All Courses
Senior Course (14 yrs and up), $195, 14 week course – Prerequisite: One Intermediate Level Course
In the Rhetoric, Aristotle states that, “It is absurd to hold that a man should be ashamed of an inability to defend himself with his limbs, but not ashamed of an inability to defend himself with speech and reason; for the use of rational speech is more distinctive of a human being than the use of his limbs.” There is no doubt that Rhetoric has been used in the World’s greatest speeches in order to persuade man to fight and believe in a cause. This class will explore many of the world’s greatest speeches and judge them through the light of Aristotle’s Rhetoric and through their own merits. What makes a speech great, even once the time for action has passed? How does one know when Rhetoric is being used for a good cause?
Intermediate Course (13 yrs and up), $195, 14 week course – No Prerequisite
You may know the stories, yes, but do you know the action-packed progression of Biblical events? Have you any idea who the Philistines really were, or why the Israelites were so afraid of the Assyrians? Beginning with the events in the Garden of Eden students will witness the growth of the Hebrew people as a people cultivated and led by God, with its own heroes and heroines, carving out a place in a land sought after - and fought over - by the entire Ancient world. To better understand the backdrop of Biblical events students will gain an appreciation of the ever changing civilizations of the Fertile Crescent, Egypt, and the Mediterranean.
Senior Course (14 yrs and up), $195, 14 week course – No Prerequisite
(Extra Evaluation Version available - see below)
From the first sparks of Ancient Greece’s splendour to the wonders of the Renaissance, Western culture is a perfect banquet of ideas to engage the mind. Dreams and empires rise and tumble in the centuries’ story of our civilization’s development before the modern era. Students engage with some of the greatest champions and villains the world has known by studying the history of the West, and will increase their understanding of their heritage.
Intermediate Course (13 yrs and up), $195, 14 week course – No Prerequisite
The primary purpose of this course is to give the students a realistic, factual outline of the history of the Second World War, with a particular focus on the series of grand political, moral and strategic decisions made by the major actors. Of particular interest will be series of assumptions and miscalculations leading up to the war, the loss of nerve demonstrated at critical moments by the aggressor nations (Dunkirk, Battle of Britain, Moscow, Leyte Gulf, etc.), the occasionally quixotic risks taken by the initially defensive allies (Greece, the North Atlantic, Coral Sea, Arnhem, etc.), and the colliding intentions of the different allies for the post-war world. Students will be encouraged to construct a series of time-lines of the years 1939-45 for each continental theatre.
Students should be prepared to read an average of 50 pages per week.
Senior Course (14 yrs and up), $195, 14 week course – No Prerequisite
Crowning the world's north shone a vast land, where adventures were not the stuff of stories, but true. This was the land where bold voyageurs battled the elements, former pirates gave up their ways to seek the fabled Northwest Passage, and ancient peoples' legends twined through time to its beginning. This was the land where Black Robes shed their blood to bring faith, where a girl of fourteen commanded a fort garrison, and a curtain of snow allowed a militia of thirty to overcome an army of hundreds. This was the land of romance, daring, secrets, and the quest to triumph over the odds. This was Canada.
Senior Course (14 yrs and up), $195, 14 week course – No Prerequisite
Tacitus said it was “worth a conquest;” Chamberlain called it “the darkest land;” Shakespeare named it a “precious stone set in the silver sea.” Who would have thought a small northern island would be the scene of the one of the most dramatic tales in history - one that would span empires and ages? Students will embark on a journey through the wars, loves, and adventures of England’s history, and Socratically challenge the concepts that wove its rich tapestry. The course will begin with the first century before Christ, when Rome famously “turned its gaze upon Britain,” and continue through to the sweeping changes of the Victorian empire.
Senior Course (14 yrs and up), $195, 14 week course – No Prerequisite
No era has been so darkened and mythologized in the modern eye as the Medieval Age. Shatter the misconceptions about this daring and adventurous epoch by diving into eyewitness accounts to history and rock-solid scholarship! Use Socratic discussion to explore history's most sweeping saga of dauntless martyrs, brilliant scientists and scholars, scheming overlords, and ordinary men and women living through extraordinary times. From the perilous days when barbarian hordes sacked Europe to the age of explorers pushing open the world's boundaries, this course will form students in critical thinking, discussion skills, and knowledge of history.
Beginner Course (10 yrs and up*), $335, 14 week course/class twice weekly - No Prerequisite
*Requirements: Similar to our Parent/Child course parameters, students ages 10 -11 must be accompanied by a parent for the first class in each week. The second class in each week may be taken independently by the student if the parent believes they are capable of responsible class participation. We reserve the right to request that parents accompany any student (regardless of age) in class if the need is perceived.
This course is intended to be either an early start to grammar principles for younger students or a slower-paced approach for older students who would benefit from grammar basics. Younger students will take this course alongside their parents who can support and reinforce the ideas learned during class time. Older students (12+) may take this course independently if capable, but parents are always very welcome to come alongside their student in the course and might be encouraged if the need is perceived.
The course covers basic understanding of grammar as a stepping stone to a more challenging grammar course (such as Foundational Grammar). Each week, students will learn a new part of speech that builds on the material presented in previous weeks. The course will follow a 2 day/wk model: Class 1 will cover the new grammar focus of the week and assign preliminary homework; Class 2 will be a reinforcement class where students will workshop Class 1 ideas with in-class activities and diagramming. Both classes are essential to course mastery, and students are expected to attend all classes. Weekly homework will include grammar chants and a grammar worksheet as well as encouraged activities.
Since this course follows a bi-weekly class model, there will be no individual tutorials. We recommend that students take this course in preparation for our faster-paced Foundational Grammar course.
Intermediate Course (12 yrs and up), $335, 14 week course (includes private tutorial time) – No Prerequisite
This course covers basic grammatical knowledge, with the final end of helping students to write well and avoid improper sentence structure - namely, fragments, run-on sentences, and poor punctuation. Each week, students will learn about a new grammatical concept (parts of speech, mechanics, and usage), always referring back to the previous lessons so that there is a synthesis of all the material.
To ensure that each student understands the course as it progresses, student and tutor will meet privately once a week to review assignments together and clear up any questions the student might have. Each week there is a reading element, a new grammar concept, and a series of exercises and sentence writing components to solidify understanding. A large part of absorbing and understanding grammatical concepts comes from seeing those concepts in action, through reading good literature, and then executing them in one's own writing. Students will read Grammar-Land by M.L. Nesbitt and other pertinent excerpts from literature.
Intermediate Course (12 yrs and up), $335, 14 week course (includes private tutorial time) – Prerequisite: Advanced Grammar Placement Assessment (supplied by the program manager)
[Upon registration, the program manager will send you the placement assessment for completion. If the student struggles with a significant portion of these concepts, we will advise taking Foundational Grammar first or completing additional grammar study in their home program.]
This course is a bridge between Foundational Grammar and Intro to High School Writing, for students who are familiar with grammar basics but not quite ready for high school essays. It focuses on the more complex rules of grammar, covering clauses, phrases, and sentence structure and includes an introduction to the world of paragraph writing. Students will develop strong writing basics that will help them when they enter the high school stage of composition. This course does build upon the concepts of WISDOM's Foundational Grammar course, but it is not essential that Foundational Grammar is taken first if students already have a sufficient grasp of the basic parts of speech and their usage.