Classical Education with
Open Education

The number of classical schools has doubled in the past decade. Homeschoolers have been at the forefront of this revival, mixing Great Books seminars from online academies, Latin co-ops meeting in church basements, and logic curricula at kitchen tables.

Families are choosing trivium over testing, virtue over vocational prep, the Great Tradition over the latest trends.

But accessing quality classical education has often meant an impossible choice: expensive private schools or going it alone with limited resources and no community.

OpenEd changes this equation. Through partnerships with innovative schools, we make classical education accessible—whether you want systematic Latin through Virgil, logic beginning in middle school, and Great Books as your centerpiece, OR you want to blend classical literature with other approaches as your child's needs evolve.

What is Classical Education?

Classical education revives the time-tested methods that formed Western civilization's greatest thinkers for over two millennia. Rather than treating knowledge as isolated facts to memorize for tests, it develops the tools of learning itself—training minds to think clearly, learn independently, and express themselves persuasively.

At its heart, classical education emphasizes:

Language as Foundation — Latin and Greek aren't decorative but keys unlocking the Western intellectual tradition. When students read Virgil's Aeneid in the original, they're engaging directly with texts that have formed minds for millennia.

The Trivium's Developmental Wisdom — Young children (5-12) absorb eagerly, memorizing and building foundational knowledge (Grammar stage). Middle schoolers (12-14) become argumentative, ready for formal reasoning (Logic stage). Teenagers (15-18) synthesize into original expression (Rhetoric stage). Classical education works with developmental realities rather than against them.

Integration Over Fragmentation — History becomes the spine around which everything wraps. Studying ancient Greece means reading Homer's epics, tracing democracy's development, examining Aristotelian logic, exploring Pythagorean mathematics. The student sees how knowledge coheres.

Virtue Formation — Classical education explicitly aims to form character through exposure to noble examples. Students encounter virtue and vice in Homer, courage and cowardice in Plutarch, wisdom and folly in Shakespeare.

Historical evidence validates this approach: In 19th-century Germany, students from humanistic schools emphasizing Latin, Greek, and literature consistently outperformed science-focused Realschule students at universities—even in sciences they'd never studied. Classical training in how to think transferred across all disciplines.

Classical Education Model

The classical model follows three developmental stages aligned with how children naturally learn:

The Grammar Stage (Ages 5-12)

Young minds absorb information eagerly. This stage emphasizes:

• Memorization of facts, dates, poetry, math facts, Latin vocabulary
• Reading widely from mythology, fairy tales, historical narratives
• Building foundations in language, history, mathematics, science
• Songs and chants making memory work enjoyable

Grammar doesn't mean sentence diagrams—it means mastering the fundamental "grammar" or building blocks of each subject.

The Logic Stage (Ages 12-14)

Adolescents naturally become argumentative. Classical education channels this into:

• Formal logic studying valid reasoning and fallacies
• Socratic dialogue defending positions and examining assumptions
• Analytical reading understanding how arguments work in texts
• Scientific method applying logical thinking to natural phenomena
• Debate practicing reasoned argumentation

Students learn to think dialectically—not just what to think, but how to evaluate arguments critically.

The Rhetoric Stage (Ages 15-18)

Mature students synthesize knowledge into original expression:

• Persuasive writing and speaking crafting compelling arguments
• Original research pursuing questions deeply
• Great Books seminars wrestling with civilization's pivotal texts
• Thesis defense articulating and defending positions
• Application using tools of learning across all subjects

By high school graduation, students possess tools for lifelong learning—they can teach themselves anything.

Classical Education vs Modern Education

Modern education emerged from industrial-era needs: standardization, efficiency, preparing workers for factories. Classical education emerged from asking: What does it mean to be fully human? How do we form wise, virtuous citizens capable of self-governance?

Neither is purely right or wrong. But families choosing classical education prioritize formation over information, wisdom over credentials, the Great Tradition over contemporary trends.

Classical Education and Homeschooling

Classical education and homeschooling have become natural partners. The revival of classical education happened largely through homeschooling families rediscovering Dorothy Sayers' 1947 lecture "The Lost Tools of Learning" and Susan Wise Bauer's The Well-Trained Mind.

Why Classical Works at Home

• Natural pacing follows child's development, not institutional schedules
• Socratic method works brilliantly in family discussions
• Read-aloud culture makes Great Books accessible from young ages
• Multi-age learning where older siblings mentor younger
• Integration easier to achieve without bell schedules fragmenting learning

Families commonly gather around the dining table reading Homer, discussing Plato, memorizing Latin declensions, and debating history—recovering the household as the primary place of formation.

Classical Community Options

Classical education thrives with community:

• Classical Conversations † — Weekly gatherings for memory work and Socratic discussions
• Latin co-ops — Small groups progressing through language together
• Great Books seminars — Families wrestling with texts together
• Debate clubs — Practicing rhetoric and argumentation
• Regional classical conferences — Connecting with like-minded families

Through OpenEd, access community without full-time institutional commitment.

Flexibility to Mix Approaches

Many families blend classical with other methods:

• Classical literature and history + adaptive math programs
• Latin and Greek + modern foreign languages
• Great Books discussions + entrepreneurial projects
• Classical Conversations twice weekly + self-paced home learning
• Formal rhetoric + modern public speaking and content creation

OpenEd enables both classical purists and creative blenders—your philosophy stays intact.

Learn How It Works

Classical Education Curriculum

Classical education isn't a single curriculum but a living tradition you can enter at any point. Here's what families commonly use:

Complete Classical Programs

Classical Conversations† — Weekly community meetings with systematic memory work and Socratic discussions
Memoria Press† — Complete K-12 packages with detailed teacher guides
Veritas Press† — Self-paced or live online options with strong history program
The Well-Trained Mind — Comprehensive roadmap with optional Academy courses
Great Hearts Online — Individual courses or full enrollment from leading classical charter network

Core Classical Studies

Latin: Song School Latin (elementary) → Latina Christiana† or Prima Latina† → Lingua Latina per se Illustrata (gold standard) → Wheelock's Latin (college-level) | Cambridge Latin Course (story-based)

Greek: Athenaze (Attic Greek) | Elementary Greek† (Koine) | Greek for Children

Logic: The Art of Argument (informal logic) | Traditional Logic† (Aristotelian) | The Fallacy Detective (younger students)

Rhetoric & Writing: Institute for Excellence in Writing | Lost Tools of Writing | Classical rhetoric programs

Great Books: D'Aulaires' mythology → Homer, Plutarch, Plato, Aristotle, Virgil, Cicero, Shakespeare, Milton, Dante → modern classics

Mathematics & Science

Singapore Math (conceptual approach) | Saxon Math (incremental review) | Beast Academy (problem-solving) | Art of Problem Solving (advanced)

For science, families choose curricula connecting to humanity's broader understanding of the cosmos rather than isolated skills.

† Religious Curriculum Notice

Classical Conversations, Memoria Press, Veritas Press, and several other excellent classical resources contain faith-based content. OpenEd's public school partnerships provide access to secular alternatives in each category:

• Secular complete programs: Great Hearts Online, The Well-Trained Mind
• Secular Latin: Lingua Latina, Cambridge Latin Course, Minimus
• Secular logic: The Art of Argument, The Fallacy Detective
• Secular Great Books: Build your own list using public library or purchase secular editions

For comprehensive resource reviews with specific recommendations by age and subject, see our Complete Classical Education Guide.

Reclaim the Lost Tools of Learning

For over two thousand years, classical education formed the West's greatest thinkers, leaders, and creators. Dorothy Sayers argued we lost these tools—the ability to think clearly, learn independently, and express ourselves persuasively.

But lost tools can be found again.

Through OpenEd, your family can access humanity's longest and most successful educational tradition without choosing between classical rigor and financial reality, between educational community and family flexibility, between honoring the past and adapting to your child's unique present.

Whether you want full classical immersion in Latin, logic, and the Great Books, or you want to blend classical elements with other approaches as your child's needs evolve, OpenEd makes it possible.

The wisdom that shaped Western civilization isn't trapped in expensive institutions or reserved for the privileged few. It's available to every family willing to pursue it—with the resources, support, and community to make it sustainable.

Ready to reclaim the lost tools of learning?

Apply for OpenEd now.

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OpenEd partners with innovative schools to make personalized education accessible to all families. Classical education resources and secular curricula are accessible through our program. Learn more about how open education works | Explore other educational approaches you can access and blend through OpenEd.