Some of my family's favorite books are 'Farmer Boy' and 'Little Britches'.  In both of these books the main character is a boy living on a farm or ranch.  Something that always strikes me in these books is the school schedule for these boys.  Like most rural boys before the 1930s, these boys attend school in each season; fall, winter, spring, and summer.  Unlike most boys since 1930, they missed a large amount of school in the fall, spring, and summer due to planting, haying, and harvesting.  Some of the older boys, >13, missed entire semesters due to work on the farm.  What also strikes me is how these boys in so few official 'days' of school learned latin, grammar, and mental math beyond what most of us can do today.    

How did these guys learn in less than 100 days what we struggle to learn in 180? Accountability. Parental involvement. Expectations. 

Parents, teachers, and the community expected children to work hard in school, complete their work, and contribute to society.  

This leads to our question:

Why does Scio Academy offer 32 weeks of live classes, or 160 days? Why not 36 weeks or 180 days like local schools? 

Because our philosophy on education is so different than the industry standard when it comes to time:  

First, we work to create an atmosphere of learning all of the time. That means we often learn more in an hour exploring the creek at the park than in an hour of reading a science textbook.  We could claim most every day as a homeschool day. 

Second, we strive to produce good adults.  Remember one of the groups that held the boys accountable from the books mentioned above? The community.  We want our children contributing to the community on a regular basis, which means less time in a formal classroom. 

Third, because high school classes are 150 credit hours, 32 weeks is more than enough time to complete a high school credit worth of a course. This leaves time for apprenticeships, volunteer work, community involvement, a mission trip, or a short half semester focusing on only one or two topics. 

Fourth, we believe that with accountability and parental involvement any child can pursue a well-rounded education in 32 weeks of traditional class work and 4 or more weeks of skill building.  

So we offer 32 weeks of classes.  Not because we think traditional coursework isn't important, but because we know that it is.  It is so important that we want to focus on it intensely and give our children the time that they need to digest and practice what they've learned. 

Are you planning to join us for our 2019/2020 school year? We'd love to walk beside you and your children as you strive to give the world to them through a great education.