Hope Lutheran School

Why a Classical Education?

The first Lutheran schools were formed for the precise purpose of offering a classical Christian education to a broader segment of the population than had ever been offered before that time. A good education transforms, elevates, and refines the mind and the soul. Martin Luther and the early reformers urged the local governments to set up schools patterned after the ancient academies of the Greeks and Romans teaching the seven liberal arts of grammar, dialectic (logic), rhetoric, aesthetics (music), empirics (astronomy), mathematics, and geometry. These classical arts of learning were the standard with the focus on what is good, true, and beautiful. This classical approach became the model for the famous German “gymnasium” and the English “public schools” that set the standard for excellence in education well into the twentieth century.

But this rich heritage and tradition of classical Lutheran education has not been lost. Hope Lutheran School, along with a handful of Lutheran schools across the country, works to employ the best materials that have been tested over time and using methods proven to produce consistent, excellent results. The goal is excellence in a Christ-centered education. We are distinctive because we have adopted this high quality standard of using proven methods and materials and deliver it in the hands of kind, caring Lutheran teachers to build a love of learning in our students. Learning is work; it can be hard work and it also can be an enjoyable, rich venture. We take time to celebrate the successes the students achieve and enjoy time with the good friends we work, play and pray with daily.

What are the Liberal Arts?

 
The seven liberal arts are: grammar, dialectic (logic), rhetoric, aesthetics (music), empirics (astronomy), mathematics, and geometry. The first three make up what is known as the trivium, literally “the three-fold way.” The remaining four make up the quadrivium (“four-fold way”). This is a natural division to make between them because the first three all emphasize the study of language and thinking. The remaining four relate to the sciences and mathematics.

This was the historic course of study for any educated student from ages 7 to 21. Upon completion, the student was ready for a more specialized graduate study. Today, all of the liberal arts have a place in a K through 12 education, but the trivium is central for a school that teaches classically. Grammar, logic, and rhetoric are not simply subjects as we use that term today to describe history, literature, or science. They describe a systematic approach to learning with the goals of wisdom and eloquence.

What is the Curriculum at Hope Lutheran School?

 
While we offer Latin as an elective, we strongly encourage our 5-8th graders to take this course. A student with a thorough training in Latin grammar is equipped to master English and learn any foreign language, especially those derived from Latin, such as Spanish and French. However, the study of Latin offers students more than language skills. Latin also forms the mind, teaching exactness in observation, judgment, and expression.  Every lesson in Latin is a lesson in grammar and logic.  These skills are essential to the fast pace of our technological and ever-changing society and cultivate agile and creative minds.

We use many materials, often searching for current or authentic sources in subjects, especially in history and science. Our literature classes read a wide variety of stories to study the different genres. Thankfully, the library has recently been gifted with many new books. Some of the course textbooks you will find in use at Hope Lutheran School include:

• Saxon Math
• Houghton Mifflin Reading
• Prentice Hall  Prealgebra & Algebra
• Shurley Grammar
• Spalding Writing Road to Reading
• McGraw Hill Science
• Scott Foresman History
• Cambridge Latin
• Classical Legacy Press Logic