Category: HeightsCast

Heights boys enjoy three recesses daily in the Lower School. It’s not just a chance to stretch their legs. To the contrary, recess is viewed as a class here. Our boys learn toughness, prudence, and how to evaluate risks. Listen in to learn more about the benefits of unstructured free play, and how you can bring this practice to your home or school… ideally both, because what we do at home affects our son’s experience at school.

In this episode, Rich encourages 8th grade boys and their parents to think differently and bigger about the High School decision. “Differently” because primary educators should be the primary decision makers. “Bigger” because boys should not ask “what’s in it for me?” when choosing a school; rather, they should ask “where can I best prepare to give?” The high school decision matters–it’s a choice of worldview, friendship, faculty, faith. Listen in to hear Rich’s thoughts on how best to approach the decision, no matter where your son wants to go,…

This week on HeightsCast we feature Sarah Mackenzie, an author and mother who is leading a movement to bring reading aloud back into our homes. When was the last time you read aloud to your children? Many of us really lost steam when our boys started reading to themselves. As Sarah explains in The Read-Aloud Family, reading aloud has both academic and formational benefits for children of all ages. Moreover, it draws us closer together as families! To kick-start the revival, give this episode a listen. Additional Resources: The Read…

Heights students are given the freedom to choose their outfits, so long as they adhere to the dress code. What are the virtues that our boys can build by dressing well, and how can we as teachers bring that growth about, one half-widsor and tucked in shirt at at time? Listen in to hear Mr. Joel Sellier address all of these questions in this episode of HeightsCast.

Headmaster Alvaro de Vicente addresses freedom and smart phones. These devices can be incredible tools, but only if used with a proper sense of self-mastery. Is there an age when boys are ready and can be deemed to have the necessary self-mastery? Though we are thoroughly skeptical of the high school age, there are no hard and fast answers to that question. Regardless, our headmaster is able to offer some helpful factors to consider.

Last episode we addressed the importance of properly and prudently handling wildlife. Once your boy has the prudence and courage needed to fully experience the wild, a nature journal is a great next step for our budding naturalists. Join Mr. Eric Heil for a conversation about how to keep a nature journal. Of course, this is only an introduction to what is covered in more detail here. Happy journaling to all youngsters of adventurous good will during these, the last two weeks of summer!

We’ve all been there. A boy in your care looks earnestly into your eyes, rabid with excitement; he’s found a critter and he wants to catch it. What do you do?

We are a liberal arts school, but we embrace contemporary literature that leads our students to the good, the true, and the beautiful. Not all of it does, though. And, even those moderns that are positively formational often do so by leaning, in some way, on the older great authors of the older great books.  To fully appreciate the new, you must be familiar with the old. Contrary to the notion that we are hiding our students from contemporary literature, we are, instead, curating a selection of books–old and new–that enriches…

Arthur Brooks, President of the American Enterprise Institute, joins us for a conversation about college that will benefit students, parents, and teachers. He challenges the assumption that every prep school grad should attend college right away at any cost, and he offers fantastic insights about the entire college experience–from college choice, to choice of majors, to engagement with students and faculty who think differently. Continuing the introduction: The Conservative Heart Gross National Happiness The Arthur Brooks Show Finally, for another, excellent discussion with Arthur, check out Conversations with Bill Kristol.