CLASSICAL EDUCATION

At MSMCS, our curriculum and our pedagogy are deeply rooted in the rich Catholic tradition of a liberal arts education. Classical educators seek to cultivate the truly human things, so that each person is his or her best self. Such an education is a perpetual journey, an ongoing feast, for to know the truly human things is to partake of the best and most beautiful ideas and actions of all people, at all times. This kind of education is often called a liberal or “freeing” education. The aim is to free each person from the need for a teacher, by teaching them how to learn for themselves and reflect upon the true, the good, and the beautiful.  

A classical education seeks to cultivate children as free and fully human persons, not as economic producers, or glorified machinery. A liberal classical education embraces the kind of education which prevailed in most of the world for the last 2000+ years of humanity, up until about 1900: it allows the voices of the past to dialogue with those of the present to guide our curriculum and methodology.

A classical educational approach guides students to interrelate knowledge from every subject,  making connections. It allows them to widen and deepen their understanding as they work through all subjects, from math and language arts to history, religion, and science,  each offered in a cohesive order. Students develop a thorough grasp of history and cultures across time and across the whole planet. They learn how to write and speak effectively and passionately through exposure to and analysis of good literature. They learn to develop the ability to critically evaluate new information. And they learn that learning is delightful. 

Within classical education, there is an ongoing and healthy relationship between academic rigor and a sense of developing wonder.  MSMCS embraces all of this fully, striving for academic excellence as well as delight in learning and a dose of good old-fashioned fun. As we dig deeply into our school work, we also embrace laughter and joy, along with the study of nature and God’s creation. In addition, we make room in our school days for the works of mercy, and for service work, not only to one another but also to the community at large. 

At MSMCS, we have opted to teach our students Latin as their foreign language.  Learning Latin enables a student to quickly learn any other Romance-based language.  Latin is a foundation of much of the English language  (over 80% of words three syllables or more in English are taken directly from Latin) as well as many modern languages, and the primary language used for most major branches of science. Latin is also a very precise language, and teaches logic naturally. Students begin to take Latin starting in preschool and continue through the 8th grade.