Informative book on the how tos of a classical education. Bortins explains in detail the grammar of each subject that she feels should be learned and why.

While I found the book informative and worth the read, I was surprised and disappointed at a couple of places. She included some stats comparing the number of engineers being produced in China compared to the U.S. While the numbers were much larger for China, they were proportionally the same as the U.S. when population was taken into account. Seeing how it was one of her arguments for why we need a classical education…

Another example that left me thinking I had been duped was at the end of a long narrative about how her family uses every day experiences to talk about science. At the end of a long day when her family was sleeping outside, her son supposedly awoke and said, "Look, Mom, the north star." She then writes, "I smiled as I looked to the north and saw the bright star…" Maybe her classical education has failed her at this point, or maybe the whole story was made up. The north star is hardly bright, even out in the country away from city lights. ( )

Informative book on the how tos of a classical education. Bortins explains in detail the grammar of each subject that she feels should be learned and why.

While I found the book informative and worth the read, I was surprised and disappointed at a couple of places. She included some stats comparing the number of engineers being produced in China compared to the U.S. While the numbers were much larger for China, they were proportionally the same as the U.S. when population was taken into account. Seeing how it was one of her arguments for why we need a classical education…

Another example that left me thinking I had been duped was at the end of a long narrative about how her family uses every day experiences to talk about science. At the end of a long day when her family was sleeping outside, her son supposedly awoke and said, "Look, Mom, the north star." She then writes, "I smiled as I looked to the north and saw the bright star…" Maybe her classical education has failed her at this point, or maybe the whole story was made up. The north star is hardly bright, even out in the country away from city lights. ( )

I've been very eager to get my hands on this book. I've never seen it on a good sale so I've always told myself, maybe later. Then I discovered the library had it, so I figured I'd pursue it there. This morning when I was headed to pick it up from the holds desk a friend listed it for sale on-line and I got very excited. I decided to borrow it from the library anyway just to see how excited I could get.

Well, I'm not excited anymore. I read The Conversation last week for review and knew I wanted to read The Core. (Think Core = Elementary, Question = middle, and Conversation = high school) I really enjoyed 'The Conversation' but I wasn't enthralled with The Core. It has the argument of what and why I'm doing what I am. But it doesn't have the meat that I was looking for.

In general I can tell you that I am extremely enthusiastic for the Classical Conversations Act & Facts History and Science Cards and love using them in our homeschool. I also have really enjoyed going through The Conversation and thinking toward the future with a lot of practical advice. Yet The Core left me unfulfilled and if you're trying to find a Classical Christian Education guide while considering the elementary primary years I do not think that this is it. I much prefer the Latin Centered Curriculum and The Well-Trained Mind, 3rd edition. Climbing Parnassus is next on my to-read list. ( )

The subtitle to the Core is "Teaching Your Child the Foundations of Classical Education." This book is a prescriptive guide for parent's to assume the task of teaching the classical core at home. The author gives the why and the how so that parents know why they should teach their children and provides them the means and therefore the confidence to do so. to do so. ( )