Our Past Programs

2022 Schedule

 

6th ANNUAL MN CLASSICAL EDUCATION CONFERENCE
CONNECTING & UNITING CLASSICAL SCHOOLS

 

Wednesday, October 19th

6:00 – 6:30 p.m.: Parent Social

6:30 – 7:30 p.m.: Parent Education Evening with Dr. Anika Prather: Why Classical Education is the best education for our children: My personal testimony.

 

Thursday, October 20th

8:30 – 8:50 a.m.: Conference Check-in

8:50-9:00 a.m.: Welcome

9:00 – 9:50 a.m.: Keynote Address: Dr.Anika Prather– Classical Education is our Superpower

*Breakout sessions will integrate methods of grammar, logic, and rhetoric to differentiate content for participants.

10:00 -10:50 a.m.

– K-5 Grammar: Classical Education Foundation and Application – Kathy Smith, Liberty Classical Academy: “It is more important to know where you are going than to get there quickly. Do not mistake activity for achievement.” Isocrates. This presentation is intended to help to till the ground and plant a strong foundation of classical education with its foundation of truth, beauty, and goodness and the knowledge of the trivium and its pedagogy. Attendees will leave with a sense of passion and excitement for Classical education.

– K-5 Grammar: Making Mental Sticky Notes; Using Chants, Songs, and Catch Phrases to Help Students Remember the Most Important Information – Becky Lund, Nova Classical Academy
“Why can’t my students just REMEMBER it?” “Do we have to go over this AGAIN?” “I’m SURE they knew this last week.” As classical educators we know the importance of memorizing information to the point of automaticity, but how can we help our students do that without boring all of us to tears? Writing a Tony-award-winning Broadway musical (thank you Rent for forcing everyone to know exactly how many minutes are in one year) isn’t possible with all the papers we have to grade, so what else can we do? In this session, we’ll look at some strategies for creating short but memorable songs, chants, and call-and-responses to help your students retain information crucial to deeper understanding. Before long, all of your students will be telling everyone the year democracy started in Athens, all the reasons an English word might end with a silent final e, and how many smoots are in one mile.

– 6-8 Logic: Tell Me More: How Civil Discourse in the Classroom Supports Students’ Mental Health – FAIR Diversity
The Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism (FAIR) is a nonpartisan organization dedicated to advancing civil rights and liberties for all Americans, and promoting a common culture based on fairness, understanding and humanity. In this session, we will discuss the inclusivity inherent in classical education and share strategies to support students in building connections across cultures. Educators will learn how civil discourse helps students understand nuance, cultivate self-agency, and appropriately respond when their beliefs are questioned by others.

– 9-12 Rhetoric: Wag More, Bark Less – Lisa Johnson, Eagle Ridge Academy
Engage in happy wisdom from our canine friends. Come for an uplifting and candid dialog about finding joy, purpose, and energy amongst the myriad of educating responsibilities. This session – focused on our older scholars – will explore classroom conditions and techniques designed to build students’ scholarly habits, promote quality of thought, and encourage students to do most of the thinking in a lesson. Happy teachers will change the world.

– Seminar: Introduction to Seminar – Ali Alowonle & Maggie Pistner, Augsburg Paideia Program
Come participate in a Paideia Seminar, a collaborative, intellectual dialogue that delves into questions about a specific reading and the big ideas within the text! With students at the helm and teachers as facilitators, classrooms transform into student-centered learning communities abuzz with discussions around thought-provoking ideas and themes. Seminars engage all students across all content areas!

– Keynote: Lessons on How to Reach All Students with Classical Education from Anna Julia Cooper – Dr. Anika Prather
Using some writings from Anna Julia Cooper, learn with Dr. Prather why Cooper felt Classical education was the best education for students.

11:00 – 11:50 a.m.

– K-5 Grammar: Classical Education- For More than Just the Romans! – Jenny Lockhart & Kelly Ryan, Seven Hills Preparatory Academy
How much of your instruction is a mirror vs. a window for all students? This session will dive into how to make your classical social studies instruction more equitable. We will explore which voices are currently heard in social studies curriculum and whose voices are needed.

– K-5 Grammar: Rigor for All in the Elementary Classroom – Suzannah Toso, Eagle Ridge Academy
Rigor is a cornerstone of Classical education, but what does true rigor look like in the elementary classroom and how do we hold all students to high, meaningful expectations? In this session, educators will learn different techniques to ensure that students are doing the heavy lifting, while also nurturing independence in the learning process. Indeed, the idea of educators advocating for high expectations for all rings true: Whoever is doing the most thinking is getting the most benefit, so make sure it’s your students.

– 6-8 Logic: From Behave to Believe – Leiha Johnson & Missy Madigan, Eagle Ridge Academy
“Although less visible than getting students to behave, getting them to believe – to want to behave positively – is necessary to long-term success and to a healthy classroom culture.” Classroom management is key to well-ordered learning. In this session, we will explore the idea of influence as a powerful tool in moving from power in classroom management to the purpose of classroom culture.

– 9-12 Rhetoric: Thinking Moves: Dynamic Strategies to Encourage Critical Thinking in Middle and Upper Grades – Elaine Bransford, St. Croix Preparatory Academy
Physical movement can invigorate tired minds and awaken deeper, more careful thinking. In this session, we will try out strategies like “Vote With Your Feet,” “Hot/Cold Thinking”, and “Hexagonal Thinking” that can be used to incorporate movement into our classroom practices in ways that wake students up and get their minds moving.

– Seminar: Introduction to Seminar: Ali Alowonie & Sonia Nunez-Gibbs, Augsburg Paideia Program:
Come participate in a Paideia Seminar, a collaborative, intellectual dialogue that delves into questions about a specific reading and the big ideas within the text! With students at the helm and teachers as facilitators, classrooms transform into student-centered learning communities abuzz with discussions around thought-provoking ideas and themes. Seminars engage all students across all content areas!

– Keynote: The Black Classical Tradition – Dr. Anika Prather
Dr. Prather will share the history of classical education in the Black community.

12:00 – 12:45 p.m.: Lunch

12:45 – 1:45 p.m.: Socratic Seminar Focus

– K-5 Grammar: How Not to Teach Classically– Heith Wetzler, Great Oaks Academy
Classical educators may find themselves little more Classically experienced than the students they teach. This, through no other fault than the fact that Classical education is still being revitalized, leads to the common question, “How do I teach Classically?” This is a worthy question, and just as one way of knowing virtue is to contrast it with vice, perhaps one way of answering our question is to turn it around and ask, “How not to teach Classically?” If Classical education is to be a journey for everyone, then there should be many well-worn paths onto its main trail that can be found, regardless of experience. In this session, I’ll draw from my foibles and learning experiences as a teacher new to Classical education, and from reflections from some of my colleagues. Our goal is to create a helpful contrast so that teachers may avoid similar pitfalls. Our discussion will be interactive, and it’s likely that attendees will not only benefit from hearing one another’s reflections, but will find that they too have helpful wisdom to offer.

– K-5 Grammar: Blending Background Knowledge and Art in Seminar – Jenna VanBeusekom & Nicole Donnay, St. Croix Preparatory Academy
In this session, we will consider the importance of background knowledge when using art as a seminar text. Attendees will participate in a seminar using “see, think, wonder” style questions. We will then discuss how a facilitator’s use of paraphrasing and follow-up questions throughout a seminar can be used as a tool to clarify content misunderstandings.

– 6-8 Logic: Inspiring Wonder in the Unmotivated Student – Justin Soderholm, Veritas Academy
Students in the logic stage naturally want to dig deeper, but their methods can present them as unmotivated. In fact, their attitude can discourage any teacher. This seminar will draw on Gregory’s assertion that “students must be motivated before they will learn.” Using examples, we will explore strategies that can be easily applied in the logic stage to inspire wonder and motivate learning.

– 9-12 Rhetoric: A Line and Four Triangles: Understanding Bloom and Maslow in view of the Trivium, Quadrivium and the classical goals of knowledge: Truth, Beauty, Goodness – Sarah Brown, Nova Classical Academy
Refresh your educational philosophy by recapping Bloom’s Taxonomy in view of the Trivium and Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs in view of the triple goals of Truth, Beauty and Goodness; consider ways to winsomely employ visual beauty to foster love of invisible things.

– 9-12 Rhetoric: Tell Me More: How Civil Discourse in the Classroom Supports Students’ Mental Health – FAIR Diversity
The Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism (FAIR) is a nonpartisan organization dedicated to advancing civil rights and liberties for all Americans, and promoting a common culture based on fairness, understanding and humanity. In this session, we will discuss the inclusivity inherent in classical education and share strategies to support students in building connections across cultures. Educators will learn how civil discourse helps students understand nuance, cultivate self-agency, and appropriately respond when their beliefs are questioned by others.

– Philosophy: Development of the New Virtuous Motivation Scale – Steven Bourgeois, Ph.D & Matthew Post, Ph.D. – Ahart Solutions
In this session, we describe the development and validation of a new instrument to assess the quality of students’ motivation for both academic and moral behaviors. Employing the structure of the academic self-regulation questionnaire by Ryan and Connell (1989), we seek to gain a nuanced understanding of how children internalize virtue. In addition to survey development, we present preliminary results of the initial round of surveys taken by students at the middle and high school levels.

2:00 – 2:30 p.m.: Keynote Closing – Dr. Anika Prather Narrative of Hope: How Classical Education Unified America

2:30 – 3:30 p.m.: The Long Minnesota Goodbye, Social Hour
*One ticket will be provided per person for non-alcoholic beverages, host wine, and host beer.

2021 Schedule

 

5th ANNUAL MN CLASSICAL EDUCATION CONFERENCE
CONNECTING & UNITING CLASSICAL SCHOOLS

 

Wednesday, October 20th

6:00 – 7:00 p.m.: Parent Education Evening with Dr. Christopher Schlect – The Art of Classical Education and Beyond  at St.Croix Preparatory Academy

 

Thursday, October 21st 

8:30 – 8:50 a.m.: Conference Check-in – Log into Zoom (Zoom link will be provided in an email sent to registered participants.)

8:50-9:00 a.m.: Welcome

9:00 – 9:50 a.m.: Keynote Address: Dr. Christopher Perrin – The Art of Classical Teaching 

*Breakout sessions will integrate methods of grammar, logic, and rhetoric to differentiate content for participants. 

10:00 -10:50 a.m.: Classical Pedagogy, Leadership, and Classical Philosophy Tracks (Novice and Experienced)

  • Heraclitus Room: K-5 Grammar: Putting the Fun in Drill and Kill – Maria Marchand and Becky Lund, Nova Classical Academy: Exploring the importance of ensuring that students have automaticity with the most crucial information, but doing so in a way that supports the joy of learning and empowers the students. 
  • Seneca Room: K-5 Grammar: Complacent versus Engaged Students – Allison Brimmell, St. Croix Preparatory Academy: How can we effectively engage all learners? Oftentimes, we can mistake our most cooperative or silent workers as the most engaged. In this session, we will identify what makes a student compliant compared to an engaged learner. We will also learn how to use strategies that create active and meaningful student involvement.
  • Socrates Room: 6-8 Logic: Using Modified Texts to Support Student Understanding and Appreciation of the Classics – Amanda Jensen, Seven Hills Preparatory Academy: Reading Classical texts can be challenging for readers of all levels. Providing modified texts to certain students, or as an option for all students, gives them the support they need to find success with these challenging texts. In this session, we will explore different types of texts, how to create or find them, and how to incorporate them into classroom learning and instruction.
  • Cicero Room: 9-12 Rhetoric: The Classical Road to AP Courses – Lisa Johson, Eagle Ridge Academy: ​​ AP course with methods and ideas to get prepared for the testing arena. We will consider key resources and the road to the AP exam, and the world beyond. If there is no learning without remembering, it is necessary to learn why, but also how to remember content, while being grounded in human nature and in the nature of human learning.
  • Plato Room: Seminar: Introduction to (Virtual) Socratic Seminar – Augsburg Paideia Program: – Ali Alowonie, Augsburg Paideia Program

Come participate in a Paideia Seminar, a collaborative, intellectual dialogue that delves into questions about a specific reading and the big ideas within the text! With students at the helm and teachers as facilitators, classrooms transform into student-centered learning communities abuzz with discussions around thought-provoking ideas and themes. Seminars engage all students across all content areas! 

  • Lucretius Room: Leadership: Best Practices for Hiring and Building a Great Teaching Team – Lori Jill Keeler, Westminster School at Oak Mountain: This session will give practical advice and helpful strategies for attracting, hiring, and training excellent teachers.  Procedures that can ensure a “right fit” hire will be discussed along with tips for training new teachers for a classical environment.   
  • Aristotle Room: Philosophy: Contemplative Debate – Dr. Missy Johnson and Sara Seal, Nova Classical Academy:

One traditional purpose of logic and debate is to clarify confusion and dispel harmful views. Contemplative debate is intended to non-aggressively examine two sides of a statement or question. It is also intended to enrich, illuminate, and ventilate the thinking and communication processes of the debaters and those in attendance. In this session, participants will begin by engaging in introductory mindfulness exercises before culminating in contemplative debate.

 

11:00 – 11:50 a.m.: Classical Pedagogy, Leadership,  and Classical Philosophy Tracks (Novice and Experienced)

  • Heraclitus Room: K-5 Grammar: Classical Education Foundation and Application – Kathy Smith, Liberty Classical Academy: “It is more important to know where you are going than to get there quickly. Do not mistake activity for achievement.” Isocrates. This presentation is intended to help to till the ground and plant a strong foundation of classical education with its foundation of truth, beauty, and goodness and the knowledge of the trivium and its pedagogy.  Attendees will leave with a sense of passion and excitement for classical education.
  • Seneca Room: K-5 Grammar: Incorporating Multisensory Methods into the Liberal Arts Education – Kim Shaffer, Liberty Classical Academy: Decades of clinical results support the efficacy of instruction that simultaneously associates auditory, visual, and kinesthetic-motor modalities for supporting memory and learning both oral and written language skills. Expand your repertoire and enrich your existing curriculum with ideas that optimize learning and can be implemented in the classroom immediately.
  • Socrates Room: 6-8 Logic: Reaching the Reluctant Writer – Andrew Pudewa, Institute for Excellence in Writing: Many children really do not like to write. Why? This session will answer that basic question and teach a specific and successful method of separating the complex process of writing into the smallest possible steps, making it possible for even the most reluctant writer to produce short but complete compositions. If you remove the problem of what to write, you will be free to help your child learn how to write, using source texts, key word outlines, and “dress-up” checklists. 
  • Cicero Room: 9-12 Rhetoric: Leading Effective Discussions – Dr. Christopher Schlect, New St. Andrews College: Is your classroom a place where students think well, listen well, and speak well? What practices stifle those qualities? This presentation offers practical ideas about how to get our students to interact with the material, with the instructor, and with one another.
  • Plato Room: Seminar: Introduction to Seminar – Augsburg Paideia Program: Sonia Nunez-Gibbs, Augsburg Paideia Program:

Come participate in a Paideia Seminar, a collaborative, intellectual dialogue that delves into questions about a specific reading and the big ideas within the text! With students at the helm and teachers as facilitators, classrooms transform into student-centered learning communities abuzz with discussions around thought-provoking ideas and themes. Seminars engage all students across all content areas! 

  • Lucretius Room: Leadership: Civil Discourse with Classical Texts –  Jon Gutierrez, St. Croix Preparatory Academy: Classical texts are foundational to modern times.  Civil discourse around today’s events seems impossible, yet giving our students the ability to venture into these conversations is essential. In this session, we will briefly discuss how many classical works (Plato, Locke, Marx, Du Bois, Orwell, etc.) provide students with the framework for discussing today’s current events.
  • Aristotle Room: Philosophy: The Classic Teloi of Classical Education – Dr. Brian Williams, Eastern University: The tradition of classical liberal arts education has developed throughout its long 2,500 year history. Three Mediterranean cultures bequeathed the tradition—the Greeks, Romans, and North African Christians—and each contributed important ideas, practices, and institutions that subsequent generations developed as cultural contexts changed, the canon expanded, and new discoveries were made. However, the end or telos of classical liberal arts education has essentially endured, which is to align the practice of education (paideia) with the integrated multi-dimensional flourishing of the human person (eudaimonia). This session will consider six integrated ends of human flourishing and correlate them with six primary questions that should frame the work of contemporary classical educators as we form our students in the true, good, beautiful, holy, healthy, and useful.  

 

12:00 – 12:45 p.m.: Lunch 

 

1:00 – 2:00 p.m.: Socratic Seminars

  • Heraclitus Room: K-5 Grammar:  Seminar Strategies in Math – Katie Feist, Eagle Ridge Academy: In this session, teachers will be introduced to Socrates’ approach to engaging students in thinking about their learning through a Socratic Seminar. During our time, teachers will learn how to set up a Socratic Seminar for a math lesson and participate in a practice Seminar through math.
  • Seneca Room: 6-8 Logic:  We Learn by Teaching – Justin Soderholm, Veritas Classical Academy: Docendo Discimus (we learn by teaching) is a Latin saying filled with profound truth. With this mindset, not only will the teacher become more excellent at a subject by teaching it, but the students should receive numerous opportunities to do so as well. In this session, the emphasis will be on preparing students to ask themselves appropriate questions when analyzing the topic at hand. We will discuss how to model an inquisitive mind for our students.
  • Socrates Room: 9-12 Rhetoric:  STEM and the Socratic Method: Practical Tools for the Classroom and Lab – Dr. Naomi Dillner, Liberty Classical Academy: For the science student, Socratic discussions and labs develop greater conceptual gains in content and fluency in scientific practices.  However, it can be a challenge to implement into traditional content-dense STEM courses.  This seminar will emphasize resources that enable the STEM teacher to integrate the Socratic method into their curriculum while respecting the unique content, practices, and philosophical goals of their discipline.  Practical resources for biology, chemistry, physics and computer science will be provided, along with an example Socratic seminar lesson plan for an honors chemistry course including handouts, rubrics, and assessment tools.
  • Cicero Room: Philosophy: Proposed Educational Amendment to Minnesota’s  Constitution – Carl Schlueter & Ryan Grutsch, Seven Hills Preparatory Academy: This seminar will focus on the Page Amendment, named after the chief sponsor former Minnesota Supreme Court Justice, Alah Page. We will utilize the amendment campaign’s explanatory document for reading and discussion. Minnesota’s constitutional clause regarding education was written more than 150 years ago, and the proposed amendment seeks to add new language with an emphasis on equity, which we will consider alone and in the context of a Classical education. 
  • Plato Room: Philosophy: Strategies for Using Art in Seminar – Elaine Bransford, St. Croix Preparatory Academy: This seminar will ask students to consider: In public art and sculpture, what makes an effective memorial? Participants will use the “See/Think/Wonder” strategy to discuss the Shaw Memorial, and then compare and contrast it with the Vietnam Memorial Wall.  We will consider how using art in the classroom can help hook students, deepen their understanding, and lead to meaningful connections in a wide variety of subjects.
  • Lucretius Room: Leadership:  Courageous Leadership In Uncertain Times – Rebekah Hagstrom, Liberty Classical Academy: The past two years of leading throughout a pandemic have revealed the complexity of remaining strong in the midst of mounting pressure. As Founder and Headmaster, Rebekah knows firsthand how it feels to face roadblocks, naysayers, and challenges from all sides. Drawing from over 18 years of experience in classical education, Rebekah will inspire you to examine four strategic areas to grow in courageous leadership.

2:00 – 2:30 p.m.: (Virtual) Social… The Long Minnesota Goodbye

2019 Schedule

 

4th ANNUAL MN CLASSICAL EDUCATION CONFERENCE
CONNECTING & UNITING CLASSICAL SCHOOLS

 

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 17tH

8:15 – 9:00 A.M.
Conference Check-In and Continental Breakfast – Sponsored by Classical Learning Test

9:00 – 9:50 A.M.
Keynote | THE LIBERAL ARTS: EMBODYING BEAUTY – DR. AMY HAMLIN
* Breakout Sessions will Integrate Methods of Grammar, Logic, and Rhetoric to Dillerentiate Content for Participants

10:00 -10:50 A.M.: Classical Pedagogy and Classical Philosophy Tracks

• K-5 – CLASSICAL PEDAGOGY: – Kathy Smith, Liberty Academy
• 6-8 – CLASSICAL PEDAGOGY: A History of Classics and Classical Education – Maura Williams, Nova Classical Academy
• 9-12 – CLASSICAL PEDAGOGY: – Lisa Johnson, Eagle Ridge Academy
• PAIDEIA INSTITUTE: Introduction to Seminar – Ali Alownie & Maggie Pistner, Paideia Institute
• CLASSICAL PHILOSOPHY: (A closer look at an historical period of art) – Dr. Amy Hamlin

11:00 – I:50 A.M. Classical Pedagogy and Classical Philosophy Tracks

• K-5 – CLASSICAL PEDAGOGY: – Missy Madigan, Eagle Ridge Academy
• 6-8 – CLASSICAL PEDAGOGY: – James DeCaro, Saint Croix Prep
• 9-12 – CLASSICAL PEDAGOGY: The Beauty of Words: Learning a Modern Language – Dr. Susie Brooks, Veritas Academy
• PAIDEIA INSTITUTE Introduction to Seminar – Ali Alownie & Maggie Pistner, Paideia Institute
• CLASSICAL PHILOSOPHY: An Exposition of C.S. Lewis’ Abolition of Man – Dr. Robert Jackson, Great Hearts Academies

12:00 – 12:50 P.M. Lunch | SPONSORED BY KRAUS-ANDERSON INSURANCE

1:00 – 2:00 P.M.
Socratic Seminars

• K-5 – CLASSICAL PEDAGOGY: Tar Beach by Faith Ringgold – Molly Doyle, Courtney Kreftng, & Malorie Binn, Seven Hills
• 6-8 – CLASSICAL PEDAGOGY: Copying the Masters: A Sketch Warmup Routine – Diana Johnson, Nova Classical Academy
• 9-12 – CLASSICAL PEDAGOGY: – Jeremy Tate and Soren Schwab, Classical Learning Test
• PAIDEIA INSTITUTE: Art Seminar- Ali Alownie & Maggie Pistner, Paideia Institute
• CLASSICAL PEDAGOGY: Contemplative Debate – Missy Johnson, Nova Classical Academy & Dana Banitt, Seven Hills
• CLASSICAL PHILOSOPHY: TBD – Dr. P, University of Dallas

2:00 – 3:00 P.M.

The Minnesota Goodbye – Linger a bit longer in conversations if you like…!

*Learn more about the National Symposium, a Masters in Classics, and the Classical Learning Test

The 2023 Minnesota Classical Education Conference is proudly sponsored by: