“If an unfriendly foreign power had attempted to impose on America the mediocre educational performance that exists today, we might well have viewed it as an act of war.”
Curricular Philosophy
The mission of Liberty Common School is to provide excellence and fairness in education through a common foundation by successfully teaching a contextual body of organized knowledge, the values of a democratic society, and the skills of learning.
Fidelity to Liberty Common School’s curricular philosophy is critical to achieving the school’s mission. Professional, content-expert classroom instructors deliver an academically rigorous, knowledge-based curriculum. K-8th-grade students study the Core Knowledge Curriculum; 9th–12th-grade students study a classically-oriented, college-preparatory curriculum. Upon earning a diploma from Liberty Common School, students are prepared to succeed in post-secondary education pursuits.
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Knowledge—Children throughout the country are starving for education and meaning. The LCS curriculum sates their hunger while earning the school recurrent awards for academic excellence. It is more important for children to know information than it is for them to know how to find information.
As children complete each academic year with the same building blocks of knowledge, they are equally empowered to flourish and expand their knowledge in subsequent years. Upon graduating from LCS, each student has had an equal opportunity to be prepared for success at the university level.
America’s uncommon diversity means there exist in any given classroom children from varied home cultures. An education based on common knowledge affords students from diverse backgrounds the ability to collaborate and cooperate in society around a shared background of cultural literacy. When individuals know the same information, they cooperate and collaborate more effectively and joyfully.
Skills of learning—Memorization, analysis, critical thinking, writing, and problem-solving are important skills one must learn to capably apply knowledge and lead in a civil society.
After gaining a wide familiarity with literature, history, science, math, music, people, and places, as one does in the early years of Core Knowledge, students begin appreciating patterns and forms. Following this, students ably engage in mental modeling, which is possible only when one’s broad background-knowledge allows her or him to associate ideas and observe patterns.
LCS students memorize poetry, math facts, and important dates in history. They learn to think critically, write essays, and solve complex problems. LCS students learn and hone these skills while working within the knowledge-based curriculum, writing about content previously studied. This is distinct from methods government-run schools employ to teach the skills of learning, where students frequently write about their feelings, interests, or uninformed opinions.
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Beginning in wonder, classical education nurtures the intellectual, moral, aesthetic, and physical capacities of students with a rich and ordered course of study, grounded in the traditional seven liberal arts and leading through language, literature, history, mathematics, natural sciences, fine arts, and philosophy. Premised on the pursuit of truth, goodness, and beauty, classical education aspires to transmit our inherited cultural endowment of wisdom and excellence to successive generations, thus cultivating virtuous neighbors and citizens (def. by National Council for Classical Education). The classical approach to education can be described as a journey to meaning. It begins with students acquiring knowledge through a wide familiarity with literature, history, science, math, music, arts, people, and places. Liberty’s purpose is to lead young people on an odyssey of the mind and heart, which will steer them towards self-reliance.
As students gear up for college tests, here is one big thing to keep in mind: There is no substitute for knowledge.
The ability to complete college-level work is fundamentally what college-readiness assessments like the SAT, ACT, and other similar tests attempt to measure. High scores logically reflect Liberty’s rich curriculum, and the test taker’s preparation throughout primary and secondary school.
While maintaining a predilection classical education, Liberty offers courses which are distinctly oriented to college readiness. We consistently achieve results that are among the state’s highest when compared to all Colorado high schools. Independent analyses have ranked Liberty first in the state throughout most of the school’s existence.
Liberty offers high-quality college counseling, indicating we are serious about college preparation. Liberty keeps its students on track to SAT and ACT success by administering the associated pre-tests in the years leading up to their junior year in high school.
Liberty insists upon a challenging course load right through the senior year. We do not believe in shortcuts. We know the easy way through high school is the hardest way through college.