This past year was our first year in a Classical Conversations Challenge program. We have experience with Foundations and Essentials, but Challenge was new for us. Our daughter is 12 years old and in the seventh grade. It has been a wonderful year! There are things that we love about the program and some things that we have not enjoyed as much- after all, no curriculum is perfect. To help others in their curriculum planning, here is a list of our pros and cons for CC Challenge A.
Please remember that these are the pros and cons for OUR family, OUR lifestyle and OUR homeschooling style. A pro for us may be a con for you and vice-versa! Every family and every student is unique. I am providing this list in hopes that it will trigger ideas and thoughts to help other parents as they make curriculum decisions for their own family. So, with that said, here it is…
PROS
- Community- We live in a very small town so our group options are limited. We are also new to the area- CC gave our daughter an instant friend group. Every community is different and this is why it is imperative that you and your child visit to see if you are comfortable with the group.
- Discussion- If you already have a tween you know their need for discussion- they enjoy bantering and debating topics, they have opinions and want them to be heard! My daughter loves getting to discuss what she is reading with her Challenge classmates. Sure we can discuss the books she is reading at home (and we do!), but it is invigorating for her to hear the different views of her classmates. She loves this part!
- Accountability- For her and me! Life is busy! While I would love to say that left to my own devices I would ensure that my daughter was writing a paper every 3 weeks or creating a science presentation every week, the truth is I am not that disciplined. Illness, travel, work, animals, family- all these distractions can take over if we are not careful with our time. That “due date” set by the Challenge schedule ensures that we get the presentation, the paper, the science fair project, or whatever it is done in a timely manner. I appreciate that!
- Geography- Again, left to our own devices I’m sure my daughter and I would not choose a geography program that requires learning to draw the entire world!! She despises drawing! But this has been such an amazing and worthwhile endeavor! The knowledge she has gained will benefit her throughout her lifetime. Also, it has given our daughter a great sense of accomplishment. She appreciates the fact that when she reads or hears a news story she knows the location!
- Subjects- Everything is laid out for you. You in no way need to worry that something is being missed. If your child is completing the work in Challenge they are getting an excellent education. This is a pro and a con in my opinion as you will see below.
- Presentations/ Public Speaking- Learning to speak in front of a group is a skill that simply cannot be duplicated at home. This is one of my favorite aspects of the Classical Conversations program as a whole.
- Tutor- Having adult mentors (other than mom & dad) can be such a positive influence in a child’s life! I love that my children have gained so many wonderful role models in our community. However, I have included this on the pros and cons list because every community and every tutor is different. Make sure you meet the tutor for your community.
CONS
- Lack of Subject Choices- Everything is laid out for you- which can be a comforting pro but it also means you have less ability to customize your child’s education. Yes, as the parent you can make certain tweaks within the framework of the CC curriculum but for your student to participate in class you have to commit to doing the CC selected assignments, books, papers, and projects. If you choose to completely eliminate a subject, you are ultimately limiting their ability to participate in class. I am sure that this really depends on your child and your community- do you have a kiddo who will be ok feeling a little “lost” during one of the class strands? Do you have a tutor who is ok with kids not participating in one strand? There are lots of other curriculum options that I would love to use, but ultimately when committing to CC Challenge there is not
time for much else. - Time- It is recommended that students spend 1 hour on each strand per day. One hour of individual work is a hefty load. For us (and I’m sure many families) we don’t always have time to spend 6 hours on school work every single day of the week. We have found that spending 4.5-5 hours per day and perhaps an hour or two over the weekend to finish up has been sufficient. There is definitely enough work for 6 hours per day but we just can’t always meet that.
- Schedule- CC Challenge is 30 weeks out of the year and the schedule is set by the Director. For those that love to travel (like us), the schedule can be confining. One of the reasons we began homeschooling was for freedom from a school schedule. We could travel during the off season! We could homeschool year round so that we could go away for a long weekend. Signing up for Challenge means committing to the set schedule for the year. This is a definite con for us, but we have managed to work around it.
- Henle Latin- Challenge A Latin is fast and furious. In all honesty, given the option we would use a different Latin program. However, Henle Latin has been doable and my daughter still LOVES Latin. To work around the seemingly lack of explanations in the Henle books, I did purchase the Memoria Press Teachers Guide to Henle. The explanations and answer key have helped a ton. Also, we have focused on memorization of endings, vocab, and grammar rules. Then when there is time we work through exercises. Keeping the focus on building that strong understanding of the basics has made the pace of Henle bearable. Students will go through the same exercises in Challenge B.
- Cost- There is much debate about this topic and I personally believe that each family has to determine this for themselves. For
some it will be worth the money, for others it will not. I do at times think- ugh, for the expense of CC I could place my child in an online class with a Latin teacher who knows and loves Latin… but again she would miss out on that personal connection of class time with close friends- that is worth the cost to us. - Tutor- The tutor can make or break the program. A tutor that is not providing a positive experience for the class can quickly turn your Challenge experience into a nightmare. As I said above, make sure you meet the tutor for your community.
Will CC Challenge A work for your family?
These are just some of the pros and cons for our family. At this time, for us, the pros outweigh the cons and CC Challenge A has provided us with a great year- read about our
If you are considering CC, my best advice is to visit and see if the campus is a match for you and your children. The “flavor” of each campus varies, so visiting a prospective campus is so important! We have been a part of CC since my daughter was in 2nd grade, but the year before Challenge we still visited 2 different Challenge A classes! We went to the class on our campus in the fall and then the class at a different campus about an hour away in the spring (near the end of the 30 weeks). I loved getting a view of two different classes. Also, visiting at the beginning and the end of the program allowed me to see the flow of the overall program and how it built upon itself over the year.
So is Classical Conversations Challenge A the perfect curriculum?
CC has provided my daughter with a year rich in experience and learning. Is it perfect? No, it is not… but it works for us. If there is one thing I have learned on this homeschooling journey it’s that there is no perfect curriculum. You just have to find what works for your family during each season of life. I do believe that CC provides an excellent education, as long as parents stay involved and you are part of a strong community.
For more details about the CC Challenge A curriculum, check out my post titled The Beginner’s Guide to Classical Conversations Challenge A. It explains each strand of the program in detail.
Any Questions?
If you have any questions about the CC Challenge A program please let me know in the comments below. I’m happy to help any way I can!
Happy Curriculum Searching!
