News & Updates:

March 2010

2010 LOST TOOLS OF WRITING ESSAY CONTEST Now Accepting Entries

Education and Liberty are themes as American as baseball and apple pie. Yet, much of American literature, and most of American pop culture see the two as antithetical. Some people seem to see school as a barrier to liberty. In the 2010 Lost Tools of Writing Essay Contest, students are asked to consider the relationship between education and liberty. Are they indeed opposites? Or can one fulfill the other? Can a person be free without being educated? Can a person be educated without being free?

You decide. Then persuade us

For more details, click HERE.

February 2010

Leigh Bortins Interviews CiRCE President Andrew Kern on Blog Talk Radio

Leigh interviewed Andrew on her radio show, Leigh! at Lunch on February 3rd. 2010. You can listen HERE.

IEW To Host "Writing Educators Symposium" in JulyHERE

The Institute for Excellence in Writing will be hosting this can't-miss event at the gorgeous Wake Forest University in Winston Salem, NC. CiRCE President Andrew Kern is included among the featured speakers.

To find out more click on the banner.

January 2010

The CiRCE Institute is proud to announce the theme for our 2010 Conference...

A Contemplation of Liberty
July 15-17, 2010

Location: Dallas, Texas

Register: Sign up early for a reduced price here.

Confirmed speakers include:

- Andrew Kern
- Andrew Pudewa
- Leigh Bortins
- Dr. James Taylor
- Leah Lutz
- Laura Berquist
- John Hodges
- Dr. Paula Flint
- Rodney and Robbie Marshall
    and more!

Click here to go to the Conference Homepage.

December 2010

The Two Andrews In Florida

A Special One-day Event with Andrew Kern and Andrew Pudewa

For Teachers, Parents, College & High School Students   9:00am – 4:00pm 
 

Mon., Jan. 18: St. Augustine, FL     Location TBA

Tues., Jan 19:  Lutz, FL     Berean Academy

Wed., Jan. 20: Orlando, FL    The Classical School

Fri., Jan. 22:   Fort Myers, FL  Evangelical Free Church

Sat., Jan. 23:  Boca Raton, FL    First Christian Church 
 

$59.00/person, second family member half price!  Special rate of $49/person for IEW Accredited Instructors or Lost Tools of Writing^TM users.  Registration fee includes a coupon for 20% off on any IEW or CiRCE purchase!  (Full Session Description Below)

To Register:  www.excellenceinwriting.com/events  (or call 800-856-5815) 
 

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The Two Andrews Seminar Sessions Include:

• The four language arts: listening, reading, speaking, and writing – Pudewa

Nurture excellent communication skills even more effectively by understanding the relationships among these four critical skills.

• The five paths to great writing – Kern

Theoretical: understanding the science of writing

Literary: studying the great masterpieces of literature as models

Critical: learning the details of good usage

Practical: practicing the art of writing

Linguistic: translating great works of literature into and out of English

• The distinctives of classical rhetoric – Kern

The three canons as solutions to the three problems; the place of rhetoric as the “deep logic” of the entire curriculum and therefore as the natural ordering principle of the student’s studies; indeed, what was classical rhetoric and what happened to it?

• Developing the essayist: a natural approach – Pudewa

How can a student move from simply reporting facts to the more sophisticated skill of using facts to support an opinion? Learn several different essay models, and discover a gradual method of building the analytical writer, starting even at the elementary level!

• Assessment – Pudewa/Kern

Marking and grading: objectivity, motivation, and sanity.  How to keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and planting seeds of doubt.

• Common problems in teaching & where do you go from here? – Pudewa/Kern

Get every question answered; know what’s the next step for you and your students! 

October 2009

CiRCE Launches Further Up & Further In Fundraising Campaign

Like many not-for-profit organizations, the CiRCE Institute depends upon the generosity and kindness of individuals who believe, as we do, in the mission and vision of Classical Christian education.

If you are in a position to donate even a little, please consider doing so. Your generosity will go a long in way towards enabling us to fulfill our mission and accomplish our goals.

In return, we promise to continue teaching, training, and researching. We promise to keep on spreading the word. We promise to continue providing inspiration. We promise that, if you will stand by our side, we will continue to stand by yours. Together we'll take this mission, this vision, this calling further up and further in!

As thanks for your generosity, we are offering downloadable materials for anyone who makes even the smallest donation. No gift is too small. No gift is too large. Whether you donate $1 or $100 or $1000 there is a gift waiting for you.

Click Here for more information.

In return for your help, you will be able to download talks like Debbie Harris's popular talk Understanding and Instilling a Love of Beauty, and Andrew Pudewa's useful and inspiring, Teaching Boys and Other Kids Who Would Rather Be Playing In Forts. You can also download Ken Myers' talk on how to Re-educate Oneself As An Adult, or Laura Berquist's insightful talk about Assessing Student Performance.

To get these talks, and others like them, just go here and make a donation of whatever amount you feel comfortable giving. For even $1 these talks are yours.

Available soon:
Excerpts of Dr. Vigen Guroian's fantastic book, Rallying the Really Human Things, in downloadable PDF format!

September 2009

The Two Andrews: On Writing and Teaching Writing
A Special One-day Event with Andrew Kern and Andrew Pudewa—together in four cities!


For: Teachers, Teaching Parents, College & High School Students
Time: 8:30am – 3:30pm

Wednesday, Oct. 14: San Antonio, TX, @ FEAST Homeschool Building

Thursday, Oct. 15: Bryan, TX, @ Brazos Christian School

Friday, Oct. 16: Houston, TX, @ Covenant Academy (Cypress, TX)

Saturday, Oct. 17: Dallas, TX, @Highlands Academy (Irving, TX)

Cost: $59.00/person, second family member ½ price!
Registration fee includes a coupon for 20% off on any IEW or CiRCE purchase!

To Register: www.excellenceinwriting.com/events (or call 800-856-5815).


----Please forward this message to interested friends and colleagues!---


About the Speakers:

Andrew Kern is the president of the Circe Institute, a leading provider of inspiration, information, and insight to classical educators throughout the world. He is creator of The Lost Tools of Writing™ Workshops and materials, and consults on board development, school leadership, and establishing classical schools while conducting teacher training workshops for schools and home school groups. Circe’s annual conference is the premier event (http://www.circeinstitute.org) for educators seeking to use classical education to nurture wisdom and virtue.

Andrew Pudewa is the director of the Institute for Excellence in Writing and a homeschooling father of seven. Presenting throughout North America, he addresses issues relating to teaching, writing, thinking, spelling, and music with clarity and insight, practical experience and humor. His seminars for parents, students, and teachers have helped transform many a reluctant writer and have equipped educators with powerful tools to dramatically improve communication skills.


Sessions Include:

The Four Language Arts: Listening, Reading, Speaking, and Writing – Pudewa
Nurture excellent communication skills even more effectively by understanding the relationships among these four critical skills.

The Distinctives of Classical Rhetoric – Kern
The three canons as solutions to the three problems; the place of rhetoric as the “deep logic” of the entire curriculum and therefore as the natural ordering principle of the student’s studies. Indeed, what was classical rhetoric and what happened to it?

The Five Methods Everybody Must Practice To Become A Great Writer – Kern
Theoretical: understanding the science of writing;
Literary: studying the great masterpieces of literature as models;
Critical: learning the details of good usage;
Practical: practicing the art of writing;
Linguistic: translating great works of literature into and out of English.?

Developing The Essayist: A Natural Approach – Pudewa
How can a student move from simply reporting facts to the more sophisticated skill of using facts to support an opinion? Learn several different essay models, and discover a gradual method of building the analytical writer, starting even at the elementary level!

Assessment – Pudewa/Kern
Marking and grading; objectivity, motivation, and sanity. How to keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and planting seeds of doubt.

Panel: Common problems in teaching writing – Pudewa/Kern

Looking ahead: where do you go from here? – Pudewa/Kern
How does Structure & Style relate to The Lost Tools of Writing, what are the progymnasmata, and what’s next for you?

 

August 2009

2009 CiRCE Conference CD's Now Available!


The 2009 CiRCE Conference, A Contemplation of Nature, was our most important event to date. What we believe about "the nature of things" will inevitably drive our thinking, our teaching, our learning. Indeed, the idea of Nature is the foundation of Christian and classical thought. The Christian believes that Christ had both a human and Divine nature. The modern doesn't believe either exists.

The classical tradition arose from the desire to know and fulfill the nature of things. The modern wants power over them.

Now you can purchase the Conference CD set: Over 30 sessions, including talks from:

- Theology Professor and author Dr. Vigen Guroian
- Dr. Marcus and Laura Berquist, from St. Thomas Aquinas College, recipients of the 2009 Paideia Prize
- Andrew Pudewa, from  Excellence In Writing
- Andrew Kern, CiRCE President and author of The Lost Tools of Writing
- James Daniels, CiRCE consultant, Academic Development Consultant for the Classical School Foundation
- Martin Cothran, from Memoria Press
- Leigh Bortins, from Classical Conversations
 

Conference Rate: $97 (ending in mid-September)

Regular Rate: $137

To Order, click here.

May 2008

 Lost Tools of Writing:™ More User Friendly Than Ever!

The Lost Tools of Writing is a composition program based on a three stage approach to writing that will enable you to dramatically improve your ability to write well, your ability to teach writing, and your ability to help your students learn how to think well.

 And now, the most powerful writing program on the market just became even more powerful!

The Lost Tools of Writing Version 3.0 is ready and with it you'll find a fresh text, formatted for easy use and easy understanding. 

Remember, we’re always open to suggestions, so help us out by writing to us at ltw@circeinstitute.org, or post your thoughts in the LTW section of our forum.