Western Culture: Christendom 1
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Western Culture 3-1: Early Medievals

Early Medievals is the first unit of Christendom, year three in the Old Western Culture curriculum on the Great Books. Early Medievals, The Growth of European Christianity, introduces students to life in the Middle Ages from a Christian perspective.

Description

Christendom: Early Medievals, The Growth of European Christianity, introduces students to life in the Middle Ages from a Christian perspective. Students will read about the military exploits of the Eastern Roman Empire under the emperor Justinian as chronicled by Procopius, the last great historian of the Roman world. Learn how the development of monasticism preserved learning and culture after the fall of the Roman Empire, contrary to Enlightenment assumptions. Learn about the central role that Irish Christianity played in the spread of the gospel through the lives of St. Patrick, Bede, and others. Enjoy the timeless tales of Beowulf, Alfred and Great, and the origins of Arthurian legend that have shaped the Anglo-Saxon imagination for centuries.

WHAT’S INCLUDED IN EARLY MEDIEVALS?

Accompanying materials include:
– A Student Workbook and Answer Key in PDF format (optional physical versions available).
– A “Guide to the Art” booklet (24 page booklet).
– An A and B exam with teacher guide and answer key for.
– All required texts in eText (PDF and Kindle edition). Physical books recommended for the pleasure of the reader.

THE WORKBOOK
The workbook gives the student questions to answer for every reading assignment and lecture, discussion questions to think about, and a host of further resources for the student that wants to go further (or study for a paper!). The Answer Key at the back of the textbook will give the recommended answer to all the essay questions. We encourage students to answer the questions on their own before referencing the Answer Key.

Additional information

Teacher

Wesley Callihan

Format

Streaming

Credit

1/2 HS Literature/History

Age

14+

Age/Grade

,

Lessons

Lecture List For Early Medievals

1. Historical Overview of Christendom
2. Benedict’s Rule and Monasticism
3. Transition to the Middle Ages
4. Procopius and Gregory
5. Maximus the Confessor
6. Celtic Christians
7. Beowulf
8. Bede I: Early History of England
9. Bede II: The Coming of Christianity
10. Bede III: The Confirming of Christianity
11. Lives of Charlemagne and Alfred
12. John of Damascus

FAQs

WHAT IS “OLD WESTERN CULTURE”?

“Old Western Culture” is a literature curriculum named after a term coined by C.S. Lewis to describe the fabric of ideas that shaped Western Civilization. For centuries, a “Great Books” education lay at the heart of what it meant to be educated. It was the education of the Church Fathers, of the Medieval Church, of the Reformers, and of all the Founding Fathers of the Unites States.

– It is a CLASSICAL EDUCATION, based on the great books of western civilization.
– It is a CHRISTIAN EDUCATION, which sees the history and literature of the West through the eyes of the Bible and historic Christianity.
– It is an INTEGRATED HUMANITIES CURRICULUM, bringing together literature, history, philosophy, doctrine, geography, and art.
– It is a HOMESCHOOL oriented curriculum, made by homeschoolers with the needs of homeschooled in mind, including flexibility, affordability, and ease-of-use.
We bring a master-teacher into your home, and encourage parents to gain an overview of Western Civilization themselves by watching the video lessons with their children.

HOW DOES OLD WESTERN CULTURE WORK?

Old Western Culture is a video course. It is built around a master teacher, Wes Callihan. With decades of teaching experience, he guides students through the story of Western civilization. Early Medievals contains 12 video lessons.
Each lesson begins with a brief review before jumping into summary, commentary, analysis, and inter-disciplnary connections of the works covered. After each lesson, students complete the assigned readings, and asnswer comprehension questions in the Student Workbook or online workbook.

WHY DO PEOPLE LOVE WES CALLIHAN?

Wes Callihan is a master story teller! With a remarkable ability to communicate a passion for history and literature, he makes profound ideas accessible, relevent, and interesting. Also known for his distinctive “rabbit trailers,” forays into funny and obscure historical anactodes, which have a way of showing up at the dinner table. (After all, rabbit trails are “hooks for the imagination and memory.”) Wes Callihan is a true classical scholar, fluent in both Latin and Greek. He lectures only from the notes in the margins of his worn copies of the Great Books. “Meet him” through THIS VIDEO TOUR of his personal library, which doubled as a mini-lecture!

PREREQUISITES

Old Western Culture is intended for mature and discerning students. We recommend this course for ages 14 and up. The course will deal with mature themes such as paganism, sexual immorality, battle scenes (mostly in actual reading), and classical paintings. Old Western Culture is meant to equip your child with a Biblical lens from which to process these themes. We assume your child has a working knowledge of the Bible and basic Christian doctrine.

CREDITS

Each year of Old Western Culture is a double-credit Humanities course which is most commonly broken down into 1 Literature credit and 1 History credit. The double-credit assumes that the student will watch all the videos, read the required reading, answer the daily worksheets, and take 4 exams (one for each unit). This a robust course academically, and requires a fair bit of reading. Wesley Callihan will coach your student on how to approach the reading in the video. Average daily reading load is 30-40 pages.
As an “integrated humanities” course, Old Western Culture will constantly be incorporating history, literature, theology, philosophy, art, and art history, all through the eyes of the Great Books.

Sample Lesson

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