Words Aptly Spoken: American Literature

The Classical Conversations curriculum was designed to incorporate a classical model of education with a biblical worldview. By harnessing the classical stages of learning – grammar, dialectic, and rhetoric – this innovative curriculum ideally suits children’s natural learning style. In the grammar stage, children devour facts. In the dialectic stage, children ask many questions as they sort and evaluate these facts. In the rhetoric stage, teenagers synthesize their knowledge and apply it.

From beginning to end, Classical Conversations is founded on the Bible as the inerrant Word of God. Students are taught that all subjects are not only interconnected but that God is the author and creator of each subject. Each subject informs us more about the true nature of God, and a better understanding of God informs us about each subject that is taught. Classical education combined with a biblical worldview makes Classical Conversations a wonderful tool to mirror the three learning stages in the Bible: knowledge, understanding, and wisdom.

Besides guiding students through the literary classics of great American authors such as Twain, Alcott, Thoreau, Emerson, and Hemingway, this reference also attempts to awaken a sense of critical analysis of the content and contextual history behind each of the selections. How did each of these individuals, writing as he or she did, impact American thought and culture? How will this generation similarly impact our thinking and culture for years to come? Twenty-nine works, seven of which are published in their entirety, are listed according to the chronology of their appearance in the Challenge I program. Each includes Review and Thought Questions, as well as suggestions for a deeper study of vocabulary, characters, plot, timeline, themes, and quotes which will be valuable aids to students

This study guide is used for all of the literature covered in Challenge 1's American Literature class. Includes thought and review.