“You get to take Latin!”: On the Benefits of Classical Studies
Classics teachers Mr. Myers and Dr. Yaceczko discuss the benefits of classical studies in the acquisition of both practical and theoretical knowledge.
Purposeful Study: 5 Non-Grade Related Reasons for Hard Work
Today on HeightsCast, Joe Cardenas, Head of Mentoring at The Heights, proposes 5 purposes of study. Our boys should always have a “why” in mind before they roll up their sleeves and dive into their study. But are grades enough? Not really–at least they shouldn’t be. Joe argues that there is a deeper purpose to our deep study.
Forming Deep Workers, Part II
Dr. Cal Newport joins us for Part II of his interview on Forming Deep Workers. What does a middle or high school deep worker look like? Cal Newport discusses APs, Classroom Tech, College Admissions, and more.
Forming Deep Workers, Part I
This podcast features Cal Newport, author of Deep Work, So Good They Can’t Ignore You, and How to Be a High School Superstar. Dr. Newport, a Computer Science professor at Georgetown University, has a strong following in The Heights community, as his notions of deep work jive perfectly with our attempts to raise contemplative sons and competent professionals.
Dr. Mehan on The Odyssey, Mentors, and Humanitas
This week on HeightsCast Dr. Matt Mehan offers his thoughts on Homer’s Odyssey. In particular, Dr. Mehan focuses on the the first four books of the Odyssey and the arts of friendship and mentoring young men. Listen in for a concrete example of the contemporary applicability of the artes liberales.
Tweaking the Literary Diet: Coaching the Reluctant and Precocious Reader in the Art of Reading
Join Mr. Tom Longano for part two of his series on raising readers. He provides guidance here for refining the reading habits of two diametrically opposed categories of readers. No silver bullets, just points for consideration and reflection. Also, insights into Mr. Longano’s personal journey towards a love of reading.
Three Components of a “Great” Summer: Colin Gleason on Journals, Schedules, and Service
“Have a great summer!” We hear it and say it incessantly, but what are we actually wishing for our boys? 21st Century America gives boys 3 months off–that is one quarter of the year and an enormous amount of time. Join Lower School Head, Colin Gleason, for a discussion of three ways that boys can fill their summer with healthy leisure and positive growth.
The Morning Offering as a Daily Renewal: Michael Ortiz on Like the First Morning
Can a 20 second prayer transform your day? How about your son’s? Heights teacher and author, Michael Ortiz, discusses how a century old norm of piety–the Morning Offering–allows us to renew each and every day while placing our prayers, works, joys, and sufferings on the altar. Our guest this episode is Mr. Michael Ortiz, longtime Heights teacher and recipient of three National Endowment for the Humanities fellowships. Michael had his children’s novel, Swan Town: The Secret Journal of Susanna Shakespeare, published in 2006, and in this episode, discusses the topic…
Stop Telling Your Son to Read: How to Inspire a Love of Reading
In this episode, we talk to Mr. Tom Longano, a lower school teacher at The Heights School, about how to foster a love of reading in our sons and students. The conventional approach of commanding, exhorting, cajoling, and bribing might not be the best way.
Mr. Alvaro de Vicente on Moral Imagination: Part 2
Continuing last week’s lecture on the Moral Imagination, in this episode Mr. de Vicente turns his attention to the ways in which parents and educators can cultivate the moral imagination of their sons and students. Neither beasts nor boulders of marble, he explains how a proper approach to education must be rooted in an understanding of man’s freedom; that is, it ought to be neither mere training nor external sculpting. As the Japanese proverb goes, vision without action is a daydream; action without vision, a nightmare. If last week’s segment…