Our Philosophy

"The purpose of Classical Education is to cultivate virtue and
wisdom. The classical Christian does not ask, 'What can I do
with this learning?' but 'What will this learning do to me?' The
ultimate end of Classical Christian education is to enable the
student (disciple) to better know, glorify, and enjoy God."
-The Circe Institute

Our community structure is based on the classical model of education, which dates back to the ancient Greeks and Romans-- and even to the Egyptians. It is a method of teaching that first assumes the student is made in God's image, and therefore he/she must be guided to his/her highest potential of wisdom and virtue. More simply stated, classical education teaches students how to think and how to act.

To accomplish this tall order, we expose students to the verbal arts of the trivium (grammar, logic, and rhetoric), the mathematical arts of the quadrivium (arithmetic, geometry, music, and astronomy), and Latin.

Concrete Thinker
Elementary aged students are generally concrete thinkers. They are little sponges, ready to absorb information. At this stage, memorization comes naturally, so we focus on filling the student's mind with facts from all subjects.

Analytical Thinkers
By the time students reach middle school age, they are beginning to analyze the world around them. At this stage, we encourage students to develop their reasoning and analytical thinking skills by asking questions of the world. While they are still memorizing facts at this age, they are also entering into discussions about the material they are studying.

Abstract Thinkers
Around high school, students develop the ability to think abstractly-- to synthesize the information that they first memorized then analyzed. They are able to identify connections between ideas and develop their own conclusions. They are interested in self-expression, communication, and creativity-- and we encourage that through hearty discussion and quality written and oral expression. We empasize the mastery of persuasion through finely honed communication skills.