ONLINE ENRICHMENT CLASSES Q&A

The Socratic classes teaches the liberal arts of dialectics, rhetoric and proper grammar in live situations online, and are also a preparation for our live, Great Books class discussions, teaching students to think and speak properly, logically, coherently, and politely. Dialectics – a method of argument for resolving disagreement that has been central to European and Indian philosophy since antiquity. The word dialectic originated in ancient Greece and was made popular by Plato and the Socratic dialogues. The dialectical method is conversation between two or more people holding different points of view about a subject, who wish to establish the truth [...]

The curriculum is designed to engage students in exploring the philosophical dimensions of their experience, with particular attention to logical, ethical and aesthetic dimensions. The curriculum consists of novels for students about 80 pages in length and is written in informal language, without technical terminology. Philosophy is one of the most ancient and prestigious of the disciplines, and until recently it was thought to be too difficult and uninteresting for children (and indeed, for many adults). Yet, consider how many perennial philosophical issues are typically encountered by children as young as four or five:

Students begin philosophy sessions by reading aloud or acting out a philosophical story-typically, one that depicts fictional children discovering and exploring philosophical issues and applying their reasoning to life situations. Students next identify the issues in the story that they are interested to discuss, collaborating in the construction of the agenda or lesson plan. For the remainder of the session, and for the next few or several sessions, they deliberate upon these issues as a community of philosophical inquiry. These inquiries may culminate in action projects or works of art, but in any case they should culminate in the participants’ self-correction [...]

I wonder if ghosts are real or unreal. When Dad tells me to be good, what does he mean? What makes someone a best friend? What do people mean when they say they love me? That’s not fair! Why is time so slow sometimes? I think my doll is a person, not just a thing. Mom said I didn’t have a good reason. What did she mean? My parents say I should tell the truth. Where did grandpa go when he died? The last thirty years’ experience in doing philosophy with children and adolescents has shown us that they are not [...]

This is itself an important philosophical question, not easy to answer; but let us say that philosophy, among other things, is self-conscious inquiry into the meaning of puzzling and contestable concepts. In ancient times philosophy was known as a search for wisdom or meaning, and many of the concepts philosophers have thought about for thousands of years are ones we use to structure our daily experience. “What is justice?” “What is beauty?” “How can I be sure of what I know?” “What is the right thing to do?” “What is real?”Philosophy is also known for the cultivation of excellent thinking. One [...]