Foundations is Classical Conversations’ (CC) grammar program. Foundations is designed for students ages 4 years to 12 years. Classical Conversations Midtown Tulsa’s (CCMT) Foundations classes meet from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM on most Thursdays — which we refer to as “community day” — for a total of 24 weeks.
Each Foundations class of up to 8 students is led by a trained parent tutor. As the tutor leads the class through its community day activities, he or she models memorization and repetition techniques to help parents continue the learning at home.
Each community day, the Foundations class will include five key components of the Foundations program: memory work, student presentations, hands-on science, a fine arts project, and memory work review.
Memory Work
Each week, the tutor introduces new grammar covering seven subject areas: the timeline, history, geography, English grammar, Latin, science, and math. Tutors guide their students through age-appropriate memorization activities such as songs, hand motions, copywork, games, or art projects. The goal of the memory work component is to help each student establish a firm foundation of facts upon which to build later study.
Student Presentations
Each week, students will deliver a short presentation (2-3 minutes) in front of his or her class. Presentations topics are at the discretion of the parents, and the emphasis is on growing good presentation skills. Presentations help our students increase their comfort with addressing a group and learn to be polite listeners as they work toward mastery of the fundamentals of public speaking.
Hands-on Science
Each week, Foundations students will complete a pre-planned science experiment or activity, offering them a hands-on opportunity to examine, to test, and to learn.
Over the course of the three CC cycles, our science lab component will include the disciplines of chemistry, physics, earth science, astronomy, origins, environmental science, biology and anatomy.
Each experiment or activity gives an age-appropriate overview of basic scientific concepts and may include discussion of the scientific method and its application. The goal of each activity is to illuminate the fascinating world of science and expose each student to the wonder and intricacy of God’s universe.
Fine Arts
In our Fine Arts component, students will explore basic art techniques and musical theory, as well as the works of great artists and composers. Fine Arts is divided into six week segments, each covering a different artistic discipline. The six-week segments include: Drawing, Famous Artists, Tin Whistle, and Orchestra. Students not only create their own art, they study the great masters of music and art, including the musical works of composers from Handel to Stravinsky, and the masterpieces of artists from Giotto to Lichtenstein.
Memory Work Review
The final component of Foundations is memory work review. Each tutor leads his or her class through fun games that help solidify the previous weeks of grammar facts. With a little repetition and a lot of creativity, Foundations students find themselves mastering things such as Latin declensions, the timeline of history from Creation to present day, or the multiplication tables.
Click here for more information on the Foundations program.