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The Sauce is the Boss

January 17, 2020
By David Rowe

A commonly heard saying in Christian classical education is that our approach is a bit like a sauce that you have to soak in for a time before you really get it. We say this because it’s a unique educational style, one that our students tend to understand more readily but that most parents and community members are less familiar with; most parents didn’t receive this type of schooling themselves and it can be hard to explain to others. Throw in a few Latin words like trivium, progymnasamata, econium, and vituperation (as we do), then add a few local words such as laulima, and it can seem even more daunting!

An important goal of this blog series we’re beginning is to help our Trinity ‘Ohana in the slow, steady process of learning more about the “sauce” that makes TCS special. We hope in this to offer our community a quick and easy view into our classrooms, our athletics, our day-to-day operations, in a way that is worthy of your attention. We’ll try to keep these blog entries short enough to keep your attention but long enough to cover the subject.

One example that comes to mind most readily arises from a visit I paid to Mrs. Dart’s third grade classroom just before Christmas break. There, a student work first caught my attention because of the beautiful handwriting displayed in her paragraph. You will see that in the photo above. And, in our school, we do pay close attention to “the good, the true, and the beautiful,” even as it’s expressed in student handwriting.

Beyond penmanship, though, I read the essay and was struck by the vivid word pictures in Baiyi’s writing about her Christmas tree. “The ornaments are prophets who are talking about Jesus.“ What a profound statement! I’ve never heard anything better describe the meaning and beauty of Christmas ornaments.  Baiyi’s strong poetic imagery came back to mind many times as I looked at our own Christmas tree over the break. Can’t you see goodness, truth, and beauty reflected in Baiyi’s short paragraph?

So, rather than just tell you about Christian classical education, I thought it would be fitting to also show you a perfect example of our educational style at work. If our goal is to teach children who can display such spiritual eloquence, we should all rejoice at such work. In many ways, this third grade paragraph shows Christian classical education at its finest. Indeed, I would encourage you to print this blog, or save it away somewhere you’ll remember, and consider next Christmas how “ornaments are prophets talking about Jesus“ as you decorate and enjoy your own tree.

Looking for more? Read our Grand Tour blog and Athletics blog!

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