and share it with others!

For more information, why not read A Thomas Jefferson Education from the CC Bookstore?

2011-02-25T09:57:00.003-05:00

CC Events this week
Check out some of the open houses and info meetings going on around the country! In S.C., join us for a one-day parent practicum on Saturday!
Grant Supports Family Reading Time
Said Lisa Davis, an early learning specialist at OCPC, “We want children to learn to love books and to start reading to them when they are little and can sit on their parent’s laps while they read to them — book cuddling. This will help a child build early learning skills.”
Why politicians should spend time at school
Read this article as a great lead-in to thinking about the difference between childcare and shepherding, teaching and mentoring.
Senate kills bill to require more parent notification of school discipline
"Advocates of the bill argued parents need to know whenever their children face serious disciplinary action."
Many Mich. high school graduates lack skills
The push to graduate students may undermine real learning in math.
Urban students lag in science learning
Seeing science outside a book is so important. Read more here (Go Outside and Open Their Eyes.)

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 2/23/11

2011-02-23T13:30:00.009-05:00

If you are interested in topics that came up during this week's show, here are a few links and tips from Leigh at Lunch on Blog Talk Radio 2/23/11, "Testing with Shannon Brown." (Click on the title to listen to the show archive now).

Had a question for today's show that you didn't get to ask? Email it to 1smartmama@gmail.com or comment on this post for an answer!

Coming soon from 1 Smart Mama

Tune in next Wednesday, March 2, at 12 noon EST to join the conversation with Leigh and radio show hosts Bob and Geri Boyd.

Ongoing events

Don't forget to sign up for end-of-grade testing! Visit our new website, Homeschool Testing Services, to register and get test-prep materials.

Register as a friend on BlogTalkRadio to be eligible for our weekly drawing! Click "follow" so you'll get updates about spontaneous and pre-recorded shows. Send questions to Leigh via AskLeigh@ymail.com.

Check back regularly to find out more about Leigh's tour dates this spring.

Notes from today's show

Using Homeschool Testing Services, find dates and locations to sign up for a test site near you by visiting this page. Click here for testing prices.

Why No. 2 pencils? Read this article from How Everything Works about the history and mechanics of test scanners.

Visit Classical Conversations Books to buy test prep materials, either the old Spectrum books or the new (cheaper) Stanford books.

To register as a test coordinator, go to the "Site Coordinator" page on Homeschooltestingservices.com.

Email questions to Sbrown@homeschooltestingservices.com.

Shannon Brown on Leigh! at Lunch

2011-02-23T06:00:00.002-05:00

Dear Friends,

TODAY, Feb. 23 on Leigh! at Lunch, please join me at 12 noon as I interview Shannon Brown about homeschool testing.

Please join us as we discuss the ins and outs of year end testing. Is your child ready? What are the legal requirements for YOUR state? What do you do if your child has struggled all year? These questions, and more, will be answered in this session of 1 Smart Mama on BTR.

Please join us at 12:00 noon EST and feel free to call in (347-215-6509) to ask questions of me or Shannon.

Click here to go directly to the show.

(Pro)tests in Context

2011-02-21T06:00:00.003-05:00

This week, New York City is taking a tougher stance on auditing test scores and grading practices, after fears that schools might be manipulating the statistics to make themselves look better. (Read the story here: New York City to toughen Auditing of Test Scores.)

This week, there are thousands of people protesting outside the state capitol in Madison, Wisconsin. The initial reason? A bill on education.

For one side of the story, read this article by education historian Diane Ravitch (Why America's teachers are enraged). One of the biggest issues she lists is the emphasis placed on testing and test scores. That's an issue a lot of people in education are asking questions about.

Why should we do it or not do it? What do the results mean? How should test scores be used?

At Classical Conversations, we're making a paradigm shift when it comes to testing. Read more about my thoughts on testing here: (Is That Going to Be on the Test?). We test and test often because test practice removes fear and builds confidence. We let our children know NOTHING negative will result if they do poorly. We clearly communicate that the point of a test is to train for things that really matter. Tests are just small steps in a life-long process.

Still, we know a lot of homeschool parents get anxious when it comes to testing, and others want to know how something that measures learning quantitatively fits into the classical model.

I hope you'll join me for Leigh! at Lunch, my Blog Talk Radio show, this Wednesday at noon as I talk with our guest Shannon Brown about the subject of testing. (Click here to go directly to the show.) Shannon is working with our new website, Homeschooltestingservices.com and will be glad to help me answer your questions.

Classical Conversations from the Inside

2011-02-18T11:27:00.006-05:00

Check out this great overview of CC from Heidi Scovel over at the blog Milk and Cookies, as part of the 10 days of Classical Education. Here's a teaser, but you should read the whole thing.

It felt like Christmas the day my Foundations Curriculum Guide (and other materials) came in the mail. I poured over it and felt my excitement growing. It contains all the memory work for all 3 cycles. (We will only need one copy for all 3 boys for all the years of Foundations.) ...

Visit Heidi's blog, Mt. Hope Chronicles, to read more about her journey with Classical Conversations and see her beautiful pictures. Thanks for sharing your experiences with us, Heidi!

2011-02-18T06:00:00.001-05:00

A Daughter's Security in her Dad
Read this great article from a CC family about dads and daughters.
Walking in God's Economy
Jen @ Balancing Beauty and Bedlam writes about principles of stewarding your financial resources.
2011 Doodle 4 Google contest
Does your son or daughter enjoy art? Enter this year's Google drawing contest on the theme, "What I'd like to do someday..." Last year's 7-9th grade winner was a homeschooler.
Commission Set Up to Improve Humanities, Social Science Studies
"...the humanities and social sciences provide the intellectual framework for the nation's economic, political, and governing institutions and that people should understand the importance of liberal arts just as they understand the key role of math and science."
Is Rote Memorization Necessarily Bad?
Check out this 1SmartMama post (and this one) responding to the question of memorization.

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 2/16/11

2011-02-16T13:08:00.005-05:00

If you are interested in topics that came up during this week's show, here are a few links and tips from Leigh at Lunch on Blog Talk Radio 2/16/11, "Leigh at Lunch with CC Graduates." (Click on the title to listen to the show archive now).

Had a question for today's show that you didn't get to ask? Email it to 1smartmama@gmail.com or comment on this post for an answer!

Coming soon from 1 Smart Mama

Tune in next Wednesday, February 23, at 12 noon EST to join the conversation with Leigh and Shannon Brown about the pros and cons of testing.

Ongoing events

Don't forget to sign up for end-of-grade testing! Visit our new website, Homeschool Testing Services, to register and get test-prep materials.

Check back regularly to find out more about Leigh's tour dates this spring.

Notes from today's show

What kind of results do Challenge graduates get? Check out this PDF file, The Challenge Difference, to read about SAT scores, college acceptances, and other quantitative measures.

Find out more about the colleges our guests attended, visit the websites of Queens University, Bridgewater College, Clemson University, Patrick Henry College, and Grove City College.

Read more about "Watson," IBM's latest project on artificial intelligence, and its stint on Jeopardy.

Books recommended on today's show include The Rector of Justin by Auchincloss, Shop Class as Soulcraft by Crawford, and Norms and Nobility by Hicks.

To get last-chance savings on older editions or to order the all-new editions of the Words Aptly Spoken series of literature guides by Jen Greenholt, visit the CC Bookstore.

CC Graduates on Leigh! at Lunch

2011-02-15T23:38:00.006-05:00

Dear Friends,

This Wednesday, Feb. 16 on Leigh! at Lunch, please join me at 12 p.m. as I interview CC alumni Sarah Tomkinson, Jen Greenholt, and Andrew McIndoe.

Join me and some of my past students as we discuss their thoughts and feelings on their education. Where are these students today? In college? Married? Are they carrying on the tradition with their families and homeschooling through a Classical Christian curriculum? Were they accepted and how well did they do in college?

Join us at 12:00 noon EST and call in (347-215-6509) to ask questions of my former students. This should be a very lively show!!

Click here to go directly to the show.

Is That Going to Be On the Test?

2011-02-11T06:00:00.002-05:00

If children are souls to be nurtured and not products to be measured, then what to we do about standardized testing? After all, tests 'norm' our children into narrow categories, yet colleges require them right?

I dislike tests when:

Tests are a poor assessment tool - such as a multiple choice literature test that destroys the passion for literary analysis;
Tests are over- emphasized – such as SAT scores for college admission;
Tests can be 'gamed' – such as a Latin test that has so many English roots you can guess the correct translation;
Tests are used exclusively by adults - students see no benefit to tests because school is something done to them.

Here are some reasons I like tests:

Tests are a quick way for a STUDENT to assess their strengths and weaknesses;
Tests are a clear way for PARENTS to communicate what they expect their children to learn;
Tests can clearly relate benefits to the student;
Tests are a measure of excellence or competency.

Life offers tests. Tests on paper are just one kind of test. CC memory recitation is a test. A clean room so you can go play is a test. On a test, an adult has set a standard and then clearly communicate to the child whether the standard has been met. Some tests require activities; some are mental.

In our family, we give our children many standardized or normed tests every year. Test practice removes fear and builds confidence. We let them know NOTHING negative will result if they do poorly. We clearly communicate that the point of a test is to train for things that really matter. Tests are just small steps in a life-long process.

We want our boys to be able to go to good colleges, but we also know the college system of the past ended with the University of Phoenix. Anyone can learn anything if they really want to. The old worry about scholarships to good colleges because of test scores is ending as renowned schools like Wake Forest University discuss replacing the normed tests with their own entrance exams. Most colleges just want your money and ask for test scores as a formality. Rather than worry and wonder, we prepare.

So, at age 12, David a will take the National Latin Exam and the Stanford and the two bluebook exams his Challenge A tutor gives him. As a 15-year-old, William is taking the National Latin exam, the PSAT, and the SAT twice as well as the ACT and the two bluebook exams his Challenge III tutor gives him. At this age, no one cares how they score. But at 17 or 27 years old, they might care. As their parents, we will be sure they have practiced taking tests.

This past year William did really well on the June SAT and not so well on the October PSAT. We compared the scores and talked about his testing strategies. Boys like talking strategy. I noticed on the PSAT results each section said things like "8/8 answered right, 12 possible," which meant he didn't even answer 4 questions but the 8 he did answer were correct. Turns out he decided to only answer PSAT questions that he was absolutely positive about and leave the rest blank. On the SAT, he had answered everything so he got more right because he filled in more bubbles. Now he knows he's a pretty good guesser and to be more confident this spring as he answers more questions on the SAT. Instead of the score on the standardized test being emphasized, he learned something about his ability to take tests. By testing often, his perspective on both the use and importance of tests is more rational. He can try new things before it really matters. He's been taking standardized tests since he was in 3rd grade, so there's no fear on his part.

Parents tend to have extreme reactions to testing. They either over-emphasize tests by acting like their child's success is hinged on their results, or they panic because their students got low scores. Children only know what they know. They won't be wise about tests if they don't experience them. Just give a normed test once a year through upper grammar school and then 3-5 test opportunities a year through Challenge. In this way, your child will be prepared in 11th and 12th to take tests that he feels will help him follow God's purpose for his life.

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 2/9/11

2011-02-09T11:50:00.017-05:00

If you are interested in topics that came up during this week's show, here are a few links and tips from Leigh at Lunch on Blog Talk Radio 2/9/11, "Leigh at Lunch with National Day of Prayer." (Click on the title to listen to the show archive now).

Coming soon from 1 Smart Mama

Tune in next Wednesday, February 16, at 12 noon EST to join the conversation with Leigh and several graduates of Classical Conversations. Bring your questions about college, life after CC, and more!

Ongoing events

Don't forget to sign up for end-of-grade testing! Visit our new website, Homeschool Testing Services, to register and get test-prep materials. Check back Feb. 23 for Leigh's conversation with Shannon Brown about the pros and cons of testing.

Check back regularly to find out more about Leigh's tour dates this spring.

Notes from today's show

For more information about the National Day of Prayer and its history, visit http://nationaldayofprayer.org. This year, the event will take place Thursday, May 5. Click here to read more about John Bornschein, the Executive Director of the National Day of Prayer Task Force. See the Answered Prayers page for more about the visible changes seen as a result of prayer.

2 Chronicles 7:14 is a great reference to begin looking into the biblical basis of corporate prayer and confession.

Read Joni Eareckson Tada's National Prayer for 2011. Find out more about Joni's work at www.Joniandfriends.org.

Visit the Duke Center for Spirituality, Theology, and Health to see examples of research on prayer and health.

Mr. Bornschein's newest book, The Front Line: Prayer and Spiritual Warfare, will be out sometime next week. Find this and other resources at the National Day of Prayer Store. He especially recommends Drive Thru History: America for homeschool families.

For help making the National Day of Prayer relevant for kids, Mr. Bornschein recommends the Pray for Everyday Heroes kit.

Leigh! at Lunch with John Bornschein

2011-02-07T06:00:00.003-05:00

Dear friends,

I'm excited to be returning to BlogTalkRadio this Wednesday, February 9, 2011 with the 1SmartMama, Leigh! At Lunch Show.

Please join me at 12 noon EST as I chat with John Bornschein, Executive Director of the National Day of Prayer Task Force and an Executive Member of the National Prayer Committee. He and his team have been charged by Mrs. Shirley Dobson to mobilize the Christian community to intercede for America and its leadership in the seven centers of power: Government, Military, Media, Business, Education, Church and Family.

Click here to go directly to the show.
Visit http://nationaldayofprayer.org for more information.

Summer Seminars at FEE

2011-02-03T15:56:00.008-05:00

When I was 17 (1979) , I attended an academic camp that changed my view of life in a single week. It was hosted by The Heritage Foundation, Young Americans for Freedom (YAF), and The Foundation for Economic Education (FEE).

The following year, I voted for the first time and Ronald Reagan became president. Through YAF, an organization Reagan started, I attended a Rose Garden Tea with Reagan and Sadat. Sadat then returned to Egypt and was assassinated. Mubarak became the new Egyptian president. I then went to the University of Michigan and founded the YAF chapter for the university at the same time I felt the Holy Spirit calling me to our Father. One of my roommates, Leila, was a graduate student from Jordan who was friends with Queen Noor. Queen Noor would call our room to talk with Leila. So, I was aware of Arabic/American relations early on.

So this week, Mubarak of Egypt and Jordan are both back in the news, it is Reagan's 100th birthday, and I attended a lecture by Larry Reed of FEE concerning the whirlwind of change character and freedom inspire. These connections in my life remind me that all is for His good and His purpose.

So, why am I involved with the same organizations 30 years later? Am I being called to do something more with my passion for freedom? What is my response to the cries for Mubarak’s removal? I’m reminded of the Bible story which describes the demon being replaced by seven demons that are worse. If Mubarak leaves the palace today, which demon will step in? Democracy requires a process and a plan. I wonder why the protesters are not calling for immediate free elections? Someone will govern...How can we be sure it will be someone better?

I also attended a legislative event in NC because our new conservative legislature wants to help homeschoolers. They've introduced an odd law in committee that I can't wrap my head around yet as it is social engineering but in a way that definitively dismisses public education. So, while I like the message, I am not foolish enough to believe the underlying message, "We're the government and we're here to help."

I already know the harm of its unintended consequences as do the legislators, but they seem willing to risk it because it sends a powerful message about parental rights. The proposed law revolves around a tax credit; however it contains so many exceptions before leaving committee that it will not accomplish what the legislators intend. I'm praying for a way to offer an alternative that keeps these conservatives moving our way yet doesn't suck me into social engineering.

So whether it is the Middle East or educational tax credits, I can definitely point to a week in my life that empowered me to think about these topics, to be involved and to meet people that are truly free indeed. Do everything you can to get your teens to the FEE teen summit in Estes Park Colorado this summer. It's the same event that changed my life 30 years ago. The deadline is March 31, 2011. The application process is competitive, but the week is free if you can just get your child there.

Love, Leigh

Visit http://fee.org/seminars/high-school for more info.

Outgoing Products Sale at the Bookstore

2011-02-01T16:08:00.003-05:00

Don't miss out on these special offers!

FEBRUARY SALE

February 1 - 28
Deeply Discounted Outgoing Products!
*Online orders only

Clearance of old editions being updated.
New editions coming Spring 2011

WAS: Children's Lit A - ONLY $8

WAS: Children's Lit B - ONLY $8 (Early buyers will get a free copy of Shiloh)

WAS: Short Stories - ONLY $8

WAS: American Lit - ONLY $8

WAS: American Docs - ONLY $8

WAS: British Lit - ONLY $8

CC Cycle 3 Memory Work Resource CD - ONLY $5

Also, 2011 Classical Conversations Catalogs are in our warehouse!!!
Go to the www.classicalconversationsbooks.com to request one and start saving today!

Higher Orders of Science

2011-01-31T06:00:00.006-05:00

*This is the second in a series of guest posts from CCMM Communications Director Jennifer Courtney. See also Higher Orders of Math*

F=MA

Just like the illustrations from mathematics in the last post, memorization is central to success in the sciences as well. Your brain cannot memorize formulas, figure out which ones to use, and evaluate the results all at the same time.

Think about students of biology who have already memorized animal classifications, students of physiology who have memorized organ systems, students of chemistry who have memorized the periodic table, and students of physics who have memorized Newton’s Laws of Motion and the laws of thermodynamics.

These are the students who can immediately leap into the logic and rhetoric applications of their knowledge.

Remember, people only object to rote memorization when they conceive of it as cramming for a test and then forgetting the information or memorizing facts without going on to apply those facts to higher orders of thinking.

*To read more about the importance of memorization, check out A House With a Foundation. For more information about the Classical Conversations Foundations Program,
visit www.classicalconversations.com.*

Leigh Is Going Global

2011-01-29T06:00:00.007-05:00

Good news! I'm starting to gather the dates for my 2011 speaking schedule, and this year, for the first time, I'll be traveling internationally, starting with a visit to Okinawa, Japan in April.

Speaking Schedule / March-April 2011

March 6-12 Midwest Tour: WV, IN, IL, IA, NE (dates and locations TBD)

March 17-19 Southeast Homeschool Convention

April - Pacific side

~~Okinawa on April 1 & 2~~ Cancelled, Please pray for the people of Japan!

Honolulu on April 8 & 9

Stay tuned for more details about dates and locations as the events get closer. Visit the CC Event Calendar for information about events near you.

Blog Talk Starts for 2011

2011-01-28T09:15:00.007-05:00

It's that time of year again!

Starting next Wednesday, ~~Feb. 2~~ Feb. 9, join me on Wednesdays for my BlogTalkRadio show, Leigh! at Lunch. Log in to chat, call in live, or just listen as we talk about classical education, home schooling, and other issues you care about. Stay tuned for information about my first guest!

In the meantime, you can catch up on any archived shows you might have missed by going to www.blogtalkradio.com/1smartmama. Register as a listener and add me as a friend now (here's how!) to be eligible for our weekly drawings and prizes.

Last year I talked to NASA astronaut and homeschool dad Col. James P. Dutton, Andrew Pudewa, Dr. Gene Edward Veith, Jr., Dr. R.C. Sproul, Jr. and many others. In the past, I've also interviewed Gov. Mike Huckabee, Mike Smith, president of HSLDA, and Mark Bauerlein, author of The Dumbest Generation.

If you'd like to suggest a guest or a topic, please email me at 1smartmama@gmail.com or leave a comment on this post.

Let's start talking!

Leigh Bortins Response to 2011 State of the Union Address

2011-01-27T12:14:00.003-05:00

Last night, our president addressed this nation on a multitude of topics with his vision for the future of America. A considerable portion of that address was on the topic of education. Much of what he said was right.

It is absolutely correct that our future, the future of any people, is dependent on future generations of well-educated children. These children need to be thoroughly educated, and the importance of math and science is especially in need of emphasis.

As the CEO and founder of Classical Conversations, Inc., a leader in home education, I greatly appreciate the president’s stressing that the responsibility for educating our children resides in the home, and it is the “family that first instills the love of learning in a child.” Removing top-down mandates and restoring local authority over education is a move in the right direction; a move I affirm.

However, these can only be the beginning. President Obama stressed that “nearly half of all new jobs will require education that goes beyond a high school degree.” While employment is a practical outcome of a good education, it is not the goal of a good education. Children are not to be educated so that they can learn a skill and earn a good job. The skill they should be learning is how to learn, not how to manufacture wares. The reason we fear one type of job going overseas is because our education has not enabled us how to learn the necessary skills for another job. We should rejoice with Kathy Proctor, who is earning a degree in biotechnology, so that she can earn a living in another field outside of furniture manufacturing. We should rejoice with her for doing what all of us should be able to do, but are afraid of because our education didn’t give us the skill of how to learn.

The president also discussed the importance of “high expectations” and “high performance,” schools that don’t “meet this test,” and “standards” developed by governors throughout the country. He also referenced statistics such as, America is “ninth in the proportion of young people with a college degree.” The point is missed. Children are souls, created to be loved and nurtured, not statistics or test scores. Life is not a series of multiple-choice-#2-pencil-bubblesheet tests. Life is something we live, in which we are constantly learning. Yet, in the very stages of development where our children are being prepared for life, they are being taught to become test scores and statistics in the number of high school diplomas or college degrees being awarded.

Of course, standards, testing, and statistics are necessary tools in the education of children when the responsibility of educating them is being shared with “our schools.” These schools are responsible to their district school boards, their state government, and ultimately to the federal government if they want any funding. And these agencies are so distant from the actual child being educated that this student becomes a series of test scores and grades on a stack of papers or a computer screen. Just consider the hubris of Washington to think it knows what is best for the education of children in Vermont and New Mexico. But let’s not stop there. Consider the hubris, too, of my own North Carolina government in Raleigh to think that it knows what is best for the education of the children in Boone. Or, that the Moore County school board knows what is best for little Johnny Smith living on the opposite side of the county.

Responsibility doesn’t only begin in the home, it resides in the home. Only Johnny’s family knows what is best for his learning. And when she doesn’t, or more likely, doesn’t think she does, there is a community out there to help her. But the community doesn’t exist to create or impose standards on Johnny. How can they have the authority to do so when they don’t even have the responsibility to do so? They are there to provide guidance, advice, and assistance to the family who is responsible to do so.

So, while working toward a brighter future for America might include the reforms President Obama mentioned in his State of the Union Address, it cannot be anything more than the beginning of its reform. Ultimately, education must be a means by which our children are nurtured, not recorded as statistics. And the responsibility for nurturing them must remain with the family, not pulled out from under them and put into the hands of a bureaucracy hundreds of miles away.

Higher Orders of Math

2011-01-27T06:00:00.003-05:00

*Thanks to CCMM Communications Director Jennifer Courtney for this guest post*

I used to tutor geometry. Every fall, about the time mid-term grades came in, my answering machine was full of calls from frustrated parents. Memorization is especially key here because your brain cannot memorize formulas, apply them by plugging in numbers, and prove that they are true at the same time.

I am convinced that these students would have been more successful if they had memorized the formulas for area and circumference and a few other simple things like the Pythagorean theorem long before they were asked to use them.

Then, when this knowledge is solid, they need to apply it by plugging in numbers and solving the equations.

Finally, they will be ready to graduate to the rhetoric stage of geometry which is proving that the theorems are true.

The same is true in Algebra. It’s difficult to think about mathematical formulas with letters when you haven’t learned how to think about them with numbers.

Students must be able to recite the multiplication tables in their sleep before approaching the abstract concepts of algebra. They would be helped by memorizing the laws that we memorize in Foundations.

Then, they can identify equations which use these laws. Then, they can plug in numbers and demonstrate that the laws hold true.

Finally, they will be able to write and solve equations with letters.

People only object to rote memorization when they conceive of it as cramming for a test and then forgetting the information or memorizing facts without going on to apply those facts to higher orders of thinking.

*To read more about the importance of memorization, check out A House With a Foundation. For more information about the Classical Conversations Foundations Program, visit www.classicalconversations.com.*

Rhetoric and the State

2011-01-25T22:39:00.005-05:00

If you missed tonight's State of the Union address by President Barack Obama, check out the full text from NPR here and visit the White House government site to find video of the speech and responses.

This is a great opportunity to talk about political rhetoric with your family. First, refresh your memory with this overview of classical rhetoric from the CiRCE Institute. Be on the lookout for these key elements, and analyze how effectively they were used:

Invention – discovery of matter
Arrangement – ordering of the matter discovered
Elocution – appropriate expression of the matter
Memory – retention of the matter in the speaker's mind
Delivery – the oral presentation of the matter

Also, check this list of classical rhetorical figures from the University of Kentucky. See how many you can identify in the President's speech! Was that an example of anadiplosis or antistrophe?

Finally, to practice thinking about the importance of words, visit SpeechWars.com and look at the number of times and instances in which Presidents over the years have used loaded words like "government," "debt," "investment," "constitution," "defense," and "honesty."

However you approach it, take advantage of this chance to share as a family some honest and open conversation about, first, what it means to participate in representative government; and second, what it means to use your words with wisdom and purpose.

Good night!

A House With a Foundation

2011-01-24T06:00:00.004-05:00

Last week, we talked about debates over the value of "rote learning." According to the most recent stats on the Waiting for Superman web poll, 44% of readers think rote learning provides content, while 42% think learning by rote is a passive act. In other words, this site's readers are pretty evenly split.

And yet if you go to Google News and type in "education," after stories about "achievement" and "funding," chances are, one of the top hits will be something about global competitiveness in science and math.

Americans are supremely concerned about how well our children are doing compared to the rest of the world, particularly in these subject areas. We're told children are the key to future economic success, but only if they go on to perform well in engineering, medical research, and technology. And to do that, they need to start in high school math and science classes.

Let's pause and think. What's one thing that makes high school chemistry challenging?

Memorizing the Periodic Table.

What's one thing that makes Algebra tough?

Remembering the quadratic formula.

What's one thing that makes Anatomy difficult?

Learning the names of the bones.

Do you see a pattern? Sure, we have reference books and calculators to help, but if you have to look up every step of a 20-step problem, it will take a lot longer and be a lot more frustrating.

All of a sudden, after years of telling children memorization isn't important, we want high school and college students to do a lot of it in order to succeed in math and science. By this point, however, they haven't spent enough time stretching their brains. It's hard work. It doesn't come naturally.

So, if we tell educators memorization isn't important, that it's optional and supplementary -- even when children are young and it comes easily -- is it any wonder that we see a decline in the fields that most prominently require it?

What do you think?

(This week, stop back by to hear more on this subject with guest posts by Jennifer Courtney.)

2011-01-21T09:06:00.004-05:00

You Who Are Weary, Come Home
"I wonder if it is not the greatest shame in human history that contemporary man has turned its back on the household as an obstacle to success." - Andrew Kern
Cursive Disappearing from Students' Writing Skills
The question may not be, is it necessary? but rather, what other skills does it foster?
10 Ways You and Your Church Can Be Involved in Adoption and Orphan Care
Ligonier Ministries urges Christians not to ask "whether?" but "how?"
When Good Words Become the Enemy
Deborah Meier talks about the need to define our terms when we talk about education.
Behaving Like Children
From Schools Matter: this post's irony invites us to go back to a model of learning that is rigorous but based on children's natural stages and is not in opposition to childhood.
The Art of Rhetoric
Taking another look at this misunderstood form of learning, from the CiRCE Institute.

A Day in the Life

2011-01-19T21:08:00.002-05:00

As our final set of boys become men, all the rewards of home schooling become apparent. Previously, I've spent much time writing about raising little boys. I know home schooling parents are often interested in A Day in the Life of a home schooling family, so I thought I'd share some of our eventful day.

Wednesday, January 9, 2011

8am: Rummaged around for house plumbing plans as plumber arrived to repair awful smell from master bedroom. Looked at plans with Rob and William. Watched the plumber use scope up all the pipes and vents.

9am: Worked through a chapter of Don't Check Your Brains at the Door as today's devotional with family.

10am: Plumber and contractor left; CC MultiMedia team arrived for advertising discussion. David and William completed math assignment.

11am: William and my videographer, Tobin, checked recording devices to ensure they were ready to record audio for this summer's Parent Practicums. David still working at completing assignments.

12noon: Lunched at a local diner with boys and team. Discussed the nuances in well-written dramas and comedies. Greeted neighbors. Conferred with a friend in the restaurant over plans to build a light aircraft this summer. Greeted Keith Denton who had come up from SC to help CC for the day. He was lunching with IT guy, Chris Sanford. We like living in a small town.

1pm: Team went to office for a training in Microsoft Excel. Tim, another IT guy, did a really good job. I'll bring the boys to the next session. They had guitar lessons while I was at office. I'll have to reschedule guitar so they can learn Excel Pivot tables each Wednesday.

2pm: Reviewed Parent Practicum recording with Tobin. William worked on essay and helped IT guy install software and new hardware. David played basketball.

3pm: Worked on Advertising Rate Cards with team. Spent a lot of time on phone with Robert in SC as he is helping with the advertising.

5pm: Discussion with IT team.

6pm: Sloppy Joe and veggie dinner with family as contractors and IT guys and CCMM team left.

7pm: Art instructor gave lessons to the boys and six friends in our craft room. Greeted friends as they dropped off children ages 5 to 17 for lessons from a CC Dad, Paul Rizzo. Cleaned up kitchen and the last of Christmas decorations with Rob.

8pm: Worked on this blog entry while listening to Paul tell the students interesting stories about his day as a public school teacher. Tobin is filming the stories as Paul is fascinating and many of the students are excellent artists. They love to listen as they sketch.

9pm: The boys leave for their writing club. They meet twice a week to develop plots and characters with a handful of other writers. They will be back after I'm in bed. I will probably watch a movie as I watch Rob fall asleep in the chair.

Goodnight!

Love, Leigh

Community at CC

2011-01-17T06:00:00.002-05:00

January is a busy month for us at CC. Just today, we have information meetings and open houses going on in Ohio, Kentucky, Illinois, Virginia, California, Louisiana, North Carolina, Missouri, Texas, Georgia, and Minnesota!

If you're interested in the classical model, or if you're compelled to home school your children but don't feel equipped to do it alone, check out our Event Calendar to find out what's going on in a community near you, and come talk to the people who make CC what it is every day.

Remember, we don't think parents know everything, but we know that each child is uniquely (and wonderfully!) made, and we also believe that the people who know and love a child best are the ones most motivated to help that child succeed. You can do it!

(From our homepage www.classicalconversations.com, click on the map at the top of the screen to find your local community.)

Waiting for Rote Learning

2011-01-14T06:00:00.000-05:00

After the documentary film Waiting for Superman hit theaters last year, the website www.waitingforsuperman.com has been hosting a range of debates about educational practices and issues.

One of the latest is: Debate: Does Rote Learning Have a Place in the Classroom? (Click on the link to add your opinion and see what others are saying. Thanks to those who've mentioned The Core!)

At Classical Conversations, our Foundations program is based on the fact that young children's brains are naturally wired to memorize. The Classical Model emphasizes mastery of facts during the early years. This gives students a foundation on which to build later learning and a solid framework where ideas can be categorized and compared as students mature.

See this excerpt from Dorothy Sayers' "The Lost Tools of Learning":

Looking back upon myself (since I am the child I know best and the only child I can pretend to know from inside) I recognize three states of development. These, in a rough-and- ready fashion, I will call the Poll-Parrot, the Pert, and the Poetic--the latter coinciding, approximately, with the onset of puberty. The Poll-Parrot stage is the one in which learning by heart is easy and, on the whole, pleasurable; whereas reasoning is difficult and, on the whole, little relished. At this age, one readily memorizes the shapes and appearances of things; one likes to recite the number-plates of cars; one rejoices in the chanting of rhymes and the rumble and thunder of unintelligible polysyllables; one enjoys the mere accumulation of things...

In Foundations we also spend time doing fine arts and science experiments, because young children thrive in hands-on learning, but hands-on learning builds from -- and depends on -- the terms, methods, and information they're memorizing.

I think this reader (Dr. Phil Rutherford / Australia) on Waiting for Superman says it well. He comments, "Research and experience tells me that learning by rote does more than just enable a student to recall facts or mathematical solutions - it helps shape the brain so that any kind or depth of knowledge can be gained, stored and recalled at will. Critics of rote learning only look at the action, not the result. And this result is a lifetime of more effective and efficient brain activity. Getting rid of rote learning does nothing but condemn a child to useless brain activity."

What's your take on the question? What terms do we need to define in this debate?

S(c)i(e)nce You Asked...

2011-01-12T06:00:00.003-05:00

Some of the best teaching moments come when you can combine learning with something your children can touch and experience right then.

The storms that have dropped snow on 49 out of 50 states are a teaching moment that home school, private school, and public school parents alike can take advantage of, and you don't have to make learning an "either/or" with having fun.

"Let's go build a snowman!"

Later, when you're warming up with some hot chocolate: "I wonder why some snow packs more easily than others? Let's look at these Frequently Asked Questions about snow."

"We're about out of marshmallows. Will stores be closed again tomorrow?"

"Let's take a look at the National Weather Service website. Do you know how to read a weather map? Let's figure it out. What does an "advisory" mean? How is that different from a warning? What is lake effect snow? Let's search the NWS glossary to find out!"

When the kids start getting restless again: "Is there enough snow for a snow fort? Now it's time for a snowball fight!"

Pleasantly tired: "I wonder who gets the most snow in the United States? Let's look at some facts from the National Snow and Ice Data Center. Why do people in the Southeast get less snow than people in the Midwest? Well, what causes snow? Let's look in our science book and find out."

Later: "Can you catch a snowflake? Look at how detailed it is. Do you know what a man called Wilson Bentley did? He took pictures of more than 2,400 unique snowflakes. That's what the phrase 'no two snowflakes are alike' means. Let's look at his website together. He's called a photomicographer. Isn't that a great word? What does it mean? Let's look it up. Would you like to look at some snowflakes yourself? Let's try." (Here's a webpage from Family Education with suggestions for how to do it.)

See what I mean? Now watch out for that snowball!

What is your favorite way to get your children excited about the wonder of creation?

2011-01-07T13:08:00.006-05:00

Do Home Schoolers Deserve a Tax Break?
Join the discussion!
Home-school happenings: Parents innovating education at home
CC Asheville (NC) gets a mention on page 2.
Colleges nationwide recruit homeschool grads
Harvard, Wheaton and other universities talk about their response to homeschoolers.
Pennsylvania college openly courts home-school high school graduates
Find out more about the possibilities at Messiah College.
Home school robotics team earns another trip to nationals
These Missouri teens demonstrate their commitment to excellence.
Raising human beings in a post-human world
From the CiRCE Institute
Military: One in five high school grads lack academic skills
2011 is a great time to rethink what it means to be "educated."

January Savings from CC Books

2011-01-06T06:00:00.001-05:00

January 1-31
10% off Cycle 2 Audio, Memory Work Resource CD, and Memory Flashcards!

Now is the time to start preparing your students to be Memory Masters. Take advantage of this special on tools that can really help!

*Audio CD, Memory Work Resource CD, and Memory Master Cards *Online orders only *DISCOUNT10 coupon can be used for an additional 10% off on purchases over $250. *Free media mail shipping still applies for purchases over $150!

Shop the Memory Master Prep Sale
Visit the CC Bookstore at www.classicalconversationsbooks.com

New Year's Resolutions

2011-01-04T06:00:00.001-05:00

Did you make a New Year's resolution? If you did, there is a 99 percent chance that it has something to do with food and losing weight. I'd like to propose a resolution that you could commit to right now and still eat dessert.

We all know the story of The Miracle Worker. Poor Helen Keller was deaf, mute, and blind due to an illness in infancy. Her parents let her always have her way because life was just so hard and so unfair to their beloved daughter. As is true anytime a child gets their way all the time, Helen's parents were raising a beast instead of a human. Life was ugly, but they knew in their hearts that something should be done to help Helen cope, so they hired Annie Sullivan to be her teacher. The parents prayed for a child who could merely behave and not embarrass them. They looked at Helen and only saw disabilities and limitations; Annie looked at Helen and saw potential. It was Annie's determination that enabled Helen to become a woman who would speak to kings and write for nations.

Which kind of parent or educator are you? A Mr. Keller or an Annie Sullivan? We all have a worldview, a foundational way of thinking. Is yours that we are what we are and should act according to our nature? I am a Christian woman who believes we are to rise above our natures and equip our children to do the same. We are to look at our children and say, "Child, you are called to lead great causes for Christ, and I want you equipped to show the world the fruit of the Spirit."

Many CC parents are already Annie Sullivans. If you're not one already, make it your New Year's resolution to become an Annie Sullivan and empower your children to become leaders, writers, speakers, and ambassadors for Christ!

I wish you and your family a God-blessed, Christ-centered, and Spirit-filled 2011,

Love, Leigh

Questions for the Year Ahead

2010-12-28T06:00:00.009-05:00

Merry Christmas!

In 2010, I wrote The Core, which did very well in sales throughout the summer and continued to sell well as a holiday gift thanks to you, my readers. Now, I’m enjoying every minute of holiday rest with my family as I prepare for the adventures of 2011. All four boys were home for Christmas as well as my mother-in-law who has moved into our neighborhood. We made YouTube videos, opened presents, shopped, watched some movies, and ate too much.

The best part was the night we went Christmas caroling with most of the Classical Conversations office and their families. We went to six homes and everyone was very grateful. We sang a different carol at each door and left singing We Wish You a Merry Christmas. However, it was a very cold night and I think some of our audience wished we weren't quite so merry. When we were finished at one door, I wanted to apologize by saying, “We’re Presbyterians. We sing every verse no matter how long it takes!”

I’m about to begin my next book on the dialectic and need your help. Please send any questions you have on the dialectic as comments on this blog or to ASKLEIGH@YMAIL.com. I will respond to your questions in the book so think of great questions that will make sure the book is as useful to as many families as possible. The book will be a follow-up to The Core’s emphasis on grammar. If all goes well, the final book in the series will expound upon the rhetorical skills in a classical education. So please pray for wisdom in writing, patience in editing, and for God to receive the glory.

As I research information for the book, I’d also appreciate if you’d leave links in this blog’s comments to any great articles you find on thinking skills and examples of the dialectic in action. All that I’ve ever done has been a team effort and this book will be no different.

I’d like to leave this year by sharing a thought that I’ll probably return to often in my writings in 2011 year as it has really impacted my faith. This comes from the last verse of Hark the Herald Angels Sing!

Rise, the Woman's conquering Seed,
Bruise in us the Serpent's head.
Adam's likeness now efface:
Stamp Thine image in its place;
Second Adam, from above,
Reinstate us in thy love.

Lord, re-create me in the image of the Second Adam. Help me to bear the deep joy of your love.

Happy New Year!

Love, Leigh

One Smart Mama

We've Moved!

Head Over to LeighBortins.com

Classical Dads

Dad at Home (2)

Dad at Home (1)

1 Smart...Dad?

Celebrity and the Home School

CiRCE Conference: Coming in July!

Spell F-r-e-e-d-o-m

Essentially Yours

Who Do You Remember?

Weekend Reading

How Do You Remember?

We're Moving!

What Do You Remember?

What Do You See?

Improving Your Vision

Understanding Civitas

Unapologetic Parents

Happy Mothers Day!

National Day of Prayer

Leigh! at Lunch Cancelled

Stanley Fish on Leigh! at Lunch

Toward the Quadrivium - Thank You!http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 4/27/11

Thomas Woods on Leigh! at Lunch

Book Sales and Savings

What's Your Story?

The Door of the Sepulchre

From the Sixth Hour...

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 4/20/11

Plans for Toward the Quadrivium

Darrel Cox on Leigh! at Lunch

Teaching through Taxes

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 4/13/11

Angela "Bay" Buchanan on Leigh! at Lunch

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 4/6/11

Toward the Quadrivium

Nancy Pearcey on Leigh! at Lunch

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 3/30/11

Civil War Anniversary

Jonathan Bartlett on Leigh! at Lunch

Bring on the Whole Family

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 3/23/11

New Products Day on Leigh! at Lunch

Save on Classical Science Flashcards

There's still time to save!

Check out the March sale going on now at Classical Conversations Books.

History, Stories, and Classical Education

Testing Season is Approaching

Giveaway from Old Schoolhouse® Magazine

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 3/16/11

Lawrence Reed on Leigh! at Lunch

Testing Fear against Freedom

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 3/9/11

Poetry and Patriotism

2011 Parent Practicums Video

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 3/2/11

Updated Tour Information

Leigh! at Lunch with Bob and Geri Boyd

CC Writers' Circle

Classical Discovery of Classicist's Books

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 2/23/11

Shannon Brown on Leigh! at Lunch

(Pro)tests in Context

Classical Conversations from the Inside

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 2/16/11

CC Graduates on Leigh! at Lunch

Is That Going to Be On the Test?

FYI from Leigh! at Lunch 2/9/11

Leigh! at Lunch with John Bornschein

Summer Seminars at FEE

Outgoing Products Sale at the Bookstore

FEBRUARY SALE

February 1 - 28Deeply Discounted Outgoing Products!*Online orders only

Higher Orders of Science

Leigh Is Going Global

Blog Talk Starts for 2011

Leigh Bortins Response to 2011 State of the Union Address

February 1 - 28
Deeply Discounted Outgoing Products!
*Online orders only