Summer Workshops for Teachers

Deep Study in an Environment of Friendship

August 14-15 • The Heights School • Potomac, MD

Join us for focused study and 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.

August 14-15

Teachers Workshops

Two days of intensive study designed to help teachers deepen their knowledge and improve their ability to communicate both what they teach and why they teach it.

Join us for a workshop on Mentoring or Shakespeare.

Mentoring Workshop

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.

Click here for a discussion of how every teacher can be a mentor, regardless of whether his school has a formal mentoring program.

Why attend a workshop on mentoring?

Shakespeare Workshop

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.

Join Hillsdale College’s Dr. Matthew Mehan for a two-day intensive seminar on Shakespeare and the Education of Leaders.  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

Click here to listen to a discussion with Dr. Mehan on teaching Shakespeare.

What can the Bard teach us about wit, wisdom, and the formation of leaders?

“A wise teacher will choose particular areas of his subject which he believes will be both interesting and illuminating and will find that his increasing knowledge of them will give him a sense of mastery, will keep him from feeling he is merely plying a trade, and will somehow carry over to his pupils.”

–The Art of Teaching, Gilbert Highet

Regular Admission

Space Limited
$250

Early Bird Discount

Available Through May 31
$150

Stay Updated

The workshops will take place August 14 and 15. Registration is now open.