Curriculum

Under the direction of our consultant, Sara Capps, we have developed a curriculum that leverages a classical framework, but incorporates the pedagogical approach of Charlotte Mason as well. We believe that this blend is the best way to achieve academic excellence while engaging the students so they are joyful learners.

This curriculum overview is intended to provide a brief description of each discipline in the various stages of the Trivium. Classical education is very fluid and includes a great deal of continuity from grade to grade. It is not as compartmentalized as modern American education is. For this reason, this overview is not organized by grade levels.

Language Arts

The Language Arts program integrates spelling, reading, written expression, oral expression, vocabulary, and grammar in an authentic, natural way. The programs we use are multi-sensory. As students "see it," "say it," and "write it," they experience greater success and higher retention of the material taught. Sometimes our students even have an opportunity to "taste it"!

During the early Grammar Stage the bulk of time spent in the area of language arts focuses on

• listening comprehension
• speaking well
• learning to decode printed text through phonics and sight words
• learning to write words and sentences.

The later Grammar Stage and the Logic Stage emphasize the maturation of reading comprehension skills, formal grammar instruction, and beginning composition. With the basic facts, rules, and structure of each discipline mastered, the Rhetoric Stage promotes student ability to express clearly what has been understood. Thus, the Rhetoric student is primarily occupied with creating compositions and the reading of great works.

Prerequisite Skills & Experiences for Becoming Good Readers and Writers
Oral language is the foundation for written expression, and listening comprehension is the foundation for reading comprehension. Various skills comprise a solid oral language foundation. Narration is the art of students' "giving back" their own account of a passage or event. Narration in the early Grammar Stage develops both a student's listening comprehension and oral language skills. Each student's account is unique and shows his or her level of comprehension. Students learn to attend to the details and nuances of the text. They naturally begin to incorporate the beautiful vocabulary and sentence structure, which they learn from the passages they narrate.

Picture Studies are done in Explorers through Class Five. Students learn to view art with an eye for detail and thoughtful response. Students also develop expressive language skills as they "give back" what they see and think. The objectives of Picture Studies differ from those of Fine Arts study, which focus on the development of artistic knowledge.

Teachers read living books aloud and so develop students' palate for rich literature, elevated vocabulary, listening comprehension, and familiarity with literary elements. What is read aloud often reinforces other areas of study such as history, nature studies, Fine Arts, and music.

Throughout the Grammar years, students continue to practice prerequisite oral communication skills, and teachers continue reading aloud to students throughout high school.

Beginning Reading
The human brain is pre-wired for language acquisition; however, reading and writing are not "natural" activities. Instead, they require intentional, systematic instruction. Still, when students receive tailored instruction, their reading and writing proficiency develops with relative ease.

Beginning reading (decoding) should be taught phonetically. English is a phonetic language with 93% of English words following phonetic rules. No wonder students need to have all the available phonetic tools to ensure early reading success. In classical Christian education, students successfully learn to decode words phonetically by means of intensive phonics instruction and exposure to controlled reading material. By integrating spelling, reading, grammar, and phonics instructions, students engage as many senses as possible as they begin to "break the code."

Reading fluency is another key component of successful reading. Early reading instruction focuses on learning "high frequency sight words" which, in turn, aids students in developing reading comprehension and fluency. Fluency development also improves reading rate, tone, pitch, and inflection.

Maturing Reading Skills
Reading, however, is more than "word calling." The ultimate goal of reading is meaningful comprehension. In the early years, comprehension focuses on the students' "telling back" in their own words what they read. Naturally, young students focus on relating the concrete facts and details of the story. Beginner students spend a large amount time learning to determine what information is central to the story and what is non-essential. This skill is foundational for mature comprehension.

During the early Grammar Stage, the role of literature is slightly different than it is in later years. Students first use literature in order to learn to read. Texts are chosen first for readability, then for literary value, reinforcement of virtue, and age appropriateness.

In later years, students read to learn. Now student texts are also chosen for their reinforcement of history, science, and other content areas.

In later Grammar and Logic Stages, reading comprehension shifts to in-depth analysis and synthesis of literature, as teachers encourage their students' growing ability for abstract thought. Students now analyze literature for the author's central message and evaluate that message against the tenets of biblical truth.

Grammar and Composition
The early stages of English Grammar employ an integrated method that demonstrates the role of grammar in speaking, writing, and reading. Students use and practice Grammar through speaking, writing, dictation, and the memorization of works that model beautiful language.

Students are informally exposed to conjugating and parsing verbs through good sentence formation and dictation. Once students learn how they already use language, then they receive the academic labels and rules for this usage. Charlotte Mason explained her method of teaching Grammar in this way:

English is rather a logical study dealing with sentences and the positions that words occupy in them rather than with words and what they are in their own right. Therefore it is better that a child should begin with a sentence and not with the parts of speech, that is, he should learn a little of what is called analysis before he learns to parse (Philosophy of Education, pp. 209-210).

An example of this method is as follows:

First, students learn that a sentence talks about something (cognitive idea).

• The big brown dog chased the stray cat.
• The sentence is saying something about a dog and a cat.

Then they learn that that something is the "subject" (technical name).

• The subject of the sentence is a dog because something is being said about a dog and the dog is either doing something or being something.

Later, they learn subjects are comprised of "naming words" (nouns).

• Dog is a noun.

In our educational system, we begin with what students already know, develop in them a keener awareness of their current language practices, and then move to the more abstract aspects of grammar. Unlike popular and more artificial modern language methods, this movement from usage to analysis follows a student's natural bent.

Formal grammar instruction begins in Class Three and continues through Class Eight. Students formally learn all the parts of a sentence, speech, and the rules that govern mechanics and usage. They also apply their knowledge of grammar in their writing. Through writing conferences with their teacher and peers, students see how their writing needs to improve and learn the means to make these revisions.

The art of imitation is used for instruction in both Grammar and Composition. In the beginning, students learn to reproduce simple, dictated sentences. They refine their work by noticing the details of punctuation and capitalization. As students mature, they learn to take dictation of unfamiliar paragraphs. This task requires students to hear punctuation through the reader's emphasis and to make use of their knowledge of Grammar. The art of imitation also helps to develop excellent writing. Analyzing and imitating great writers improves both writing style and structure.

Mathematics

Mathematics is taught in a balanced, practical way. In the early years, concepts are taught and experienced through concrete means such as the use of manipulatives. As students master concepts on a concrete level, they then memorize the basic computation facts. Mental mastery of basic math facts promotes mathematical fluency in the higher grades. At Clapham we use Saxon Math as the primary text for teaching math in the Grammar Stage.

In later years, students demonstrate mastery of mathematical thinking through applied problems and critical thinking. Pre-algebraic concepts are introduced in Class Four, and Algebra I is completed in Class Eight. This advanced pace makes it possible for each student to complete Calculus by the end of the Rhetoric Stage.

History and Geography

History is "read" and "narrated" rather than studied. Students read aloud rich stories, and they discover beginning biographies about inspirational men and women from the past. Through the use of living books, students learn to be self-educators. Charlotte Mason underscored this essential aspect of the student's studies when she wrote:

[The Teacher] will bear in mind that the child of six has begun the serious business of his education, that . . . it matters a great deal that he should learn to deal directly with books. Whatever a child or grown-up person can tell, that we may be sure he knows, and what he cannot tell, he does not know. Possibly this practice of "telling" was more used in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries that it is now (Philosophy of Education, pp. 172-173).

The History and Geography curriculum follows a logical progression that parallels the child's natural stages of development. In addition to using living books, students experience history through living history days. For example, students relive the Colonial Era as they play traditional colonial games, spin wool, cross stitch, dip candles, and hear a "revolutionary soldier" talk about his uniform and equipment.

The order in which History is studied follows a natural progression as well. History study in the Class One and higher is chronological as well. Class One begins with Creation and ancient civilizations (i.e. Mesopotamia, Egypt, and Greece). Class Two continues on until the Modern Age study is complete in Class Four. The four year history sequence will be repeated again in Classes Five - Eight.

With literature's role increasing during the Logic Stage, the students' literature study integrates as much as possible with the History curriculum. They read biographies, historical fiction, poetry, epics, plays, and novels from or about the historical period they are considering.

Science

Charlotte Mason taught, "Education is a life." Science is one of the primary ways students learn this principle. Young children are naturally inquisitive about their environment. Nature Studies comprise the core of the Science curriculum in the Grammar Stage. The classroom literally becomes a "living classroom" as students and teachers collect specimens for examination. As the class observes, questions, and investigates, students learn how to learn. Through these Nature Studies in the early years, the seeds of self-education are planted and nourished.

Nature Studies continue through Class Five. In the later Grammar Stage, formal science instruction begins.

In the Progressive Education model that most public schools employ, the students spend a third of the year in Life Science, a third in Earth Science, and a third in Physical Science. Thus students in first through fifth grades achieve little depth in their scientific knowledge, for they continually and superficially review previously covered material.

Rather than producing students who are "an inch deep and a mile wide," our model promotes focused, in-depth learning. The modern culture of instant gratification develops short attention spans. Our education model, however, values deep investigation and desires to foster habits of precise and thorough thinking. Therefore, students will spend an entire year in one area of Science. For example, Class Three studies Life Science with an emphasis on body systems. Class Four studies Earth Science, Class Five studies Physical Science, Class Six studies Life Science, Class Seven studies Earth Science, and Class Eight studies Physical Science with an emphasis in Chemistry. A similar rotation through in-depth study of Life, Earth, and Physical Science continues during the Rhetoric Stage.

Latin

Latin begins in Class Three. The Grammar Stage and its proclivity for memorization is the prime time for students to acquire the grammatical forms of Latin through learning chants and stem endings. Student affinity for memorization also promotes vocabulary acquisition.

With advanced English grammar study, Class Five students are better able to compare and contrast Latin and English grammar. At this level, their understanding of the structure of language grows exponentially. Students also begin more lengthy translations during Class Five. By completion of Class Eight, students will have finished the first three years of high school Latin.

Opportunities for advanced Latin study continue during the Rhetoric Stage, with study of selections from such authors as Virgil, Horace, Cicero, Seneca, and Ovid.

Fine Arts

As a classical school, our curriculum highly values the arts. The Fine Arts curriculum balances art and music history and the development of technical skills. The students learn from master works and progress through these educational stages:

• Observation - students make observation of great works;
• Evaluation - students analyze and evaluate works for various elements of style, form, and technique;
• Imitation - they then imitate those works.

Charlotte Mason expressed the importance of time spent in systematic art study:

But there must be knowledge and, in the first place, not the technical knowledge of how to produce, but some reverent knowledge of what has been produced; that is, children should learn pictures, line by line, group by group, by reading, not books, but pictures themselves. . . . [Pictures] have a delightful and courageous sense of color, and any child will convince you that he has it in him to be an artist (Philosophy of Education, pp. 214, 217).

Self-expression and creativity do not happen in a vacuum. One must be fluent in the works and techniques of any discipline before one can innovate and make these techniques their own. Self-expression and creativity also do not develop overnight. Through the good habit of imitation, students gradually develop an awareness of their own eye and perspective. With a slight modification here or a small addition there, students gradually begin to see how they can put a bit of themselves into each artistic piece.

During the Logic & Rhetoric Stages, drama and literary forums, such as literary magazines and poetry readings, are more formally introduced through electives and extra-curricular opportunities.

Educating the Whole Child

Classical Education with a Charlotte Mason influence is an educational road that not many are willing to travel. It requires a great deal from teachers and families because the curriculum of the school encompasses much more than the teaching of subjects and academic skills. It requires that we teach the whole child.

This is not a one size fits all education. It is global and tailored to each student and to the dynamics of each unique classroom. No longer can teachers open to Lesson One of the Teacher's Edition and teach one prepackaged lesson per day. We are not textbook driven. We steer away from boxed curriculums. This is a method, not a system. Teachers must be fluent in their subject and know their students so well that they can pull from a wealth of resources in order to educate them both in their studies and personal habits. The philosophy and the needs of the students guide what they do, not a panel of authors far removed from the students.

To educate them means to train them in their character, habits, and mental faculties. Every year teachers will adjust what they do according to the needs of the unique whole people God entrusts to them. Charlotte Mason underscores the imperative of complete education when she describes the consequences of a lack of training in good habits.

We have lost sight of the fact that habits are to life what rails are to transport cars. It follows that lines of habit must be laid down towards given ends... More, habit is inevitable. If we fail to ease life by laying down habits of right thinking and right acting, habits of wrong thinking and wrong acting fix themselves of their own accord. (Philosophy of Education, p.101.)

This model of education may mean more work, but it results in students who have been nurtured, trained, educated, and spiritually disciplined.