CURRICULUM

Religion and the Humanities 

Becoming Catholic does not mean leaving off thinking. It means learning how to think. GKC

A convinced Catholic is easily the most logical person walking about the world today. GKC

Those who know the Catholic practice find it not only right, but always right when everything else is wrong. GKC

The Catholic Church has endured for two thousand years; and the world within the Church has been more lucid, more level-headed, more reasonable in its hopes, more healthy in its instincts, more humorous and cheerful in the face of fate and death, than all the world outside. GKC

The Faith gives a man back his body and his soul and his reason and his will and his very life. GKC

The most important thing that will be taught at Chesterton Academy is the Catholic faith; all other truths are connected to this central truth, all other ideas are relevant to it. As Chesterton says, "There is only one subject." Thus, while we will develop the distinct disciplines of theology and philosophy and history and literature, we will not emphasize them as separate subjects; they will be used together to teach the story of salvation.

There are three main reasons why people cannot defend their faith. First, they lack a knowledge of things in general. Chesterton says that defending the faith means being able to talk about anything and everything. Secondly, they lack a specific knowledge of the faith itself - its doctrines and precepts and history. Thirdly, they lack a practical knowledge of how to apply the faith to their lives and in society. At Chesterton Academy we intend to emphasize living the faith as well as learning it. Thus, we will move from the theoretical to the practical as we first study philosophy and then consider economics and the social sciences.

Theology

The word theological includes the word logical. GKC

Take away the supernatural and what remains is the unnatural. GKC

There was never anything so perilous or so exciting as orthodoxy. GKC

Theology, "the study of God," is the context by which all other texts are studied. The principal theological texts studied will be the Bible and the Catechism of the Catholic Church. We will also read selections from the Church Fathers, Documents of the Church Councils, and Papal Encyclicals.

Philosophy

It is the only true object of existence to mean something. GKC

Thinking means connecting things, and stops if they cannot be connected. GKC

People will tell you that theories don't matter and that logic and philosophy aren't practical. Don't you believe them. Reason is from God, and when things are unreasonable there is something the matter. GKC

Simple secularists still talk as if the Church had introduced a sort of schism between reason and religion. The truth is that the Church was actually the first thing that ever tried to combine reason and religion. There had never before been any such union of the priests and the philosophers. GKC

Philosophy, "the love of wisdom," exercises the brain while it elevates the soul. The ability to understand abstract concepts leads to clear and systematic thinking in all things. We will use philosophy to connect the humanities, but also to show its obvious connection to logic and mathematics.

We will study the development of philosophy from its classical roots through its dramatic encounter with the early Church, its christening by St. Thomas Aquinas, and its deterioration in the modern era.

History

History is a hill... from which men see the town in which they live or the age in which they are living. GKC

About half the history now taught in schools and colleges is made windy and barren by the narrow notion of leaving out the theological theories. . . Historians seem to have completely forgotten two facts - first, that men act from ideas; and second, that it might, therefore, be as well to discover which ideas. GKC

There is no intelligible history without a religion. GKC

Nobody will ever write a History of Europe that will make any sort of sense, until he does justice to the Councils of the Church, those vast and yet subtle collaborations for thrashing out a thousand thoughts to find the true thought of the Church. The great religious councils are far more practical and important than the great international treaties, which are generally made the pivotal dates of history. Our everyday affairs at this moment are far more affected by Nicaea and Ephesus and Basle and Trent than they are by Utrecht or Amiens or Vienna or Versailles. GKC

History is every bit as controversial as theology. GKC

Freshman year will cover ancient history, from the Egyptian through the Greek and Roman civilizations. We will see the background against which the Old Testament was written and classical philosophy was developed. Sophomore year will cover early Church history through the High Middle Ages, which is probably one of the most important periods in world history and yet most neglected in other schools. During the High Middle Ages Europe was completely Catholic, and the Church was building Gothic Cathedrals. There was a unity of art, philosophy, and religion. Everything since then has been a decline and a fragmentation in thought and culture. Junior year will cover the Reformation and the Counter-Reformation. The renaissance in art and literature was accompanied by the rise of the Church Militant.

Senior year will cover the Modern "Revolutionary" Era: the American and French Revolutions, the Industrial Revolution, the Communist Revolution, and the Sexual Revolution (which led to the acceptance of contraception and abortion). The Catholic Church lost its temporal power but developed its religious and moral authority on a universal scale.

Literature

Every great literature has always been allegorical - allegorical of some view of the universe. The Iliad is only great because all life is a battle, The Odyssey because all life is a journey, The Book of Job because all life is a riddle. GKC

The aim of good prose words is to mean what they say. The aim of good poetical words is to mean what they do not say. GKC

Every healthy person at some period must feed on fiction as well as fact; because fact is a thing which the world gives to him, whereas fiction is a thing which he gives to the world. GKC

Literature is ... that rare sort of fiction which rises to a certain standard of objective beauty and truth. GKC

The highest outcome of an interest in literature is a finer interest in life. GKC

Our study of literature will be tied to our study of history and the rest of the humanities. During Freshman year, students will be introduced to the classic epics of Homer and Virgil. As Sophomores, they will be exposed to early English classics such as the Canterbury Tales, as well as modern literary renderings of medieval history. During the Junior year, students will get healthy servings of Shakespeare. As seniors, they will read American literature, Dickens, Dostoyevsky and Hugo. And Chesterton.

Reading and writing go together, of course, and in addition to developing an ear for poetry and narrative, students will learn to master the art of the essay in their written assignments in all subjects.

Economics and Social Sciences

A philosophy begins with Being; with the end and value of a living thing; and it is manifest that materialism that only considers economic ethics cannot cover the question at all. If the problem of happiness were solved by economic comfort, the classes who are now comfortable would be happy, which is absurd. GKC

It is a fundamental point of view, a philosophy or religion which is needed, and not any change in habit or social routine. The things we need most for immediate practical purposes are all abstractions. We need a right view of the human lot, a right view of the human society. GKC

The study of economics provides perhaps the best example of the problems caused by the fragmentation in modern thought. Economics is not an autonomous, isolated science, but is a derivative of the religious concepts of the culture within which it operates. When a society's economic principles are divorced from Christian principles, it is certain to have a detrimental effect on the culture. During the senior year, key texts will be read in conjunction with the study of modern history and in the light of Church teaching.

HUMAN LETTERS CURRICULUM

Freshman Year

Theology

Philosophy

History

Literature

Cornerstone

Sophomore Year

Theology

Philosophy

History

Literature

Junior Year

Theology

Philosophy/Theology

History

Literature

 

Senior Year

History

Literature

Economics/Social Sciences

Capstone

The Arts (Music, Art, Drama)

Art is born when the temporal touches the eternal. GKC

Even if art and poetry have no use, it does not follow that they have no value. GKC

The Arts exist to show forth the glory of God. GKC

"Great art can bring us to our knees. It can evoke powerful emotions, usually moving beyond words. It can also envelope us in a sense of serenity and peace, which is why it can be an aid to contemplation and meditation. Great art is not a spectator sport. It makes you want to change your life." (Dale Ahlquist)

We are all made in the image of God, and as such God has blessed us with a creative capability that mirrors His. In fact the arts can be described as being a mirror to creation.Chesterton's observation that "Art is born when the temporal touches the eternal" implies that the Arts have a sacramental quality to them. What we form with our earthly implements can have eternal repercussions. Good Art can touch the soul deeply and forever.

Unfortunately in today's culture we often hire others to do our creating and our entertaining. We have become passive observers instead of active participants in our own entertainment. Young people are naturally creative but often lack the tools to express that creativity. If they are not given tangible means with which to pour out their thoughts, be it with words or on a canvas or with music, instead of becoming creators themselves they become mere spectators. This not only leaves them at the mercy of the ideas of others, but also with the feeling that they are not making a positive contribution to the culture. They become "receivers" instead of "givers". In essence, their inner voice is never heard, and because of this they are often very frustrated.

A complete education must include the development of the child's creative nature and must provide him with the tools and the technique with which to express his ideas, his feelings and his love. It must also include the analytical skills with which to judge a work of art and therefore must provide the continuous exposure to great art. Most importantly, the mechanical skills and the aesthetic aptitude must be put into the proper context of eternal Truth. A good artist is a complete thinker and vice versa. Chesterton says that in order to be a good artist, one must be a good philosopher: "A man cannot have the energy to produce good art without having the energy to wish to pass beyond it. A small artist is content with art; a great artist is content with nothing except everything."

The influence of the arts in today's society cannot be overstated. This is why all the arts will be mandatory all four years and equal weight will be given to them in the curriculum.

Art History

Art is the Signature of Man. GKC

Any beautiful picture is deep; in the sense that anything beautiful always means more than it says. GKC

Art History will be studied with the idea that all great art, in one way or another, glorifies God and celebrates some aspect of His creation. At its best Art serves the Truth in a beautiful and indescribable way, and at its worst it is usually a cry of despair and often serves the devil. With this in mind we will have a reference point with which to analyze and judge all forms of visual arts. Students will therefore concentrate their studies on the artists that have achieved this most successfully and will be encouraged to emulate them in their own work in the Studio Art program.

Because Art is almost always inextricably tied to the philosophy of the time, it will be a unique avenue with which to understand the culture and the people who influence it.

While learning the elements of art and the terminology required for the appreciation and the criticism of art, the students will also learn how to put those elements into practice in the Studio Art class. The idea is that everyone is creative but in order to put that creativity onto the canvas one must first master the vocabulary of the great artist. Therefore, at first, Studio Art will be less about creating and more about copying - much like the old idea of the "apprentice". With this in mind we will strive to provide the students with the best "teachers" from the history of art, and great emphasis will be placed on studying the technique and artistry of the great masters. We will study masterpieces from the early Renaissance to the era of Classical Realism. Abstract modern art will only be covered to show that, when men abandon God, all talent abandons them.

Art History will correlate closely with the Music Curriculum (and the Humanities Curriculum). It will cover drawing, painting, architecture, sculpture, pottery and jewelry and some study of fashion.

Freshman Year

Sophomore Year

Junior Year

Senior Year

Studio Art

Art like morality consists of drawing the line somewhere. GKC

Balance is the definition of perfection. GKC

Freshman Year

The main focus in the Freshman Studio Art class will be on developing hand-eye coordination and in developing an "artistic eye" - in other words, learning how to see things. We will begin with calligraphy and progress to simple two-dimensional line drawing with emphasis on exact reproduction - learning about spatial relations and shapes.The student will also be exposed to the basic rules of sketching, design and perspective and will have the chance to study and reproduce simple architectural drawings. Students will then be introduced to basic black-and-white pencil and charcoal shading. This will develop their technique for three-dimensional representation. Students will spend the rest of the year sketching and copying black-and-white drawings and photographs - again, with emphasis on exact reproduction.

Sophomore Year

Black-and-white drawings will continue with simple portrait drawings. Black-and-white chalk and pastels will be also introduced. However, the main emphasis during sophomore year will be the introduction of color . Students will begin with colored pencils in the three primary colors, and only after showing a good understanding of how to manipulate these will they move to other colors. They will then copy simple still-life and then move to more demanding subjects like flowers and portraits. They will also be introduced to color pastels as well.

Junior Year

After the students are comfortable with pencils, pastels and other non-fluid media, we will introduce water colors. With this medium they will copy landscapes, seascapes, and more still-life. At this point the students will also be provided with the opportunity to do sculpture, although they may choose to continue with two-dimensional painting. Towards the latter half of the year the students will be introduced to black-and-white oil painting where they will copy white sculptures onto canvas.

Senior Year

Oil will continue with the introduction of color and the students will be required to copy at least one major oil painting by a great master and paint at least one original work of their own choice. Senior year is the year for the development of the students' own style - or shall we say their own signature.

There will be a yearly art show where all the students will be invited to exhibit their best work.

Drama and Speech

We are not entitled to despair of explaining the truth; nor is it really so horribly difficult to explain. The real difficulty is...that we ourselves are not always clear, even in our own minds, far less in our public expositions. GKC

Being able to express our ideas clearly and succinctly is an absolute necessity in an age that thinks in sound-bites. Every event in our lives is an opportunity for evangelization. In addition to learning the Truth that we must convey, we must learn how to convey it.

The dramatic arts are extremely powerful in our present culture where movies and the media are often the primary source of knowledge and ideas for many young people. It is therefore imperative that students learn as much as possible about this potent art form. In addition, the skills learned in a drama program will benefit the students in many ways throughout their careers and their social life.

Classical drama arose from religious rituals and modern drama has its origins in the staging of the first Christmas play by St. Francis of Assisi. It was the separation of the arts from religion that brought about meaningless art. Great emotion has been spilled upon the ground and down the drain because it is no longer directed to its proper use. Chesterton says that theater is above all else, a festival. It is an event that captures and moves the audience in a significant way.

In studying how words are brought to life, we will consider classical drama and a healthy helping of the greatest playwright in the English language: Shakespeare. In addition to giving students the opportunity to perform, we will also develop their skills at public speaking and debate. This will include oral presentation and defense of papers written for other classes. The goal of both theatre and speech is to connect to the audience.

Freshman Year

Drama will begin with simply learning how to read effectively and then move to basic memorization skills as well as the fundamentals of public speaking (poise, elocution, voice projection, inflection etc.) The students will work on the recitation of poetry and short speeches. These skills will ease the student into learning to stand up in front of a crowd, to be the primary focus of attention, and to convey his message clearly.

We will then introduce basic acting skills, the portrayal of different character-types and emotions, body language and movement, voice variation, etc. The students will also do some improvisation and social dancing. At the end of their Freshman year students will perform short, simple scenes for the school and the parents.

Sophomore Year

More emphasis on character portrayal with special emphasis on character development. The students will practice longer, more complicated and more dramatic scenes and soliloquies. Continuing work on speech and debate, with an emphasis on persuasion and argumentation. At the end of their sophomore year, students will stage some formal debates.

Junior Year

Students will study more difficult plays and more difficult roles. At the end of the year an entire play will be staged in a complete and significant production.

Senior Year

This year students will be asked to adapt a scene from a novel or to write an original play so as to better understand the playwright's writing process. They will also have the opportunity to perform an entire Shakespeare play.

Music

Music is mere beauty; it is beauty in the abstract, beauty in solution. It is a shapeless and liquid element of beauty, in which a man may really float, not indeed affirming the truth, but not denying it. GKC

Life exists for the love of music or beautiful things. GKC

Music appeals to the ear and the mind, the emotions and the intellect, the senses and the spirit. The Church has always considered music as an essential component of meditation and worship. It touches a "chord" and fills a need that is beyond what sight and words can achieve alone. In fact, few could deny that music is the most direct path to touching the soul. The power of music with our young people today is undeniable, and it is imperative that they should learn to recognize the difference between music that glorifies God, elevating the soul, and music that seeks to alienate us from Him.Because music is so abstract it is often difficult to make these judgments and the study of music is probably one of the most complex disciplines the students will experience. It will involve not only the learning of music fundamentals (theory, performance, ear training, music analysis and appreciation) but also Music History, where we will look at music in the context of the times and philosophy of the period in which it was created. This will be especially interesting as we study the role of music throughout Church History and specifically its role in the Catholic Mass. During the Freshman year, the emphasis will be on basic musical terms and skills. Music History will begin in earnest during the Sophomore year in conjunction with the Humanities curriculum.

The best way to learn music, of course, is to perform it. We will try to give the students many opportunities to perform, and every year there will be a Christmas program and a Spring Fine Arts Event in conjunction with the Studio art show.

Freshman Year

Sophomore Year

Junior Year

Senior Year

 

Mathematics and Science

You cannot evade the issue of God; whether you talk about pigs or the binomial theory, you are still talking about Him. GKC

There is a common idea that mathematics is a dull subject, whereas the testimony of all those have any dealings with it shows that it is one of the most thrilling and tantalizing and enchanting subjects in the world. GKC

Mathematics is the art of measuring. Science is applying the art of measurement to God's creation. The purpose of studying math is to learn to think in an orderly and logical fashion. Logic is an important tool with which to defend the Truth. And solving a puzzle is a joy.

We seek to develop the student's mathematical skills and comprehension, setting them in their proper place in the cultivation of the intellect. Through the orderly revelation of the truths of mathematics, truths which often transcend the visible, one is trained to grasp the order in the truth of other disciplines. Though math may be studied for its own advancement, it is a servant-discipline, like English: it is required to assist other disciplines. Not only is math essential for most branches of science, it serves the various liberal arts as well, such as philosophy (by logic) art (by perspective) and music (by pitch and rhythm). While one does not learn moral rules from math, one can hardly know how to be a generous giver if one cannot balance a checkbook.

Freshman Year

Introduction and Overview of Mathematics

Review of Algebra (which we will assume has been taught in 7th and 8th Grades)

Discrete Math & Number Theory

Sophomore Year

Geometry

Junior Year

Trigonometry

Advanced Algebra

Senior Year

Calculus

Science

Science must not impose any philosophy, any more than the telephone must tell us what to say. GKC

Science finds its facts in Nature, but Science is not Nature; because Science has coordinated ideas, interpretations and analyses; and can say of Nature what Nature cannot say for itself. The Faith finds its facts and problems in humanity...but the Faith is not merely humanity; because it brings to it principles of life an order and understanding, and comprehends humanity as humanity cannot comprehend itself. GKC

...there are only two things that really progress; and they both accept accumulations of authority. They may be progressing uphill or down; they may be growing steadily better or steadily worse; but they have steadily increased in certain definable matters; they have steadily advanced in a certain definable direction; they are the only two things, it seems, that ever can progress. The first is strictly physical science. The second is the Catholic Church. GKC

Science is the orderly arrangement of the evidence of the senses - it seeks to acquire truth from the real world we live in. Truth, whether revealed directly by God or indirectly in His creation, can never be in conflict. From this stable foundation, we are able to speak accurately about the real world: animals and plants, rocks and rivers, stars and atoms, are described, quantified, and put into order, for it is the fundamental axiom of science that "God has ordered all things in measure, and number, and weight." [Wisdom 11:21] Science by itself would be just as incomplete as each other discipline. The orderly arrangement of scientific knowledge suggests parallel arrangements useful in other fields, even to those which deal with human inventions (history, literature) or with abstract and supernatural realities (philosophy, theology). In addition, one cannot use a road map to play a concerto; the Ten Commandments cannot explain how to cook an egg. Yet one must know what science is and can do, in order not to misapply its powers.

None of these subjects can be approached without a sense of wonder. It is fitting, therefore, to begin by looking up at the heavens, at the lights in the sky: Astronomy. Then we will take a look at the world God created (Geology), the creatures he created (Biology), and the intricate substances of which all things are made (Chemistry). We will come full circle in the "luminous mysteries" by studying Physics, which includes looking at the nature of light itself. As Chesterton says, "All depends on what is the philosophy of light."

Freshman Year

Introduction and Overview of the Sciences

Astronomy

Geology

Sophomore Year

Biology

Junior Year

Chemistry

Senior Year

Physics

 

Foreign Language

When we...translate things into English, they often only serve as a luminous argument for leaving them in Latin. Latin is Latin, and always says exactly what it means. GKC

We are struggling and entangled in a fallen language, like men in the folds of a fallen tent. GKC

Learning a foreign language is not only an essential part of a well-rounded education but is also a wonderful tool to learn how to listen, understand and relate to other cultures. Ironically, it is also the best way to learn one's own language. An added benefit is that the study of music and of language are mutually enriching, as the exercise of careful listening are required in both.

The study of a foreign language will be required of all students all four years.

The students will be able to choose either one year of Latin and three years of Spanish or four years of Latin. Because students may have already studied a foreign language before they arrive at the school we will try, as much as possible, to place them in the correct level right from the start regardless of their grade.

Our teaching method will use a balanced approach, with equal weight being given to grammar, vocabulary, listening (homework may involve listening to CD's), speaking (using correct grammar and pronunciation), and comprehension. The study of the particular culture, and the geography and history of the country where the language is spoken will be covered only incidentally as we study the language and will not be topics in which the students will be tested.

The goal for every student at the end of their study of their foreign language is for the student to be confident in basic conversation on any basic subject and to be able to translate and comprehend any passage from a classic work. During their Senior year the more advanced Spanish students will perform scenes from a play in Spanish. Latin students will recite passages from a major work in Latin or from the Vulgate. (In Latin we will use the ecclesiastical rather than the classical pronunciation)