The Crestline Difference At a Glance: 5 Main Things
By: Shiloh Upson
We are often asked what distinguishes Crestline Academy from other schools, and we have several answers for that. As a classical, Christian school, we do many things differently than public schools and even private schools. Check out five reasons why Crestline Academy provides a unique learning experience to our students.
1. Christian Worldview is Everything
At Crestline Academy, we teach every subject from a Christian worldview. Christ is truly King here. In addition to our set Christian studies curriculum, which we have at all grade levels, we incorporate Christian worldview in every subject, from math to literature to Latin. We believe this worldview will help students grow up to be adults who understand their own values and are able to analyze the worldview of others.
2. We follow the Trivium: grammar, logic, and rhetoric
In 1947, scholar Dorothy Sayers shared an essay titled “The Lost Tools of Learning.” In her essay, she argued that for centuries and even millennia prior to the reforms in the early 1900s, Western education practices followed a set tradition and a return to that tradition would improve society as a whole. Sayers believed there was a grammar level of learning, a logic level of learning, and a rhetoric level of learning. In the grammar stage, students love obtaining facts. They spend time chanting and singing to memorize. We believe mastery of facts, including math facts, is an important academic foundation to establish in the elementary years. In the logic stage (also referred to fondly as the middle school stage by most modern Americans), students are always asking “why?” and challenging the things around them. Students take a logic course and embrace their natural stage of questioning. In the rhetoric stage, students are looking for beauty and to argue eloquently. We believe each subject has grammar, logic, and rhetoric. We teach students facts, help them understand the logic thereof, and then help them work to make their own points.
We believe that the ancient methods of teaching were effective at producing independent thinkers and leaders of nations. We seek to use those same methods in our own school to produce great thinkers and leaders for the future.
3. We Learn Latin
Starting in second grade, all students learn Latin as a core subject. We believe it is just as important as the 3 Rs: reading, writing, and arithmetic. There are numerous benefits to studying Latin, and we are firm believers in all of them. Latin grammar is a crucial tool at Crestline for understanding English grammar. Mastery of Latin helps students improve their vocabulary skills in English, enhance their problem solving skills, and understand Romance languages in later studies. By the end of their first year of Latin, many of our second graders can recite the Pater Noster (known as The Lord’s Prayer in English) and list important facts about nouns and verbs.
4. Standardized Tests Do Not Dictate Our Curriculum
Until seventh grade, students’ only tests at Crestline are those given by their teachers to ensure mastery of whatever they are learning. In seventh grade, students start taking the Classic Learning Test and National Latin Exam. These tests help us assess where students are in all of their core subjects, and look at students’ ability to use reasoning skills with learning material. Rather than tell students what to know for these tests, we work on teaching them how to think in order to succeed at these tests. Nor are the tests “high-stakes,” either. They are used to help us understand our students better, praise their strengths, and set goals for growth. Students have the opportunity to receive awards and recognition for high achievement on these tests (one student received a maxima cum laude award this year for their Latin Exam), but receiving awards is only a bonus for our students, not the ultimate goal.
5. We Believe Each Student is a Unique Individual
Each human being is “fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:13), and each person has a unique purpose for their life (Romans 12:4–8). At Crestline Academy, we seek to always see our students as individuals with a God-given purpose for their life. We honor and encourage students to grow in their strengths and identify areas to work toward improvement in.
