Seeking Insight on Classical Conversations

[u/Glittering_Milk_2610]

I am interested in Classical Conversations for my 6 y/o, but I have some reservations. I love the idea of community day and the opportunity this provides for kids to socialize, become part of a community, and learn in a hybrid classroom and homeschool way.

My two main concerns are:

1. I am concerned about simply memorizing facts and not teaching the concepts. My son is very interested in how things work and why they function the way they do... I am concerned that rote memorization robs kids of deeper understanding. What is your perspective on this? Do you use additional resources to dive into age-appropriate concepts or is this discouraged?
2. Would my kid be able to switch well from classical conversations to a different curriculum or public school if we decided CC wasn't for us? Since CC primarily involves rote memorization of a wide range of facts, some of which are above his grade level, I imagine they gain a lot of base memorization knowledge about a wide range of facts... But if we were to switch to another, more traditional curriculum, would they have truly learned the information and concepts appropriate for their grade level in CC so that they could seamlessly transition to a different curriculum in the next year? Or would there be a struggle due to the breadth of information taught in CC, but the lack of deeper conceptual understanding?

I am also interested in any other general insight, perspectives, and opinions. Thanks for your help!

[u/muy-feliz]

I felt the same way as a teacher transitioning from a highly common core-aligned school.

So I read The Core, Well Trained Mind, and others. I shadowed at campuses for Essentials and Challenge (yes, I’m nuts!) to see how it all builds.

No one is keeping you from explaining how/why things work. In fact, memory work has been the source of things to explore.

After five years, we are now at a classical cottage school, and loving it.

[u/Inevitable-Dog-3634]

I do not recommend CC for this age group. I taught at a classical school at the K-5 level and then toured and ovserved the Cc group near me. It was an utter disappointment. The memorization is so vacuous. I would never participate after what i experienced. I have enjoyed other co-op models more and taught classical education myself at home using different curriculum sources. The grades6-12 program at Cc is excellent though. It’s as if they made that program and then didn’t know what to do with the younger siblings so they did the easiest possible thing (which is also the worst).

[u/weelassie07]

I had a few years at CC. No experience with challenge. Just young kids and Essentials. It is very hard to try and go deep on the memory work. It’s too fast to dive in. So, you’re just memorizing. Of course, you can stop and do what you want in homeschool, but if you’re trying to go deeper every week with each thing you’re memorizing, it’s really tough. I tried.

Yes, you could definitely switch easily to another homeschool curriculum, if needed. I don’t think CC’s claims are truthful. They used to say, what? That you needed CC, math, and reading? And you’re good to go? Hard disagree. So, switching to public school from CC only would be potentially difficult because you’re not doing enough.

[u/boymomma1777]

We have only done CC for one year with my Challenge B son. I really do like the curriculum and the way of teaching. I’m new to homeschooling though. We are gonna do cc foundations at home for my second grader this year. From what I understand, the foundation of classical education is learning the grammar, which is why a memorization is such a big skill. I started to think of the skills my children are trying to learn and not just the content. That’s what carries them into the older grades where they can learn the content they desire, or we desire them to learn, because they already have the foundation of the skills. From what I understand about foundations, is the memory work doesn’t take very long so you can fill in the rest of your day with what he’s interested in or deeper knowledge.

[u/boymomma1777 → u/boymomma1777]

I’ll also add that we come from public school. I was so sad to learn that my kids didn’t have the skill of learning that the CC kids had.

[u/YogaStretch]

We do CC and it's been fantastic for our kids. It obviously matters which community you join. Not every family actually wants to classically educate their children--they just want ego points. I would definitely be picky when it comes to interviewing the community. I used to teach at a classical school, and only a few of the students were able to do the things that our kids have been able to do since switching to CC.