Musing vs. Being Amused BY NATHAN DOWD One of the reasons why a classical education can be challenging is that classical teachers seek to stretch the student’s ability to muse. Musing isn’t easy. There are legions of amusing things to distract us from the True,the...
When Frodo stood forth at the Council of Elrond and presented himself as the ring bearer for a quest which seemed certain to fail, he obeyed a sense of calling far deeper than logic. But while the decision was clear to him, he still did not “know the way.” He needed...
Setting the Right Pace for the School Year BY ROY GRIFFITH It’s official–the school year is well underway. Shorter daylight hours and earlier bedtimes are now the rule of life, along with new friends, new teachers, and new things to learn. The slower pace of summer...
Three Types of Questions to Ask Your Child BY MANDI GERTH As parents, we long to engage our children in meaningful conversation but often don’t know how. It’s hard to move a conversation forward after a reply like “fine” or “okay.” It’s also hard to fault the response...
Little drops of water, Little grains of sand, Make the mighty ocean And the pleasant land. Little deeds of kindness, Little words of love, Make our earth an Eden, Like the heaven above. By: Julia Carney When my children were young, our days were filled with...
When I was in fourth or fifth grade, I was at the home of a friend who attended a local public school. At some point during our pretend play, she said, “I know you’re nice, but your school is full of mean rich kids.” I don’t remember how I responded, but the...
One man’s vision for reclaiming Hungary’s classical Christian heritage by Carl Warmouth Sándor Szenczy ascended the stairs of the North Korean embassy. He rang the bell, pulled his coat collar up against the cold winter Budapest wind, stuffed his hands in his pockets...
HBO is telling stories that become social justice movements. Parents have a big job. If you’re a classical, Christian parent, that job is bigger. The real burden of this sort of education is shouldered at home and around the dinner table. You digest the...
Have Questions About Classical Christian Education? We are here to help! Q:Why do classical schools teach Rhetoric, and what is it? A:Socrates was put on trial in Athens 2,400 years ago with several accusations, one of which was “making the weaker argument appear to...
Alumni Profile You’re sitting down for dinner with the family, and your senior—who has attended a classical Christian school since kindergarten—suddenly blurts, “Mom and Dad, I don’t think I want to take the traditional path and go to college.” You blink and look at...
Jake has a hard time trying to learn something he doesn’t easily understand. If he gets an answer wrong, his head goes down on the desk and he struggles to pull it together. The teacher has notified his parents and the parents share that Jake is “on the spectrum.” ...
As much as I’d like the Church calendar to set the rhythm of my life, it’s the school calendar. The Church year is varied, shimmering, dappled—the school calendar, not so much. Nine and a half months of the Apollonian followed by ten weeks of the Dionysian. A lot of...
By Stormy Goodwin January was moving month at the ACCS. As old issues of The Classical Difference were lifted from dusty boxes onto freshly painted shelves, we reminisced. The first box revealed a headline in bright orange: “A New Lesson in Rwanda: A War, a Teacher,...
TAZARA RAILWAY LINKING ZAMBIA AND TANZANIA: PHOTO BY KATSUMA TANAKA ON UNSPLASH Part II* - Zambia (Read Part I) In September, 2023, a few weeks before David Goodwin and Tim Dernlan (ACCS president and vice president, respectively) were scheduled to depart for Africa,...
"Years ago, I realized that if my children wanted to feel like their house was a home, I needed to be intentional about making our physical shelter a place of spiritual refuge. The work of home-maker suddenly became holy work. My perspective had changed." On one of...
LIAM MCCALMON, a fifth grade student at Agathos Classical School in Columbia, TN, has used a devastating diagnosis to glorify God and help his school. One week before starting fourth grade, Liam was diagnosed with rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare type of soft tissue cancer....
