Catholic
The education at Aquinas Academy is thoroughly Catholic. It seeks to provide a fully Catholic environment in which students can grow in their Faith with other students whose parents are serious about their spiritual development, through instruction, prayer, service, and celebration of Catholic life.
The instruction and devotional activities are authentically Catholic, completely orthodox, and fully in line with the Magisterium of the Church. We learn to love our Faith and defend it; we seek to learn from holy Mother Church; and we desire to have an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ and bring His Light to the world.
Catholicism is fully integrated into everything that is taught at Aquinas Academy. No one can have a complete education if certain aspects of truth are ignored. Since God is the Truth that gives life and meaning to all of creation, all of our studies must be permeated by the keen awareness of His presence and explored in that context.
We also pray to be the source of holy and edifying friendships for both our students and their families.
Classical
Aquinas Academy provides a classical education, along the lines envisioned in Dorothy Sayers' essay "The Lost Tools of Learning." We follow the trivium in our instruction with the understanding that it represents three stages of development. During the Grammar stage (grades 1-4) the focus is on acquiring knowledge. We take advantage of the children's willingness and ability to memorize at this age, and fill their heads with as many facts as we can, while focusing on developing fundamental reading and language skills. During the Dialectical stage (grades 5-8), the focus is on logical thinking and deepening understanding. Students synthesize information and make logical connections. Finally, during the Rhetoric stage* (high school), students will be expected to craft and defend arguments using a variety of means. There is much writing, debate, and public speaking.
In contrast to certain widespread attitudes that see education primarily as a means for developing workers with certain economically desirable abilities, a classical approach goes beyond skill acquisition, and even the accumulation of knowledge and development of critical thinking skills. We seek rather human formation on all levels. A classical approach assumes there is a certain comprehensive education deserved by each person, necessary for the participation in a free society, and proper to a child of God.
Some other notable differences between Aquinas Academy and most other schools include the introduction of Latin beginning in third grade, a literature program based on the Great Books, formal instruction in logic, and the integration of philosophy and theology within all the other disciplines.
*Upon opening, the school will run from grades 1-8. Within two years we hope to have a program for high school students and the Rhetoric stage
The education at Aquinas Academy is thoroughly Catholic. It seeks to provide a fully Catholic environment in which students can grow in their Faith with other students whose parents are serious about their spiritual development, through instruction, prayer, service, and celebration of Catholic life.
The instruction and devotional activities are authentically Catholic, completely orthodox, and fully in line with the Magisterium of the Church. We learn to love our Faith and defend it; we seek to learn from holy Mother Church; and we desire to have an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ and bring His Light to the world.
Catholicism is fully integrated into everything that is taught at Aquinas Academy. No one can have a complete education if certain aspects of truth are ignored. Since God is the Truth that gives life and meaning to all of creation, all of our studies must be permeated by the keen awareness of His presence and explored in that context.
We also pray to be the source of holy and edifying friendships for both our students and their families.
Classical
Aquinas Academy provides a classical education, along the lines envisioned in Dorothy Sayers' essay "The Lost Tools of Learning." We follow the trivium in our instruction with the understanding that it represents three stages of development. During the Grammar stage (grades 1-4) the focus is on acquiring knowledge. We take advantage of the children's willingness and ability to memorize at this age, and fill their heads with as many facts as we can, while focusing on developing fundamental reading and language skills. During the Dialectical stage (grades 5-8), the focus is on logical thinking and deepening understanding. Students synthesize information and make logical connections. Finally, during the Rhetoric stage* (high school), students will be expected to craft and defend arguments using a variety of means. There is much writing, debate, and public speaking.
In contrast to certain widespread attitudes that see education primarily as a means for developing workers with certain economically desirable abilities, a classical approach goes beyond skill acquisition, and even the accumulation of knowledge and development of critical thinking skills. We seek rather human formation on all levels. A classical approach assumes there is a certain comprehensive education deserved by each person, necessary for the participation in a free society, and proper to a child of God.
Some other notable differences between Aquinas Academy and most other schools include the introduction of Latin beginning in third grade, a literature program based on the Great Books, formal instruction in logic, and the integration of philosophy and theology within all the other disciplines.
*Upon opening, the school will run from grades 1-8. Within two years we hope to have a program for high school students and the Rhetoric stage