A glimpse inside Hillsdale College's network of classical schools across the country.
"The beginning is thought to be more than half of the whole."- Aristotle We often advertise classical education as an education for the whole human person. We are not training people for careers, we say, but minds for Wisdom; we aim not to improve skill sets so much as we aim to improve the human… Continue reading The First Step toward Wisdom
The circumstances we find ourselves in might not be so crazy after all. Parents, you've been teaching your children since they were born. You can do this.
It’s the time of year when college seniors all across the country are starting to think about becoming teachers. They’re asking themselves what the first year of teaching would be like, and how to tell if they'd be good teachers in the future. Oscar Ortiz, with Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos, at Founders Classical Academy… Continue reading How do you know if teaching is for you?
Each year a member of the faculty who is particularly special to the senior class is invited to give an address at graduation and introduce the Salutatorian and Valedictorian. The Class of 2017's faculty speaker was Mr. Berndt, and this year Mr. Peterson was invited to speak to the Class of 2018.
Unintended Consequences: How Four Kids' Classical Education Affected Mom and Dad by Kyle Swartz, the parent of four students at Founders Classical Academy of Leander: Anna (Class of 2019), Emily ('20), Jonah ('23), and Michael ('26) We all want what’s best for our kids. What our kids to be happy in this life. We want them… Continue reading Unintended Consequences: How Four Kids’ Classical Education Affected Mom and Dad, by Mr. Swartz
The Seminar Discussion by Mr. Peterson, Literature and Philosophy Teacher This is an abridged version of a lecture given at Hillsdale College on June 29, 2017 as part of the Barney Charter School Initiative's summer teacher training. The original (available upon request) includes details about seminar setup procedures, grading, how the other components of a literature class… Continue reading Seminar Discussion in 9th-12th Grade, by Mr. Peterson
At the end of our third year, Founders Classical Academy of Leander was honored with the Salvatori Prize for Excellence in Teaching. The award came with a $25,000 prize, and earlier this year some of those funds went toward the purchase of a telescope and an air track for the science department. Several weeks ago… Continue reading Testing our New Air Track in 11th Grade Physics
Over the summer our faculty read The Art of Teaching, by Gilbert Highet. Originally published in 1950, the book is full of valuable advice about how to prepare for classes and use assignments effectively, and a beautiful discussion of what it means to be a teacher. Highet says that parents are a child’s first and… Continue reading The Art of Teaching, by Gilbert Highet
The Classical Classroom 