"It is only the ignorant who despise education." - Publilius Syrus Classical education distinctives are alive and well and fully utilized at Boxford Academy. 1. The trivium of educational maturity The trivium is a Latin term meaning "group of three" that denotes three stages of learning: grammar, dialectic, rhetoric. Classical education recognizes that children mature gradually through these three major stages of intellectual growth. The first stage, corresponding roughly to the lower elementary grades, is that of grammar learning, which gave rise to the term "grammar school". But it does not mean grammar in the sense of "language rules." Instead it refers to the ordering of the mind via what younger children are best at: memorizing, learning facts, assimilating data, understanding what the world is made of. Does your school boast of introducing computers in the earliest grades? It's not a classical school. In classical education, young children are taught to think in "real time" and not to be dependent on machines to do their calculations and reasoning, or to entertain their minds when they are bored (thus, in fact, actually training them to be easily bored). Even though Boxford Academy has all the latest computers, we purposely wait to introduce computer keyboarding until fifth grade, and major computer instruction until seventh. That way, your child doesn't become computer-dependent and not learn to think on his own. The next stage of the trivium is dialectic, which corresponds to the upper elementary grades and to some extent the beginning of junior high school - the ability to understand things logically. Children at this age are beginning to realize how good arguments and bad arguments are formed, and to see how facts and opinions interrelate. Here research becomes important, as does the reading of great books in order to learn how to follow lengthy arguments and see other people's perspectives. Boxford Academy's great books approach takes children far beyond what other schools can offer them at this stage. The third stage, that of rhetoric, is the stage at which children learn how to express themselves accurately and persuasively. It corresponds to the teenage years, where, sadly, many schools fail to develop the skills of teenagers by failing to expose them to truly great ideas and to require them to express themselves cogently both in speech and in writing. Boxford Academy's rigorous writing and speech programs make all the difference here. 2. Classical language Most schools offer some sort of foreign language, but usually only a modern one. This actually handicaps students, because most never learn a language well enough to use it, and miss out on the rich benefits of knowing a classical language, with its many advantages. Boxford Academy requires Latin, starting via Latin and Greek roots in first grade, and via actual Latin language study in second grade, and thus trains students' minds with the orderliness of a classical language, and boosts their vocabulary (and college board scores) via the huge influence Latin has had on the English language and on Western culture. See our website for more details on the advantages of Latin at Boxford Academy. By the way, we also offer a great many options for modern language study as well, but always in addition to rather than instead of Latin. 3. Teaching speech How do most people have an influence in this world? By what they say! A speech program is essential to a classical education, because it helps students learn how to express their ideas to an audience in a way that can propel them toward the ability to persuade others of great truths later in life. Moreover, studies show that the single most important factor in getting a good job is one's speech. At Boxford Academy, speech is taught from elementary grades onward both in connection with regular classroom subjects and as a separate discipline during the week. 4. Teaching writing A classical education involves much more than answering multiple choice or true-false questions, or filling in blanks in school workbooks. It requires that students learn how to think through issues and then clearly and convincingly articulate their thoughts on paper, with proper spelling and grammar, so that they can for the rest of their lives write reports, letters to editors, business documents, formal proposals, and even expressive, effective e-mails. Boxford Academy's program of writing starts early, and culminates in a theme a week as well as two major term papers in the eighth grade. In this way, students are prepared not just for rigorous high schools, but also for college. 5. Teaching the Bible A classical education recognizes the superiority of God's truth over any merely human truth. The Bible is the centerpiece of classical learning, and knowledge of its content is a gateway to understanding and obeying the will of God. The Bible has had a profound influence on Western civilization and on its best and highest values, and biblical concepts are reflected in its best and highest literature. At Boxford Academy the Bible is a major subject in the curriculum of every grade. Indeed, the Bible is the most classical literature of all. It combines prose and poetry, epic and epistle, prophecy and epigram, etc. in a way that helps students appreciate God's truth as expressed in the greatest of all repositories of learning. 6. Great literature Do you want your child to know how to understand and love books, following the various arguments and lines of thought through the pages? At Boxford Academy, our elementary school students are already reading whole books, and lots of them. In some grades, history and literature are integrated via the reading of a substantial number of full integrative sources - real, entire books that are classics of description and historical survey. Moreover, we want our students not merely to enjoy good literature to but to be able to interpret it, to understand its great themes and the techniques by which its important messages are conveyed. 7. Honoring God's purposeful design in all things At Boxford Academy, the teachers are certainly Christians, but so is both the content of and the perspective on the material. Even in math and science we show students how real truth is God's truth and how Christians can have a unique perspective on all facets of knowledge, not merely Bible or Christian doctrine. 8. Priority of character above all else Boxford Academy's education is rigorous and our standards are high. But we also reflect one of the bedrock assumptions of classical education: that learning has as its goal the production of good people, not just smart people. Therefore we insist on a peaceful, disciplined learning environment so that children are free to learn and not to be distracted by chaos. In other words, we require children to be good to each other and obedient to adults - something that makes the children happier and counters the growing pattern in our society of children's cruelty to each other. We would much rather see a child grow up to become a good adult than merely an intelligent one. Of course, we expect that they'll become both. 9. Valuing the past The fact is that education has become full of fads. Consequently, we place a premium on the time-honored methods of a teacher in front of a smaller group of students guiding them into and reinforcing knowledge. We don't take shortcuts with your child's education. We use computers where they help most, in the upper grades rather than in the lower grades, where they detract from developing thinking skills. We teach reasoning skills applicable to all times and people. And we do it with God's eternal values in mind for all our students. The past must be taught in a way that helps students understand what the underpinnings of civilization really are - something most children these days have no idea of how to analyze or express. In other words, we teach our students the ability to look backwards to the past and learn from it those great truths, perspectives and skills that will help a person know how to travel successfully into the future. 10. Emphasizing truth, beauty and virtue These three commitments have always been held high in classical education. At Boxford Academy, God's truth is paramount -- and since the most important knowledge in all the world is the knowledge of God as eternal father, through the savior, his Son, no education can be classical in the truest sense without helping students to know God personally as the beginning of a relationship that will never end. Beauty is likewise important, because it reflects God's loving creation. Boxford Academy teaches both art and sewing, as encouragements to appreciate and understand beauty. We also require head-to-toe uniforms, because we want students to know the beauty of neatness, and escape the degradation of competitive dressing, as well as to appreciate the relationship of proper appearance to proper demeanor. Virtue is simply the practice of being good. We insist that all students work at it, for their own sake and that of others. 11. Teachers control the classroom At Boxford Academy the adults are clearly in charge, and children are safe and secure in knowing that older and wiser people are making the key decisions that guide their educational development. Parents can be sure that their teachers will be available and willing to explain and evaluate their children's performance. The policies and practices of the school are thoughtfully established by professional Christian educators who report to a headmaster, who, in turn, reports to a Board of Directors, all of whom strive to make the school the best it can be for the glory of God and the benefit of all involved. 12. Hands-on learning A motto of classical education has been the Latin phrase "mens sana in corpore sano" ("a sound mind in a sound body"). At Boxford Academy, in addition to first-rate academics we also offer physical education, shop and hands-on unit studies, not as an escape from solid classroom learning, but as a rounding out of the whole person, so that students learn to become healthy and balanced, not lopsidedly bookish. Boxford Academy is a happy place. 13. Early emphasis on academic fundamentals Boxford Academy's Kindergarten, first grade and second grade reading, writing and spelling programs are thoroughly based on phonics. The mathematics curriculum concentrates on mastery of traditional skills, problem solving and mathematical reasoning. Grades three to eight have an integrated history and literature program. It is a rich program of reading in the arts and sciences. English grammar begins in grade two and continues through grade eight. Composition and correct spelling are taught daily. The science program covers physical and biological topics and is taught for eight years. Latin is taught from grades 3-8. Latin and Greek roots are taught already in grade 1. Other courses include art, music, physical education, cooking sewing, shop and speech. These are taught weekly.