Academics

Wilson Hill Academy Thoughts on Pedagogy

NCEE Results are in!

21 Jan 2018

WHA received our National Classical Etymology Exam results! Under Joanna Hensley's brilliant leadership, an impressive number of students participated this year, and 65 earned medals! Thank you, students, for your fantastic efforts! We are proud of each of you and grateful for all of our talented Latin teachers who make our program exceptional! National Classical Etymology Exam Results Advanced Level (grades 11 and 12) 22 Participants Awards Latin 1 Latin 2 Latin 3 Latin 4

By Laura Ruby | | In Academics, WHA Blog, Word on the Hill | Read more

Writing and Rhetoric at WHA

WHA is fully committed to student mastery in writing. The following outlines and summarizes our approach to writing instruction, beginning in the 5th grade and ending in the 12th grade. Key points about our writing approach: Our primary focus is essay writing. To teach essay writing is to teach thinking. All students can learn to write essays with proficiency and eloquence. Writing instruction is most effective when provided in a process that emphasizes ability, not just

By Laura Ruby | | In Academics, WHA Blog, Word on the Hill | Read more

Independence Day

5 Jul 2016

Today is the 5th of July.  I hope your celebration of the 4th included ice cream, hot dogs, swimming pools, fireworks and many other common ways we celebrate “Independence Day.”  But as we celebrated yesterday, I also noticed that our culture seems far more focused on the three-day weekend celebration than on the liberties we often take for granted.  If Rip Van Winkle were to awake again two centuries after his “brief” two-decade nap, what

By Bob Donaldson | | In Academics, WHA Blog, Word on the Hill | Read more

Chickens in Church

9 Jun 2016

The following is an open letter from Scott Baker, WHA Rhetoric Instructor, to his students in the Rhetoric 2/Senior Thesis class this year. Dear Seniors: Congratulations on a great year completing the Senior Thesis process!  Now that you have survived the Defense and have completed your Final Draft, it’s time to celebrate.  Everyone in the WHA community is suitably proud of your achievement, especially since writing and defending a thesis is such a rare accomplishment

By Wilson Hill | | In Academics, WHA Blog, Word on the Hill | Read more

A Focus on “Math in Focus”

One of the oldest proverbial sayings in the English language is, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.”  If there are any of you out there that still insist on calculating math solutions with a slide rule (or who even remember what a slide rule is!), you know what I mean. As the march of time presses on, I tend to resist change, especially for change for change’s sake. If something has worked well

By Wilson Hill | | In Academics, WHA Blog, Word on the Hill | Read more

Math Foundations

3 Jun 2015

On what rock should your mathematical house be built? In Matthew 7:24-27, the wise man built his house upon the rock. In all branches of mathematics, knowledge is built on previous learning, so for the higher mathematics courses, what is that secure foundation? Many suppose, erroneously, that it is the work done with arithmetic in the early grades. While manipulation of numbers cannot be discounted in importance, the real bedrock is algebraic studies, specifically Algebra

By Wilson Hill | | In Academics, WHA Blog, Word on the Hill | Read more

Is Summer School for Me?

29 Apr 2015

In today's world, there is an ever-greater pressure for more. We see it in youth sports programs, a growing move toward year-round schooling, college entrance exam prep programs and everything in between. As a Classical Christian school seeking to prepare students for college and beyond, this is not a topic that we can afford to avoid. What should be our approach to offering summer school classes?  There are always more great books to read, more

By Wilson Hill | | In Academics, WHA Blog, Word on the Hill | Read more

Latin for All Ages

Jerzy Siemiginowski-Eleuter26 Mar 2015

Late-17th-century illustration of a passage from the Georgics by Jerzy Siemiginowski-Eleuter Weekly vocabulary lists, practice sentences, and yet another paradigm are the constant companions of the Latin student. And when you start Latin in third grade, this goes on for years. As a Latin teacher now, I love this idea! Spending years helping students master Latin grammar is my idea of fun. Looking back to when I was a Latin student, though, my devotion to

By Wilson Hill | | In Academics, WHA Blog, Word on the Hill | Read more

Benefits of Learning Spanish

Why bother learning Spanish (or any foreign language)? And in particular, why should you consider enrolling your children in Spanish classes at WHA? And why should he or she press on toward the goal of mastering a foreign language? English is my second language. I started learning it in my childhood, so I know what it takes. I also began teaching my children English as a second language when they were very young (around 3

By Wilson Hill | | In Academics, WHA Blog, Word on the Hill | Read more