Scripture, History & Letters
The heart of the year, read closely and discussed: the Prophets and Revelation, the ancient world’s history and literature, and the classical appeals of ethos, pathos, and logos in Rhetoric II.
Bible: Prophets & Revelation
Students will gain an appreciation for the revelation of Christ as the fulfillment of the old testament tradition of apocalyptic literature, by sustained and disciplined inquiry into the prophetic literature of the church as recorded in Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentation, Ezekiel, Daniel as well as the 12 “minor” Prophets and Revelation
Students will examine the revelation of Christ as seen in the apocalyptic literature of Holy Scripture, by doing the following:
Debate different Patristic and eschatological or “End Times” interpretations of the texts through writing exercises such as Encomium and Viturpation and oral exercises of formal dialectic
Open and close class with a responsive reading liturgy taken from the day’s reading
Memorize sections of the prophets and recite or sing them as a class and individually
Apply biblical concepts learned in class to real world situations, so that they will be prepared to apply them to unpredictable situations later in life
Engage in a sustained inquiry into the interpretation of Revelation, as seen in a research paper based in the class reading of the book on finding Christ in the OT, or “Four Views” of Revelation
Pray these scriptures through the adoption of a habitual practice of morning and evening prayer, modeled on Lectio Divina
The student will academically study the same passages they pray, so that God’s Spirit will form both the head and the heart for lifelong love of God’s Word.
Ancient History
Students will gain an appreciation for the early history of human civilization from creation to the time of the Julio-Claudian Dynasty with specific attention given to the controversies surrounding the responsible interpretation of events such as the rise and decline of Rome and other controversial events in the history of Western Civilization.
Students will engage in sustained and disciplined inquiry into ancient civilization by doing the following:
Debate different historical interpretations of events such as the cause of the decline of the Greek and Roman Empire, through writing exercises of Encomium and Viturpation and oral exercises of formal dialectic
Find events in the text on geographical maps, and observing the change of maps over time
Locate events in the text on a timeline and memorization of Geneva Academy timeline for class
Apply insights from historical research to real world, so they will be prepared to apply them to unpredictable events in life
Students will spend extended time developing close reading skills in primary source historical material including but not limited to:
The Peloponnesian War by Thucydides
The War with Hannibal, by Livy
Annals of Imperial Rome, by Tacitus
Selections from Josephus, including The Jewish War, and Antiquities
Selections from The Apocrypha, and works of Philo
Selections from 12 Caesars, by Suetonius
The teacher will also draw from Susan Wise Bauer’s The History of the Ancient World and other excellent resources.
Ancient Literature & Composition
Students will gain a deeper appreciation for the literature of ancient civilization from time of Creation to Julio-Claudian Dynasty.
Students will engage in sustained and disciplined inquiry into the literature of ancient civilization by doing the following:
Debate different historical interpretations through writing exercises of Encomium and Viturpation and oral exercises of formal dialectic
Locate literary events on an historical timeline and memorization of Geneva Academy timeline for class
Use experience to interpret texts and apply insights from literature to the real world, so they will be prepared to apply them to unpredictable events later in life
Become familiar with the writing/editing process through weekly rough draft revision in peer editing sessions and teacher corrections
Imitate good writing at the sentence, paragraph and essay level, separating form from content and adapting the form to new content from the student’s own experience
Develop extensive vocabulary and copious writing skills through the use of Erasmus’ writing exercises, and weekly vocabulary games taken from the readings
Memorization of poetry
Students will cultivate close reading skills by reading and responsibly entering the debate about the interpretation of great works of literature in the primary source, including but not limited to the following:
Odyssey by Homer
Aeneid by Virgil
Greek and Roman comedies, tragedies and poetry
The Republic by Plato
On the Nature of Things, Lucretius
Eclogues and Georgics by Virgil
Metamorphoses by Ovid
Poetics by Aristotle
Meditation of Marcus Aurelius
Patristic dialogues and debates
Rhetoric II: Ethos, Pathos & Logos
Students will study the origin, history and purpose and biblical application of pathos, ethos and logos in rhetorical forms appropriate to the situation. Students will focus on the basic format and techniques of formal and informal argumentation, with attention given to apologetical examples
The teacher will make selections for classroom reading and discussion from the following:
Selections from Platonic dialogues, Quintillian and Cicero
Selections from On Rhetoric, and Nichomachean Ethics by Aristotle
Classical Rhetoric its Secular and Biblical Traditions, by George Kennedy
Classic Rhetoric for the Modern Student, by Corbett
A successful student in this class will be able to do the following:
Recall and apply the five canons of rhetoric and a proper understanding of ethos and pathos to their speech meet presentation
Research, compose, memorize and deliver at the speech meet
Critically judge a debate and evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of an argument
Engage in newspaper or blog reading and evaluation of opinion
Demonstrate rhetorical awareness of, avoidance, and felicity of refutation of logical fallacies in argumentation