Basecamp Live

As schools lock their doors and families stay home together, parents are asking urgent questions: How do we survive in this world turned upside down due to Covid-19? How do we make the most of it? And how do we help our children not fear what is going on? Counselor Keith McCurdy shares his top five tips for thriving - not just just surviving - during our new reality of being together 24/7. Redeem the time! Find out how on today’s episode! Your family will be stronger for it!

Politicians and advocates appeal to hearts and minds, but are their ideas and ethics worth following? Students in Classical Christian Schools learn that Rhetoric is more than a tool to get your way…and that speech must emanate from the heart. In this episode, Chris Maiocca shares practical tips to teach students this worthy “life skill". As the Instructor of Scripture, Classical Rhetoric, and Senior Thesis at The Ambrose School in Boise, ID, he explains how Rhetoric is so much more than just "public speaking”. Teachers and parents, listen in to learn how to bolster your Rhetoric program in your Classical Christian school...or even at home. In fact, you can create an engaging little Athens for children wherever you go. Get ready to be persuaded!

Parents, have you ever bemoaned, “I should…”, “I would...” or “I could have...”? Did you fall for trendy parenting advice that was proven invalid? Ever lost your temper? Mix in the high standards of the classical Christian model and we can set ourselves up for disappointment. Most parents - and teachers, too - wish they could could go back in time and change some of their decisions. But don't beat yourself up. In today’s episode, Keith McCurdy helps us replace regret and guilt with grace and confidence. Thankfully, it is never too late to influence your children…even when they’re grown.

You have to see it - and hear it - to believe it! David Goodwin, our special guest and President of the Association of Classical Christian Schools, shares the newly published results of the highly regarded Cardus Educational study. Cardus, a top research firm commissioned by the ACCS, measured the influence of Classical Christian Schools on graduates up to twenty-five years later. Cardus worked with Notre Dame’s Sociology Department to conduct a highly scientific, unbiased, and first of its kind study. Released this month for the first time ever, this 89-page comparative study evaluates a broad spectrum of behaviors, attitudes, beliefs and life outcomes of alumni ages 24-42. Compared with five other types of schools (public, private, Catholic, evangelical Christian, and homeschool), Classical Christian (ACCS) schools produce alumni who stand out as having an influence in the real world. Listen in to hear some of the fascinating results!

In today's episode, two adult siblings, Erin Meyers and Brett Jones, reflect on their experience with classical Christian education and its impact on their lives today. While Erin attended public school and Brett attended Faith Christian School in Roanoke,Va. they both see the value that CCE has for real world living. They discuss everything from diversity and freedom of thought to how to read statistics and building a framework of faith. Parents, teachers, and administrators, here are two real world examples of how classical Christian is making a significant difference in the lives of alumni.

NYC is not an easy place to run a school. With 900+ private K-12 schools in a city of 8.6 million, the competition is fierce. Yet for the last 24 years, The Geneva School of Manhattan has been serving in the heart of the city as a classical Christian school. Rim Hinckley shares how her vision became a reality and how God provided. She also looks to the future and shares why adding a high school at The Geneva School is so important for NYC. Parents, teachers, and administrators, listen in to learn how anything is possible despite the challenges around you and how children educated classically in a Christian environment stand out...even in NYC!

Can you list the top barriers that current or prospective parents have when considering CCE? One Head of School found out by hiring a marketing firm and letting a focus group identify their concerns. Peter Baur, Head of School at Faith Christian School in VA, shares the results and how to respond. Their concerns are valid, but they don’t always know the whole story…listen in today!

How do kings, knights and warlords fit with today’s egalitarian values and prepare students for the modern world? Do order and hierarchy have any place? According to David Goodwin, Medieval history teaches children that the world is endowed with a God-given order. Even C.S. Lewis knew this and filled his books with Medieval meaning. Listen in to hear how studying this astounding time period can capture the imagination and heart for Christ.

One of the fastest growing segments in Classical Christian Education is homeschooling. Robert Bortins, the Chief Officer of Classical Conversations, shares how the company his mother founded in 1997 is meeting the needs of 120,000 worldwide and 50,000 families…allowing families to educate children in ways that glorify God and best meet their children’s needs. An excellent reminder about how a classical education is a wise choice no matter how you choose to educate.

How do images affect teens? John Murray is the author of the recent book, In Whose Image? Image-bearers of God vs. The Image-makers of Our Time. In this fascinating interview, Murray shares classroom research, his interview with Charlton Heston, and four ways that images affect us. Learn practical ways to talk about image and identity in the classroom and around the table. It's no surprise that the Socratic method is one of the most helpful tools to help teens!

If Classical Christian educators promoted a Hall of Fame, Mortimer Adler would surely make the list. Dr. Robert Woods, author of the newly released Mortimer Adler's The Paideia Way of Classical Education, introduces us to the man often called the “Father of Classical education.” Find out what Adler's Great Books approach means practically for teachers, students and learners today, both in the classroom or the homeschool environment. Ultimately, following the Great Books model promotes a culture of conversation that is priceless and timeless.

Rome, Florence, Paris and London…have you considered that travel should be a significant part of your child’s classical christian education? In fact, many schools send their seniors to Europe as the capstone of their secondary education. Some schools travel to Washington, DC or other historical sites in the U.S. According to Bill Miller and Tom Velasco, Instructors of Humanities at the Ambrose School, traveling outside of your hometown complements what happens in the classroom. So what’s the return of investment of these trips? Is it worth the added expense and time? What about safety? Listen in to find out how your family or school can - and should -raise well-traveled children!

The not so good news...Barna reports that only 10% of young adults ages 18-29 report keeping their faith in the face of a resistant culture. The good news…their “resilient faith" is very strong. So how do young adults from Christian homes or who attended church as teens maintain their faith - if at all? Brooke Hempell, Barna’s Senior Vice President, shares how this new study measures faith and the three trends that will help equip teens who will soon step into that space where faith meets world.

Classical Christian education offers some of the highest ROI, or return on investment, for the amount of tuition, time and effort parents spend. Jean Kim of The Cambridge School tells story after story of how the classical Christian school model uniquely adds value to your child’s educational experience. And the value is priceless. Why so high? She explains how on this inspiring podcast.

According to Harlan Gilliam, the Science and Nature Center coordinator at Regents School in Austin, natural curiosity in our children makes education possible. In fact, it's up to the child, and not the teacher, to learn. And real learning happens in the heart, not just the mind. So how do parents and teachers build on a child's natural curiosity? Get some practical tips, as well enjoy hearing how Dorothy Sayers and Charlotte Mason complement one another. Harlan Gilliam will inspire you to take your students outside and really connect with God’s creation.

Why would we want our classical Christian students to read books filled with pagan myths, fantasy worlds with darkness, and stories that might be R rated if they were made into a movie? Why not just read Christian books? Louis Markos points out that the pagan writers actually had great wisdom and asked life’s questions better than most. In fact, even our Founding Fathers, who were either Christians or at least strong theists, looked back to these people (pagans) because they found wisdom in them. Find out how the pagan classics offer us insight for living today and why we should pay attention!

If you are like the average person, you easily forget what you’ve just read. But not if you “commonplace". Commonplacing is a practice of antiquity that was particularly popular in the Renaissance and the nineteenth century. And many classical schools are reviving the practice and reaping the benefits. Chris Browne, Humanities Instructor at the Ambrose School, explains how to record and categorize ideas, scripture and quotes in a commonplace book at school or at home. Special guests, high school students Kristen Stanciu and Rivers Nordquist, stop by to offer their experience and the value of commonplacing in their educational journey. The beauty is that anyone can - and should - commonplace!

How do we know when we've overstepped technology in the classical educational environment? Don’t we need to raise "real world" ready kids? Martin Cothran argues that today’s schools - and parents - are actually raising “Windows" ready kids, to the detriment of their ability to focus. Listen in to hear about the latest technological trends in education and how to respond in the classroom and the home.

Dr. Mark Phillips has been on a lifelong journey to the science classroom. From Vanderbilt to Oxford, from comedy clubs with Steve Martin to Classical Christian Education, he has pursued God’s calling. Listen in to hear him describe the two scientific discoveries that he believes should be taught to every student in classical Christian schools. You also don’t want to miss his amazing conversion story!

Jeremy Tate explains how the Classic Learning Test (CLT) counters the SAT and ACT as a better resource to assess your student for college, and well as new tests for the high school and middle school years. Standardized tests are a necessary hoop to jump through on the way to college but have changed since their beginnings. Colleges are having to adapt to the changing landscape and more and more are recognizing the CLT as a valuable tool. Listen in to hear how your child can benefit!