German for Middle and High School

Update: This live course has concluded and is available now as a recorded course through our Unlimited Access! Service. This is a great way to learn at your own pace when your schedule allows. To subscribe or learn more: Catholic Homeschooling

German I, Part Two is open to any student wishing to jump in with a great group of eager students who are continuing from the fall. You need only have an introduction to German yourself and a good work ethic to find yourself quickly caught up with the rest of them! (Click on the course title to learn more or register.)

We are using German Made Simple by Arnold Leitner and German Grammar Drills by Ed Swick.

For homework each week there will be a translation, a composition, grammar exercises and quiz, and finally a short German phrase for memorization. Each week you can also find several videos of traditional German folksongs. In class, we will focus on pronunciation and practice drills, so come ready to speak in a microphone and hear others just like yourself learning to speak German!

Latin I and II for Middle and High School

Update: This live course has concluded and is available now as a recorded course through our Unlimited Access! Service. This is a great way to learn at your own pace when your schedule allows. To subscribe or learn more: Catholic Homeschooling

Latin I Part Two and Latin II Part Two are both open to all students who are wishing to deepen their knowledge of the Latin language. Please click on the course title to learn more or to register for the upcoming semester.

Latin Part One is not a prerequisite, but its equivalent is expected.

For Latin I, students should have a good command of present tense verbs in the third person (e.g. laborat, narrat, and orat) and a decent understanding of the 1st and 2nd Noun Declensions.

For Latin II, students should have a good command of both the active and passive verbs as well as a good understanding of all 5 declensions.

Both courses are homework intensive with a translation and composition each week as well as weekly Latin passages to memorize and grammar exercises and quizzes to complete.

We use Benjamin D'ooge's Latin for Beginners (available for FREE online) to help inform our investigations of ancient, medieval, and modern Latin. Looking at the original texts, we are able to see how Latin is really written, and at the same time, our grammar book helps make sense of what we are seeing, making Latin learning easier and easier rather than the other way around!

Middle School History: Ancient Rome

History: A Day in the Lives of the Ancient Romans
(This course is completed and now available as a recorded course through our Unlimited Access! service.)

Here is an additional reading list for middle school students who would like to expand on their Ancient Rome studies.

Click on book title for free download:

      Historical Tales: Roman, Charles Morris

The Story of the Romans, Helene Guerber
Story of Rome, Mary MacGregor
Famous Men of Rome, John H. Haaren
Stories from Ancient Rome, Alfred Church
The Aeneid for Boys and Girls, Alfred Church
A History of Western Philosophy, Ralph McInerny

An additional resource that is very helpful if you'd like to add a timeline to your studies (recommended):

The Timeline Index

Ancient Greece Reading List for Middle School

(Note to parents. This reading list would also work well with grade school children if you read aloud together.)

Dear Students,

Thank you so much for participating in our middle school course on Ancient Greece. Even though it’s been a few years since I was in middle school, I learned from the course too and really enjoyed it.

If you also enjoyed learning about the Ancient Greeks and would like to keep learning, here is a reading list with some great books on the subject (compliments of For the Love of Literature). You should be able to find most on your public library’s shelf or through inter-library loan. I hope you’ll pick up one or two or maybe even three to read before we meet again for our study into Ancient Rome in January.
Mrs. Wittmann

D’Aulaire’s Book of Greek Myths by Ingri and Edgar d’Aulaire – We highly recommend this classic on audio to hear the correct pronunciations of the Greek names.

Ancient Greece (DK Eyewitness) – Photo essay of the ancient Greeks. Learn the history of their culture, philosophy, science, medicine, and the role geography played.

Homer (c. 800BC)

The Children’s Homer: The Adventures of Odysseus and the Tale of Troy by Padriac Colum – A 1965 retelling of Homer’s The Iliad and The Odyssey for children. The language and vocabulary can be challenging, but worth the effort.

Black Ships Before Troy: The Story of the Iliad by Rosemary Sutcliff – A modern retelling of The Illiad. It’s the story of the Trojan War, from the quarrel for the golden apple, and the flight of Helen with Paris, to the destruction of Troy.

The Wanderings of Odysseus: The Story of the Odyssey by Rosemary Sutcliff – The story of Odysseus’ long years of wandering after the Trojan War. Sutcliff’s retelling makes a nice read aloud. One may say Odysseus’ story is that of everyone’s search for home.

The Trojan War by Olivia Coolidge – Reading before taking on The Iliad will help with background information and bring about better understanding. (We recommend the Fitzgerald translation when you get to high school.)

Persian Wars (490-479 BC)

Herodotus of Halicarnassus (c. 484-425 BC)

History of the Persian Wars by Herodotus – Herodotus is known as the “Father of History” even though some inaccuracies can be found in his work. He presents an in-depth look into the Persian Wars. Though thousands of years old, this work is readable for an advanced middle-school student.

Herodotus and the Road to History by Jeanne Bendick (Bethlehem Books) – “Jeanne Bendick's lucid text, humorous illustrations and helpful maps entertain and instruct as they open the way for readers young and old to once again join Herodotus . . . on the road to history.”

Golden Age of Athens (479-430 BC)

The Golden Fleece: And the Heroes Who Lived Before Achilles by Padriac Colum – Colum weaves the tales of Jason and the Argonauts with classic Greek mythology, creating a captivating epic.

Archimedes (272-212 BC), Greece – Inventor and Mathematician

The Sand Reckoner by Gillian Bradshaw – This historical fiction based on the life of Archimedes could also be tied into math.

Archimedes and the Door of Science by Jeanne Bendick [Bethlehem Books] – A real gem, the story and illustrations present scientific principles and the details of Archimedes life clearly and enjoyably.

Galen (129-c.200), Greece – Physician, Writer, and Philosopher

Galen and the Gateway to Medicine by Jeanne Bendick [Bethlehem] – Galen was the chief physician to the gladiators. He was also the first to show arteries carry blood, not air.

Addendum: Middle School Reading Available for Free Download.

High School Theology: Who Am I?

Update: This live course has concluded and is available now as a recorded course through our Unlimited Access! Service. This is a great way to learn at your own pace when your schedule allows. To subscribe or learn more: Catholic Homeschooling

What is Christian Anthropology? It sounds lofty and looks great on a high school transcript for college admissions, but can be simply put as the study of the human person in relationship to God.

Theologian Monica Ashour will be delving deep into Christian Anthropology next semester for Homeschool Connections. This is an excellent course for any mature high school student (11th to 12th grade). It will lay out a foundation for the rest of their lives.

Christian Anthropology; Who Am I?

(to register, please click on title)

Instructor: Miss Ashour, MTS; M Hum
Class dates: Tuesdays, March 8 to April 26, 2011
Total classes: 8
Starting time: 1:00 pm Eastern (Noon Central)
Duration: 1 hour
Fee: $100 for entire 8-week course.
Prerequisite: None.
Suggested grade level: 11th to 12th. Note that this course will touch on sensitive subjects, particularly in Class Seven. Parents are always welcome to sit in on classes or review recordings.
High school credit: 1/2 semester credit in theology

Course Rationale: The student will study the foundational aspects of Christian Anthropology (the Catholic vision of what it means to be human). With this understanding, the student in this course will be challenged to apply such principles to being “in the world, not of the world,” with a critical mind of recognizing distortions regarding the human person that the world holds. Furthermore, the student will delve deeply into Trinitarian and Soteriological (how we are saved) theology in that we are made in the image and likeness of the Trinitarian God and in that Jesus’ death on the Cross gives the highest and deepest revelation of what it means to be human.
Course Goal: The student, through his/her embracing of this theological perspective, will be invited to grow in his/her humanity to become “St. Me,” the person he/she was made to be and whom he/she co-creates with God.

Homework: Weekly Quizzes, Major Project, & Final Exam: To be graded by parents. (Answer key provided.)

Course Reading:

The reading will assist the student in delving into a deep understanding of the human person, along with its application to the moral life and spirituality.

1. The Bible—Gen 1-3; Rom 3:21-8:39;

2. The Catechism of the Catholic Church paragraph #’s 249-421;

3. The Documents of Vatican II—Gaudium et Spes, especially Part I;

4. Redemptor Hominis (Pope John Paul’s 1^st encyclical)

5. Pope Benedict’s address at Regensburg: ZE06091209 - 2006-09-12 Permalink: http://www.zenit.org/article-16955?l=english;

6. The Weight of Glory and “Man or Rabbit”, both by CS Lewis.

Optional: Not required, but for those who want more of a challenge and more credit earned:

CS Lewis’ The Abolition of Man;
Thomas Howard’s Chance or the Dance;

J. Budziszewski’s What We Can’t Not Know (Part I);

Dr. Joyce Little’s The Catholic Church and the Culture War (esp. the part about egalitarianism).

Course outline:

Class 1

Logistics of class/expectations/optional homework

Foundational Introduction to Theology

-- Difference between catechesis and theology

-- Trinitarian Theology: God Himself; What He has done for us.

-- Christology: Christianity's Goal; Christology from above/from below; High Pt of Revelation; Christ's Mystical Body

Anthropology (Study of Man (man and woman)

-- 3 Types of Freedom

-- 3 Ways People Approach God (2 wrong, 1 right)

-- Circumincession/Perichoresis-Our Home!

Foundational Introduction to Theology

-- The Trinity in our Lives-God is immutable: St. Thomas; God is love: Fr. Von Balthasar, Pope John Paul, Pope Benedict

-- Trinitarian Theology: Self-emptying (kenosis) in ad intra; Self-emptying in ad extra (what God has done-Jesus died for us)

Class 2

Anthropology-Study of Man; Solitude for Communion

-- Since in God's inner being, the Three Persons are kenotic, then we are to be kenotic; it is human nature to give the gift of self (nothing other than LOVE).

-- Theology of the Body: Self-understanding, self-possession, to determine our lives.

-- Humans are first receptive in relation to parents who symbolize God; we are to return that gift.

-- We are sons/daughters in the Son through baptism; we are divinized.

-- "Abstandikeit" others: let others be themselves.

-- Human Nature-Beginning and End; Origin and Telos

-- Relativism (opposite of human nature)-The worst evil of our time, says Pope Benedict; Self-contradictory statements

-- Sentimentality and Egalitarianism, two offshoots of relativism.

Class 3

Anthropology-The Goal of Kenosis for Union and Communion with God, within ourselves, others, and creation. Proper understanding of salvation.

-- Funnel Analogy-Salvation only within the Church, understood properly, not universalistic

-- Marriage as primordial sacrament to point to our union with Christ

-- Church's view of reality

-- 4 Fold communion

-- To sin is not being human!

-- God loves us freely, fully, faithfully, and fruitfully.

-- To be human is to LOVE! Kenosis.

-- Pelagianism (earning salvation)-wrong; Once saved, always saved-wrong; Through grace (God's own life and love in ad intra) working in love-RIGHT!

-- Solo Scriptura-wrong; solo fides-wrong; solo gratia-right, understood properly, working in love.

Class 4

Anthropology -The Sacramental View of Reality

-- All-Male Priesthood

-- Masculinity and Femininity and the "language of the body" (Pope John Paul's Sacramental view of reality-TOB)

-- Descartes Dualism-split of body and soul and TOB's reintegration

-- Objective Truth and Subjective Reality

-- Work on Marian Receptivity to be human (receive, not grasp)

-- Diagram of Mass in our Lives (The Source and Summit of our Faith)

-- Diagram of 4 Dimensions of Every Sacrament

-- Heart of the World Diagram-To love (to be human) is only possible when we love with Christ's Sacred Heart.

-- THE GLORY OF GOD IS MAN FULLY ALIVE!!

Class 5

Anthropology-Nominalism's Role in our Understanding of the Human Person/William of Ockham

-- The Wrong understanding of God's freedom in relation to Man's Freedom

-- Pope Benedict's Lecture at Regensburg, Germany September 10

-- Competitive Causality

Class 6

Anthropology-"Man's Conquest over Nature"-Francis Bacon's Influence on Modernity

-- Human Limits-when good/when not

-- Technology-when good/when not/when to question/making us more human? "escaping the body"?

-- Noise vs.Silence

-- Affirmative living - Dr. Conrad Baars; attention as the most precious gift of humans to another

-- Pope Benedict: "We give the other himself/herself"

Class 7

Anthropology-Tough Questions and Loving Responses, all based on Anthropology

-- Homosexuality

-- In Vitro Fertilization

-- Contraception

-- Cohabitation

Class 8

Anthropology-Summation of Entire Course

-- Review for Final Exam

-- Mariology-True Anthropology!

Instructor's biography: Having had 20 years of experience in the classroom, 3 years of experience working at St. Mary's Catholic Church at Texas A&M University as one of the Campus Ministers, and Master Degrees in Humanities and Theological Studies from the University of Dallas, Monica Ashour comes to us with a breadth and depth of vision that will solidify and electrify high school students. Orthodox, passionate, and pedagogically adept, Miss Ashour reaches youth especially in the areas of Christian Anthropology, Moral Theology, and Social Ethics. Her former students come to her often with gratitude in preparing them for the various experiences that they faced in college. She is also a gifted speaker for the The Theology of the Body Evangelization Team.

Additionally:
-- The October 24, 2010 Our Sunday Visitor lists Monica Ashour as one of the top 10 speakers in the nation: Although Ashour, who co-founded the Texas-based Theology of the Body Evangelization Team, speaks to adults as well as teens, there are few speakers as experienced and gifted as Ashour at reaching young Catholics

-- Published in www.zenit.org, September 10, 2010, How to Reach Teens

-- Consultant for Theology of the Body for Teens-Middle School Edition, to be released by Ascension Press in March 2011

-- Published chapter in Set Free to Love, Servant Books

-- Author, The Theology of the Body and Social Networking, to be released by Ascension Press in 2011

-- Author, Children's Books Series based on the Theology of the Body, to be released by Ascension Press in 2011

Equipment requirements:
Students are required to have high-speed internet and a headset with microphone.

Misc:
Miss Ashour will be available via email in between classes for questions and comments.
Recordings of classes are provided to students within 24 hours and available for 6 months.
Homeschool Connections does not provide record keeping services.

Christian Anthropology; Who Am I?

(to register, please click on title)

What Should We Offer for High School History?

Our high school history instructor Mr. Campbell is already working on developing his history offerings for the 2011/2012 school year. He's also considering teaching a geography course. Since we're still in the development stage nothing is set in stone yet. This is where you come in. You get to have a say in what we offer.

Please visit this survey and fill it out: History Offerings 2011/2012. It only takes 1 minute.

Featured: Philosophy; Fallacies and Paradoxes

We currently have 37 recorded courses available through our Subscription Service and we are adding more each month. We are featuring a different recorded course each week to help you learn more about our offerings.

Philosophy: Fallacies and Paradoxes

Total classes: 6
Duration: approx. 75 minutes each
Professor: Jean Rioux, Ph.D.

Course description: This six-class course is devoted to learning about, and identifying, examples of flawed reasoning. Analyzing paradoxes, and their solutions, helps us better to understand the nature of human reasoning itself, and how best to assure that we arrive at the truth (and not falsity) through its use.

Week-by-week outline:
Class One: Linguistic Fallacies and Formal Non-Linguistic Fallacies (theory)
Class Two: Linguistic Fallacies and Formal Non-Linguistic Fallacies (application)
Class Three: Formal Non-Linguistic Fallacies and Material Non-Linguistic Fallacies (theory)
Class Four: Formal Non-Linguistic Fallacies and Material Non-Linguistic Fallacies (application)
Class Five: Logical Paradoxes (examples)
Class Six: Logical Paradoxes (resolutions and implications)

The "theory" classes would be devoted to laying out what fallacies there are and why they are fallacies; the "application" classes would consist of going over lots of examples, and asking students to classify the fallacies on the basis of distinctions already made.

Homework: There is no written homework for this course. However, there is assigned reading.

Course materials: The text is provided free of charge by Dr. Rioux.

High school credit: This course is worth 1/2 semester credit. Dr. Gotcher's course Introduction to Logic (also recorded) is the perfect companion to this course and the two together would make up a full semester credit.

Professor's biography: Dr. Rioux is a professor and chair of the philosophy department at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas, where he has taught for twenty-three years. A graduate of Thomas Aquinas College, he completed his graduate work in philosophy at the Center for Thomistic Studies in Houston, earning the M.A. in 1984 and the Ph.D. in 1990. Specializing in the thought of Aristotle and St. Thomas Aquinas, Dr. Rioux has published textbooks in logic and natural philosophy, as well as articles on the philosophy of mathematics in the Thomist and the Aquinas Review. He came to Benedictine with a love for the study of primary texts, as well as a keen interest in what computers might bring to that study. His contributions to the philosophical life of Benedictine College range from Great Books Sequences in philosophy and theology to 3D software for students of logic. He and his wife, Maria, raise their nine children in a farmhouse in rural Kansas. They have been designing their own curricula and educating their children at home for over twenty years.

Course Access:
Available 24/7 for as long as you are a subscriber so you may learn at your own pace on your own time.

Meet and Greet the Professor: Philosophy 101

Frances Chesterton and Homeschooling

NOTE: The live webinar went fantastic. If you missed it, you may watch the recording of the event here: Francis Chesterton and Homeschooling.

Frances Chesterton: What the wife of G. K. Chesterton can teach us about Home Education
(click on title to register)

Date: Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Starting time: 8:00 pm, Eastern Standard Time (7:00 pm, Central)
Duration: 1 hour
Presenter: Nancy Brown

Description:
Frances Chesterton, wife of noted British author Gilbert Keith Chesterton, was very interested in the education of children, and was a published author on the subject.

In this talk, we'll discuss the life of Frances Chesterton, her interest in the education of children, and find out what she has to teach us about the home education of our own children, as well as about being wives and makers of hearth and home.

Presenter's biography:
Nancy Carpentier Brown is the blogmistress, podcaster, Facebook and Twitter commander for the American Chesterton Society, as well as a columnist for their publication Gilbert Magazine. She is on the editorial board of mater et magistra. Brown is the adapter of The Father Brown Reader: Stories from Chesterton, as well as the upcoming Father Brown Reader 2: More Stories from Chesterton. In August, 2010, she gave a talk at the 29th annual conference of the American Chesterton Society at Mount St. Mary's in Emmitsburg, MD titled "Frances: The Woman Who Was Chesterton."

Introduction to Philosophy for Catholic Homeschoolers

Update:This live course has concluded and is currently as a recorded course through our Subscription Service. This is a great way to learn at your own pace when your schedule allows.To subscribe or learn more: Adult and High School Online Classes

Philosophy 101: Meet and Greet the Professor
(click to watch a free webinar with Dr. Rioux introducing you to this course)

Dr. Rioux originally taught this course for Homeschool Connections in the Fall of 2009. We received many complimentary emails from parents and students, as he is an excellent teacher and knows how to get his students to open up and contribute in class.

Dr. Rioux is the chair of the philosophy department at Benedictine College as well as a homeschool father. He has a deep enthusiasm for philosophy and a real dedication to his students.

I am so glad to be able to offer this course once again ...

Philosophy: What Do Philosophers Do and How Do They Do It? with Jean Rioux, Ph.D.

(click on title to register)

Class dates: Thursdays, March 17 to May 12, 2011 (no class on Holy Thursday)
Total classes: 8
Starting time: 3:00 pm, Eastern Daylight Time (2 pm, Central)
Duration: 1 hour 15 minutes
Professor: Jean Rioux, Ph.D.
Prerequisite: None
Suggested grade level: 9th to 12th
High school credit: 2/3 semester
Fee: $160 for the entire 8-week course. Early Registration Discount of $20 off before November 1, 2010.

Course description: Aristotle famously said, "all men by nature desire to know". For over 2600 years philosophers have grappled with life's profound questions. Seeking answers, they left their conclusions behind, along with the arguments supporting them. In this course we will be studying some of the better-known philosophical arguments in light of the issues they have addressed. From the allegory of the cave to the 5 ways of St. Thomas Aquinas to Pascal's wager, these arguments can serve as a brief introduction to the life and work of philosophers to anyone who would like to discover more about the "examined life".

Course outline:
Class 1: Plato's "allegory of the cave"; The Republic
Class 2: Aristotle on happiness and moral virtue; Nicomachean Ethics
Class 3: St. Augustine on choosing evil; The Confessions
Class 4: St. Anselm of Canterbury's and René Descartes' "ontological" arguments; The Proslogion and the Meditations
Class 5: René Descartes on how I may know of my own existence; The Meditations
Class 6: Blaise Pascal on the "wager" argument; The Pensées
Class 7: St. Thomas Aquinas on the possibility of proving God's existence; The Summa Theologiae
Class 8: St. Thomas Aquinas' "five ways", from the Summa Theologiae

Course materials: Provided at no additional charge in the form of a pdf file. References to the readings made during the course will be to this version. Students are expected to read the short selections (2 pages avg.) carefully before each session.

Homework: Apart from the reading for an upcoming session, students are expected to respond to a few questions from the previous one. The questions will be made available following each session, and responses will be due before the start of the next session (or within the week following the final session). Homework will be graded by Dr. Rioux.

Professor's piography:
Dr. Rioux is a professor and chair of the philosophy department at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas, where he has taught for twenty-five years. A graduate of Thomas Aquinas College, he completed his graduate work in philosophy at the Center for Thomistic Studies in Houston, earning the M.A. in 1984 and the Ph.D. in 1990. Specializing in the thought of Aristotle and St. Thomas Aquinas, Dr. Rioux has published textbooks in logic and natural philosophy, as well as articles on the philosophy of mathematics in the Thomist and the Aquinas Review. He came to Benedictine with a love for the study of primary texts, as well as a keen interest in what computers might bring to that study. His contributions to the philosophical life of Benedictine College range from Great Books Sequences in philosophy and theology to 3D software for students of logic. He and his wife, Maria, raise their nine children in a farmhouse in rural Kansas. They have been designing their own curricula and educating their children at home for over twenty years.

Equipment requirements:
Students are required to have high-speed internet and a headset with microphone.

Misc:
Dr. Rioux will be available via email in between classes for questions and comments.
Recordings of classes are provided to students within 24 hours and available for 6 months.
Homeschool Connections does not provide record keeping services.

Philosophy: What Do Philosophers Do and How Do They Do It? with Jean Rioux, Ph.D.

(click on title to register)

Please join us as Dr. Rioux takes us on a philosophical journey. Our professor has a special gift of bringing understanding and excitement to what some would say is too lofty a topic. Dr. Rioux's course will make you laugh and smile as well as help you really appreciate Plato, Augustine, and so many others. Enjoy and learn!