August 14-15, 2023
Summer Workshops for Teachers
The Heights School • Potomac, MD
Join us for two days of deep study in an environment of friendship, featuring lectures and breakout sessions during the day, and cheerful camaraderie in the evening.
Focused Study & Thoughtful Reflection
At least three things are necessary for the work of a teacher: knowledge (and love) of his subject, a love (and knowledge) of his students, and the ability to bring the two together—that is, to communicate. In none of these areas is a teacher ever done growing. The purpose of the workshops is to support teachers by offering an opportunity for deep study in an environment of friendship.
The workshops will help teachers deepen their understanding of a particular discipline or aspect of teaching while helping them see how their particular work fits into the whole of a liberal arts education. The result of such a deepening will be a greater appreciation for and love of the discipline itself, as well as a better understanding of why such discipline is worth studying and, therefore, worth teaching.
Mentoring Workshop
Workshop Leader:
Join Heights Director of Mentoring Joe Cardenas for a two-day seminar on the nuts and bolts of mentoring. This workshop is targeted to the new or aspiring mentor. Of course, administrators interested in training their faculty would find the content most beneficial. Topics for discussion include:
- Building Rapport with New Mentees
- Difficult Conversations and Unique Challenges
- Parent Communications
- Mentor as Liaison to Other Faculty
- The Mentality and Challenges of the 21st Century Youth
- Mentoring in Freedom: Building Personal Agency
Participants will be asked to read one book, He Knows Not How, along with a short packet of readings in advance of the first session. The seminar will be capped at 20 participants.
Shakespeare Workshop
Workshop Leader:
Matt Mehan
Associate Dean & Assistant Professor of Government, Graduate School of Government, Hillsdale College Learn more about Matt MehanJoin Hillsdale College’s Dr. Matthew Mehan for a two-day intensive seminar on Shakespeare and the Education of Leaders. Those of us who see the arts of liberty as worth preserving employ the works of William Shakespeare without question. Yet, as we seek to transmit the great works of our tradition to the next generation, it is entirely possible to do the right things for the wrong reasons, or for no reason at all.
Do we—both as teachers and as members of this tradition—understand why the bard has ever been the boon of teachers seeking to form leaders? If we don’t, we risk inoculating or immunizing our students against the priceless treasures found in these works. On the other hand, if we do, and if we continually deepen our own appreciation for the layers upon layers of meaning conveyed by Shakespeare’s immortal words, then we offer our students a solid rock upon which to stand as they, themselves, undertake the great work of prudential leadership.
Participants will be expected to read two to three of Shakespeare’s works prior to the workshop, along with excerpts from other major historical works. The seminar will be capped at 20 participants. Topics of reading and discussion include:
- Hamlet and Beowulf
- Julius Caesar and Cicero’s De Amicitia
- Shakespeare’s Sir Thomas More
Latin Workshop
Workshop Leader:
Beginning with the end in mind, the goal of this workshop is to help teachers and curriculum developers clarify and communicate the goals for their school’s Latin curriculum. To do this, the workshop will focus on three main areas: motivation, pedagogy, and assessment. First, motivation: Why Latin? To teach history? To improve students’ SAT scores? To teach grammar? Second, pedagogy: Wheelock or Ørberg? Grammar-Translation or spoken immersion? What if a teacher doesn’t speak Latin? Finally, assessment: How do we track progress? What about the AP Latin Exam or the National Latin Exam? Through a consideration of these and similar questions, teachers will leave the workshop with more approaches in their teaching quiver, regardless of what textbook they use in their own classroom (if a textbook is used, that is)—not to mention new professional friends who will be both pleasant companions and useful colleagues.
Registration for the summer workshops will be announced in early 2024.