The How of Reading Instruction in a Classical Education

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Teacher preparation and knowledge are fundamental to student reading achievement. In this session, we will discuss why a systematic phonetic approach to reading instruction is classical, brain-based and effective. We will address the importance of phonemic awareness, language and vocabulary development and best practices for reading instruction. Practical strategies for providing support in the grammar school classroom will be shared. Participants will be able to apply their knowledge of reading development into effective instructional practices as well as assessment tools.

Jessica Gombert

Jessica Gombert is in her 16th year as the grammar school headmaster at the Geneva School of Boerne. She holds a MA in Education and has been involved in many aspects of education for 30 years. Teaching experiences include special education, kindergarten, adult classes for Region 20 Alternative Certification program and student teacher supervision at University of Texas at San Antonio. She has a passion for teaching students to become lifelong learners, mentoring teachers and for classical and Christian education. She is currently writing children’s readers to supplement the phonics curriculum.

Melissa Siller

Melissa Siller has spent the last 20 years in various areas of education, including assessment item writing, classroom teaching, teaching pre-service teachers in field based teacher education, and is currently in her 8th year as the reading specialist at the Geneva School of Boerne. In addition, she is an adjunct faculty member in Trinity University's Department of Education. Her research focuses on teacher education, brain-based teaching practices, curriculum and inquiry as well as beginning in-service teacher induction support. She earned her PhD in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Texas at San Antonio.

Heroes and Villains: Civic Virtue Through Inquiry and Primary Sources

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Participants will work through three Bill of Rights Institute lessons to develop skills for providing students with primary sources, content-rich narratives and critical thinking as part of integrated civic learning and character development.

Rachel Davison Humphries

Rachel Davison Humphries has worked as an educator for almost a decade, most recently as a mentor teacher in Guatemala City, Guatemala. She has presented at conferences and led professional development workshops in a variety of subjects, including economics, literature, adolescence, Socratic teaching, project-based learning and the pedagogy of freedom. Rachel has worked to help students grow and learn in a variety of environments, including charter schools, private schools and summer programs for college students. She earned her bachelor’s degree from the Great Books Program at St. John’s College, and a teaching certificate in adolescent education from the Association Montessori Internationale. She started at the Bill of Rights Institute in 2015 and now leads its teacher programs team.

The “How” of Reading Instruction: The Importance of a Systematic Approach to Early Literacy and Reading Achievement

Posted on by Society for Classical Learning
The “How” of Reading Instruction: The Importance of A Systematic Approach to Early Literacy and Reading Achievement

Teacher preparation and knowledge are fundamental to reading achievement. In this session, we will discuss why a systematic phonetic approach to reading instruction is classical, brain-based and e ective. Understanding how the brain functions and being knowledgeable of best practices is necessary for e ective reading instruction. We will address the obstacles that get in the way of the reading process and how
to come alongside struggling readers. Practical strategies for providing support in the grammar school classroom will be shared. Participants will be able to apply their knowledge of reading development into e ective instructional practices.

Jessica Gombert

Jessica Gombert is in her 14th year as the Grammar School Headmaster at e Geneva School of Boerne. She holds a master's degree in education and has been involved in many aspects of education for over 28 years. Her teaching experiences include special education, Kindergarten, alternative certification programs and student teacher supervision at the University of Texas at San Antonio. She has a passion for encouraging students and teachers to become lifelong learners and for classical Christian education. She teaches reading in Lusaka, Zambia, in the summers and is currently writing children’s readers to supplement Geneva's phonics curriculum.

Melissa Siller

Melissa Siller a PhD candidate in interdisciplinary learning and teaching at the University of Texas at San Antonio. She has spent the last 20 years in various areas of education, including assessment item writing, classroom teaching and teaching pre-service teachers in eld-based teacher education. She is currently in her sixth year as the Reading Specialist at e Geneva School of Boerne. In addition, she is an adjunct faculty member in Trinity University's Department of Education. Her research focuses on teacher education, brain- based teaching practices, curriculum and inquiry, as well as beginning in-service teacher induction support.

Loving God With Our Minds in Milton’s Paradise Lost

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Perhaps there is no work of imaginative literature in all the Western canon more preeminently about loving God with our minds than John Milton’s Paradise Lost. This session will highlight three ways that Milton’s poem invites its reader to consider what it means to love God with our minds. Practically, the poem presents several vivid episodes which ask whether and when a mental act is a sin. Philosophically, the poem has a deeply Christian epistemology that challenges our enlightened liberal notions about intellectual freedom with the idea that our reasoning is limited by foundational assumptions we make about the world. In other words, “Believing is seeing.” Poetically, Paradise Lost invites us to identify with Satan to find his bitterness tragic and his unconquerable will heroic. This imaginatively leads us to the inevitable result of this rebellion — vileness must be embraced if we will continue in sin. That’s heady stuff, but students love it when presented in the right way. This session will focus on how to bring this famously difficult poem to life for our students so that it can become relevant to their spiritual and mental lives.

Jeremiah Forshey

Jeremiah Forshey has been with classical Christian schools since 2004, teaching literature, logic and rhetoric classes for Redeemer Classical School in Harrisonburg, Virginia, The Geneva School in Winter Park, Florida, and now at New Covenant Schools in Lynchburg, Virginia. He currently teaches American literature, British literature and senior thesis, and serves as lead teacher in the School of Rhetoric. He holds a master’s degree in English literature and languages from James Madison University. Jeremiah lives with his wife, Elisa, and their three children in the “Seven Hills” of Lynchburg, Virginia, which can be found in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains. They live in a house that was finished the same year as The Great Gatsby.

Re-Minding Our Students in the Lord

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As Samuel Johnson famously claimed, “People need to be reminded rather than instructed.” C. S. Lewis would refer to this exact maxim in his approach to discussing faith in Mere Christianity. In this session, participants will explore how they can instruct their students and remind them of their ability as “spiritual thinkers.” We will consider the act of reading, the concepts of “text,” and the power of paying literal, as well as metaphorical, attention to our lives.

Carolyn Weber

An award-winning author and professor, Dr. Carolyn Weber holds an honors bachelor’s degree from the University of Western Ontario and her master’s and doctorate degrees in Romantic literature from Oxford University. A Commonwealth Scholar, she was the first female dean of St. Peter’s College at Oxford University. After relocating to the States, Carolyn has been an associate professor at the University of San Francisco, Seattle University and Westmont College. She now teaches both at her alma mater, the University of Western Ontario, and at Heritage College and Seminary. Carolyn speaks regularly on the intersections of faith, literature and culture at campuses, churches and organizations, ranging from Billy Graham’s Cove to national and international academic and mainstream conferences. She has been a guest on numerous radio interviews, television shows and podcasts, such as 100 Huntley St., Context with Lorna Dueck, Family Life, Focus on the Family and Cardus. She teaches across a wide range of venues, from the classroom to retreats, workshops and invited lecture series. Her critically acclaimed memoirs Surprised by Oxford and Holy is the Day were both shortlisted for the Grace Irwin Prize, the largest award for Christian writing in Canada. Surprised by Oxford received this award in 2014. A poet, essayist and featured contributor to such publications as Faith Today, Carolyn also delights in writing children’s literature and participating actively in children’s education. Carolyn lives in her hometown of London, Canada, with her husband and four spirited children.

C. S. Lewis and The Abolition of Man

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C. S. Lewis’ 1944 book The Abolition of Man is widely considered to be a classic work in the history and philosophy of education. The National Review, in fact, chose it as number seven on their “100 Best Nonfiction Books of the 20th Century.” In this seminar, we will examine the central themes of this important book
and the key arguments Lewis makes throughout it for absolute values and the training of students’ affections, as well as their intellects. We will work sequentially through each of the three chapters of the book, discussing both the progression of Lewis’ thought and the practical educational implications of his treatment of concepts like “men without chests,” “the Tao” and “the abolition of man.”

David Diener

Dr. David Diener began his post-secondary education at Wheaton College, where he graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and ancient languages. After putting his philosophical training to work by building custom cabinets and doing high-end finish carpentry for an Amish company, he moved with his wife to Bogotá, Colombia, where they served as missionaries for three years at a Christian international school. He then attended Indiana University, where he earned a master’s degree in philosophy, another master’s degree in history and philosophy of education, and a dual doctorate in philosophy and philosophy of education. He has taught at The Stony Brook School on Long Island, served as Head of Upper Schools at Covenant Classical School in Fort Worth, Texas, and currently is the Head of School at Grace Academy in Georgetown, Texas. He also teaches philosophy courses at Taylor University, is an Alcuin Fellow and offers consulting services through Classical Academic Press. He is the author of Plato: The Great Philosopher-Educator and serves as the series editor for Classical Academic Press’ Giants in the History of Education. The Dieners have four wonderful children and are passionate about classical Christian education and the impact it can have on the church, our society and the world.

Best Practices in Reading

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Best Practices in Reading will help classroom teachers better equip their students to be good readers. We know how important it is for students to develop good reading skills, so providing the best foundation possible should be one of our primary goals as classical grammar school teachers. This seminar will provide you with teaching strategies and examples of assessments and reading guides to help you teach more effectively.

Lori JIll Keeler

Lori Jill Keeler has served for the past 12 years as the Lower School Principal at The Westminster School at Oak Mountain in Birmingham, AL. She earned a BA in Secondary Education and English Literature, and an MEd in Integrated Curriculum and Instruction from Covenant College. She served as the educational expert on the founding Board of Directors for Evangel Classical Christian School in Helena, AL, has written second- through sixth-grade Bible curriculum, and has been a guest speaker on creating a culture of grace at several classical schools in the Southeast. Lori Jill and her husband, Sco , have two sons.

How to Read a Book: Teaching Reading Comprehension in the Grammar School Years

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Many would summarize a classical education by the pithy phrase “Read and Discuss.” Reading quality literature is at the heart of what we do as classical schools. Journey with us as we walk through the various sources that we have turned to for guidance on teaching students how to read well, and learn how we have married what we nd to be the best of these different approaches. Gleaning from Aristotle’s Four Causes, How to Read a Book, Spalding’s Attributes of Quality Literature, and more contemporary approaches such as Mosaic of Thought and Notice and Note, we’ll share a cohesive approach to helping children learn to drink deeply from the well of the literary arts. We’ll also share some pitfalls to be aware of when borrowing from contemporary sources that are infused with a philosophy of moral relativism. We will leave time for you to make recommendations of sources that have been fruitful in your own journey.

Allison Buras

Founding Live Oak alongside Alison Mo a and Carolyn Still marked the ful llment of a dream that began more than 20 years ago around a Dallas dinner table. Mrs. Buras a ended Baylor University for her undergraduate degree, which is in English with a minor in History. A er college she earned a lifetime teaching certi cate for grades pre-K through 8. Mrs. Buras has worked in education for 18 years, teaching K, 1, 2, and high school English as well as serving in various administrative positions. She earned a Master’s of Theological Studies at True Seminary, where she was able to also study Christian Education at Baylor’s School of Education and at Regent College. She is married to Todd Buras, a professor in the Philosophy department at Baylor, and together they have three boys who a end Live Oak: Benjamin (R1), Jonathan (L1), and Michael (G4).

Alisha Barker

During her seven years at Live Oak Classical School, Mrs. Barker has taught Grammar 1, Grammar 4, and now teaches Grammar 5. Prior to moving to Waco she and her husband taught English in Taiwan for three years. Mrs. Barker holds a BA in English Literature with a minor in Philosophy and Biblical Studies from Dallas Baptist University and earned an MA in English at Baylor University. She and her husband have four children: Justin (Grammar 6), Karis (Grammar 4), Macrina (JK), and Juliana (7 months).

Falling in Love with Words: Or, How to Read a Poem

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To really fall in love with words, a Christian teacher of poetry must first be in love with the Word, that is to say, Jesus Christ – the poet par excellence. Right belief (orthodoxy) about the Word precedes and pervades a right practice (orthopraxy) of studying words. For an exercise in slow reading, we will surrender ourselves to Robert Frost’s poem “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening,” paying loving attention to its form and content.

Christopher Benson

Christopher Benson is an English Instructor and Faculty Coordinator at The Cambridge School of Dallas. He has studied at Wheaton College, Missouri School of Journalism, Oxford University, and St. John’s College and written for a variety of publications, including Christianity Today, Books & Culture, The Weekly Standard, and First Things. His blog is bensonian.wordpress.com.

The Good Man Reading Well

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The Scarlet Letter, Moby Dick, The Odyssey…some of the most cherished and challenging literature in history. Knowing that our students will one day read these texts, how do we begin to prepare children in the Grammar stage? This presentation will provide an overview of the “why and how” of teaching children to read in the Grammar grades.

Heather Arabie

Heather Arabie came to Regents in 2008 as a first-grade teacher. After several years in the first-grade classroom, she began to pursue a master’s degree in reading to better serve her students and fellow teachers. While in graduate school, Heather also began the certification process to become a dyslexia therapist. She is currently serving as the Director of K–2nd Grades and the reading specialist for the Regents Grammar School. In her role, Heather works to support and advise teachers as they instruct reading and literature in the classroom. Additionally, she works with the Grammar School Leadership Team to coordinate curriculum decisions. Heather has been married to Brett for 20 years. Heather and Brett have two children in the School of Rhetoric at Regents.