Cross Classical

I am sitting here thinking about my oldest daughter beginning her life long journey of learning. She begins this process in roughly 2 weeks. We are so excited about this method of education we have chosen for her. This is going to be a HUGE year for her, and I am anxious to see true growth in her in ALL areas of her life. Yes. ALL areas of her life. Most importantly - her worldview. We are attending Cross Classical Academy, here in Brownwood where the foundation of her education begins by teaching a BIBLICAL worldview. All things we learn on an academic level are grounded in the teachings of Jesus and how he instructs us to approach our world.

Cross Classical is a University Model setting, where they have formal classroom instruction 2 days per week. (Monday and Wednesday) On Tuesday and Thursday, I will be Anslee's teacher. We will follow the lesson plans and curriculum set by the Academy, but I will be guiding, instructing, and most importantly - engaged. I will not sit back and watch her learn from an outsiders perspective. I will have a firm hand in what she is learning and how she comes into knowledge. Am I not her first teacher anyway? The method to which she will be taught is extremely innovative and will be challenging at just her level. It will be fun and practical for her 4.5 year old mind, but will sharpen her developmentally while she enjoys learning new things.

This is from our School's website:

PURPOSE

To invest in the Kingdom of God by supporting parents as they raise a generation to love the Lord whole-heartedly and to be Christ-like leaders in their homes, churches, communities, and the world. Deuteronomy 6:4-7

MISSION

The mission of Cross Classical Academy is to minister to families by partnering with Christian parents to provide for their children a classical education founded upon a Biblical worldview so that these children may commence a lifelong pursuit of knowledge, wisdom and understanding in their purposeful and passionate service of Jesus Christ, for the glory of God. Cross Classical Academy has adopted a university-model approach which integrates professional instruction with parent mentored study and character development to achieve a college preparatory level of academic excellence.

VISION

Community of Christian educators and families that impacts, influences, and transforms lives through academics, character development, servant leadership, and the arts.

VALUES

Cross Classical Academy prioritizes the following values: honesty, integrity, perseverance, love, service, passion, compassion, leadership, endurance, truth, joy, peace, faithfulness, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, self-control, hope, humility, joy, faith.

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I can't believe she will be attending a school that has the mission and values that school holds. It expects parents to be a vital part of what their children are learning. It is founded on what The Bible says about learning, how we become wise and how we receive knowledge. 

Classical learning is set up like this. 

 

You begin with grammar. Its the base. The foundation. Facts - memorization is key here. You burn into forming brains truth and sense. You build from there. Grammar is our school goes from Pre-K to 4th. Logic begins in 5th. Logic ties truth and facts together. It makes sense of what was learned well in the grammar years. Rhetoric follows with details, original thoughts, debates,piecing all truths together and understanding relationships between ideas and then building upon them. 

I love this model of learning because it makes sense. So you can look at the end goal for education that you seek for your child's life and you break that goal down into tangible learning styles for where the child is developmentally. Example: If you want your child to be able to speak clearly and confidently at their first job interview one day - you can break those skills down and teach them one at a time on an age appropriate level. In Pre-K our children will do book reviews. They stand up in front of their class, and with the aide of their teacher they will state the name of the book, the author, and the main character in the story. They learn to address their peers. They learn how to speak on topic. They learn how to follow direction. They learn how to speak about something they read. They begin to communicate about something they are trying to understand.

I have always been a huge fan of "begin as you mean to go". I LOVE the idea of having an end goal in mind and taking small steps to get there. This means that everything she will do will have real purpose. That is exactly how this method operates and I am thrilled that we get to help Anslee begin reaching her goals (I guess they are our goals for her now, that will essentially be molded into what SHE wants for her life, and hopefully this will help figure out her own goals as she grows into being able to do that for herself.)

To be perfectly honest, I am very emotional about this process beginning. I feel like what I think most "kinder moms" feel as they usher their babes off into the world of schooling. I feel that way, because this year is truly going to be a year of routine education for Anslee. I will see a major advances in all areas of Anslee's life 9 months from now. I know I will be floored at what she will be able to do then, so I feel like her journey to learning is beginning now. I hope that she enjoys each moment of this new adventure and that she will gain a new perspective - the beginning to a biblical worldview - in her pre-school year with Cross.