Classical Conversations First Year Bits of Wisdom

Classical Conversations First Year Bits of Wisdom
We are wrapping up our 6th official year of home education (counting Kindergarten and above for my oldest) and our very first year of participation in a Classical Conversations community.  A little over a year ago, we decided to change our curriculum and dive head first into classical methods of education, with the help of Classical Conversations (CC).  We were one of the first five families to join a newly forming CC group in our area.  The group quickly grew to 19 families and although we knew none of the other families well before we began, it has turned out to be a fantastic year - our best year ever!  Here are 5 ways to get the most out of your first year of CC!

1.  Just start with the basics:  CC Foundations is filled with so much learning that our state director told us this at the Parent Practicum last year.  She said, "If this is your first year, don't add anything to it."  She showed us her weekly schedule and routine and explained how just doing the Foundations and Essentials work is so much that we didn't need to stress about adding anything else "new" to our curriculum choices like formal study of Latin.  Up until that point, I had been working hard at trying to figure out a way to use our old curriculum with our new curriculum, but I am glad I gave up on that idea!  It would have been way too much.  Starting with the basics is enough.

2.  Connect with your CC community:  I am thankful that I chose to tutor a weekly Foundations class because it helped me to quickly connect with my fellow tutor/parents and director.  We met throughout the year and these moms are the ones I know the best.  We learned together, taught each other, and helped support each other through the year and they are now my good friends.  We also enjoy attending field trips with our community, going to park days, and coordinating play-dates with some of our closest friends.  These relationships have truly blessed our lives!

Our CC Journeymen class

3.  Participate in the weekly classes:  Our CC community was new this year, but we have a wise director and a great group of parents who truly helped in classes every week.  Our director made it clear that this is not a drop-off program.  For your family to receive the fullest benefits of a Classical education, you need to learn alongside the children.  Tutoring or assisting in weekly classes will help you to know what to practice and teach for the coming week and it will also help you connect, as in #2 above.  Participating in the classes also helped me to learn from other parents and to memorize the information each week with my children and tutors will usually take all the help they can get!

4.  Read:  Last summer I read The Core and Echoes of a Celebration by CC founder, Leigh Bortins.  They helped me to see the vision of a classical education with the CC model.  I underlined, highlighted, and went back and re-read them over the course of the year, while I taught myself to think and teach classically.  I also searched for CC bloggers and resources on the C3 Connect website.  I read my CC Foundations manual.  I also read my CC Essentials of the English Language each week, as I learned how to teach my children English grammar.  I have learned a ton of information in one short year!

5.  Attend a CC Parent Practicum:  These FREE classes are held during the summer to help parents and tutors prepare for the coming school year.  They are a great way to spend three days with your new and old CC friends and other CC'ers from the regional area that you live in.  They are required for tutors, but all CC parents would greatly benefit from attending.  One main topic is presented in all three stages of learning (grammar, dialectic, and rhetoric) so that we can get an overview of how that subject is learned in each stage over the three days.  Then, the afternoon sessions are about more of the practicalities of Foundations, Essentials, and Challenge programs.  This is the nitty gritty where you really talk about how to plan, schedule, and lead the classes you are tutoring or how to implement the learning at home.  CC also provides camp opportunities for children during these Practicums.  Check out the Parent Practicum information on the Classical Conversations website to find one near you!


So, if you are considering CC, pick up a book about it from the library, go to a parent practicum, or find a local CC director near you and send her a message.  If you have already decided to jump in, then use this summer to connect with your CC community, prepare, read, and learn about classical education for yourself and your family.  All of you will be blessed in the process!

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Happy homeschooling!
Rachel