William C. Michael

If you would like to prepare a homeschool trasncript for a child, we recommend using the following template, which we developed with the help of a college admissions office for use by homeschool students. Google Docs: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-27nthAuLL0yZJaJa9fM4LZvBH-WoYX8m5HTcTvrHCg/edit?usp=sharing

CLAA Homeschool Series Everything you need to know about homeschooling with the Classical Liberal Arts Academy. Most parents begin homeschooling with the assumption that “school” is something defined by the modern K–12 system, and therefore homeschooling must mean recreating that same system in the home. They imagine large facilities, bureacratic procedures, fixed schedules, grade levels, marking periods, and report cards—only performed around the kitchen table instead of in a school building. This misunderstanding is the root of almost all homeschool frustration. Homeschooling in the Classical Liberal Arts Academy is not “school at home.” It is a restoration of the Christian … Continue

Porphyry’s Introduction offers a careful explanation of how the five predicables—Genus, Difference, Species, Property, and Accident—relate to one another. These comparisons help us understand how each term functions in logic, and how they are similar or different when used to describe the natures of things. Genus and Difference Both genus and difference can be said of species and of individuals. They are not destroyed when their subjects cease to exist, because they describe general natures that remain in thought. Yet, genus and difference are not equal. A genus is said of more things than a difference, for it is broader. … Continue

Prelection Welcome to the Classical Liberal Arts Academy. This lecture is intended for students enrolled in the Academy’s Classical Reasoning I course. If you’re not enrolled and would like to join us for self-paced studies, visit classicalliberalarts.com. My name is William Michael. I’m the academy headmaster, and I’ll be leading this study of Chapter One of Porphyry’s Introduction. Porphyry was a Greek philosopher who lived from 234 to 305 AD. He wrote this work, the Introduction, as a commentary on Aristotle’s Categories—really a preparation for the study of Aristotle’s Categories. He wrote this around 268–270 AD. The Introduction is called … Continue

In Jewish and Christian literature and art, we find the patriarch Abraham described as the father of the mathematical sciences.  If we read the Old Testament, we never find Abraham explicitly descrived as a mathematician or scientist. In the Bible, Abraham is honored as a man who lived by faith—a patriarch called by God to leave his homeland and trust in God’s promises. There appears to be no mention of experience with any of the mathematical arts. So, where did this tradition interpretation of Abraham the mathematician come from? The inspiration for that later interpretation is found in Genesis 15:5, where … Continue

Prelection Welcome to the Classical Liberal Arts Academy. This lecture is intended for students enrolled in the Academy’s Classical Arithmetic course. If you’re not enrolled and would like to join us for self-paced studies, visit classicalliberalarts.com. My name is William Michael. I’m the Academy headmaster, and I’ll be leading this study of Book One, Chapter One of Nicomachus’ Introduction to Arithmetic. In this lesson, we study the opening chapter of Nicomachus’ Introduction to Arithmetic, which was written by Nicomachus of Gerasa, a Greek mathematician and philosopher who lived in the first or second century AD, so just after the Apostolic … Continue

Private school administrators and teachers know how difficult it has become to offer students a sound and truly Catholic education. Many see the same problems—rising costs, overworked faculty, and shallow, modern curricula—but do not see how to fix them. In my articles “How to Fix Catholic Education — Part I: The Model” and “How to Fix Catholic Education — Part II: The Curriculum,” I explained that these problems come from two sources: The modern school model, which is designed for administration, not formation. The modern curriculum, which has replaced the classical liberal arts with a fragmented system of modern subjects. … Continue