The first I heard of the potential of someone carrying around a letter from their employer stating that they are “Essential” to the operation of their organization, I thought to myself, “Well, aren’t they special?” Over the past number of weeks, due to COVID-19, companies and organizations have sought to justify their operation (and potential existence) as being “Essential” to the operation of society. From … Continue reading Are you an “Essential Worker”?
My favorite reads from 2019 look a bit different from 2018. One of my personal goals this past year was to read more good stories, so it naturally follows that most of my favorites were fiction novels and biographies. I also committed to a few longer reads this year, chipping away at the pages nightly and savoring good stories over time. This was quite rewarding … Continue reading My Top Five Books of 2019 (Sara Osborne)
Thank God I still read because I want to read. I’m sure it’s the best kind of pressure—the pressure to read, that is. But if ‘positive’ peer pressure had its way, I fear I would drown in leadership books about how to accomplish more by doing less (or some such). My own ideas for books on leadership 14 school-years later are closer to: Launching a … Continue reading My Top Five Books of 2019 (Nathan Carr)
As usual, my reading plan looks very little like my actual reading list. Circumstances come along, questions get raised in class, I learn about new books being released, and I discover old treasures I had previously overlooked, and I inevitably start reading books not on my list, while relegating those on the list further down, to be read another day, and alas, another year. But … Continue reading My Top Five Books of 2019 (Kyle Rapinchuk)
A few months ago, I reviewed a book by Philip and Carol Zaleski entitled The Fellowship: The Literary Lives of the Inklings1, which details the lives of four members of the famous group. While numerous aspects of the book make it an interesting read, I was most struck by the Zaleskis’ attention to the depth of friendship that contributed to the creative and intellectual productivity … Continue reading Walking and Talking: A Resolution
Two large bookstores with rooms and levels sprawling upwards and outwards pulled us in like magnets to metal on a recent trip to Oxford. I’d like to say it was just my children begging for purchases, but my husband and I were equally enchanted. My eyes and fingertips skimmed the covers of countless classics. After all, we were walking the streets of literary history; Narnia, … Continue reading Literature and Life: Wise Words from Mole
The following is one of the sessions from our 2019 Conference co-hosted by School of the Ozarks and held at the College of the Ozarks in Point Lookout, MO. Skyrocket the Reading Instruction in your Classical Classroom Classical education has taught us the importance of reading quality literature from real texts. But, what other components should a successful reading program include? Mary Kay hopes … Continue reading Skyrocket the Reading Instruction in your Classical Classroom
By Nathan Carr With an unobstructed view to Joy, let us go back to the first school tradition of the Christian Church—the monastery. How did the first attempt at formal Christian education enlist its students into the great “story being told?” Among the monastic schoolmasters of the 4th century—abbots and abbesses—one in particular gives profound insight into the formation of several abbeys throughout Egypt: St. … Continue reading Pachomius
By Ian Mosley, Instructor of Latin, School of the Ozarks When I was a fairly new-minted Christian, I was introduced to the concept of spiritual disciplines by the writers Dallas Willard and Richard Foster. Particularly Foster’s Celebration of Discipline helped me enter imaginatively into the role that practices and habit play in spiritual formation. In a culture like ours that values spontaneity and authenticity, it … Continue reading Teaching as a Spiritual Discipline
For several years, when summer’s heat begins to die down and back-to-school preparations begin, I’ve sat my children down in front of the captivating documentary On the Way to School.[1] With popcorn bowls in hand, we watch together as a family, and then my older children write a page or two of personal reflection. While there may be some murmuring over having a writing assignment … Continue reading Getting Ready: Resources for Reflection as the School Year Approaches
The following is one of the sessions from our 2019 Conference co-hosted by School of the Ozarks and held at the College of the Ozarks in Point Lookout, MO. Keeping Classical Education Fun As a public school teacher, there were often days where I longed to get out of the book and take learning outside. I dreamt of the opportunity to write spelling words … Continue reading Keeping Classical Education Fun
The following is one of the sessions from our 2019 Conference co-hosted by School of the Ozarks and held at the College of the Ozarks in Point Lookout, MO. Incorporating Science in a Classical Education Upper level science courses often stand out as an area of study that does not seem to naturally fit in the classical education genre. It is, however, an area that … Continue reading Incorporating Science in a Classical Education
The Classical Thistle 