Volume 1, Issue 17
November 13, 2020
ST. JOHN CHRYSOSTOM
(November 13)
& ST. GREGORY PALAMAS
(November 14)
ON EDUCATION
Orthodox Education Resources
for the Saints and Feasts of
including the upcoming feast of
The Entry of Theotokos
into the Temple
SAINT JOHN CHRYSOSTOM
on Education:

A Patristic Paradigm for Education from the Three Holy Hierarchs: St. Basil the Great, St. Gregory the Theologian, and St. John Chrysostom; plus, St. Gregory of Nyssa

Part 1: Why Christian Education Always Starts in the Home Within the Life of the Church

Part 2: Realizing St. John Chrysostom's Vision for Christian Education in a Post-Christian World


SAINT GREGORY PALAMAS
on Education:



I have had the great blessing over the last few years to do my doctoral research on one of the greatest saints of our Church, a great saint and theologian, Saint Gregory Palamas. What I want to do today is to try to take this great learning and the great life of Saint Gregory and try to pull out some principles for you, some guidelines..
WRITING
Writing Resource for Home and Classroom Educators:
Our speaker today is Andrew Kern. Mr. Kern is a researcher, teacher, and consultant on classical education. He homeschooled, with his wife, their five children who are now grown. He has trained many homeschool and classroom teachers through an apprenticeship program in his company. Andrew has also helped start several private schools over the years and has been a classical education consultant for more than 20 years.
Writing Opportunities for Orthodox Youth:
Essay entries accepted from Jan. 1 - March 1, 2021.
Open to all Orthodox Children
regardless of jurisdiction, method of schooling, or country of residence.
Essay Topic - Option #1:
St. Paisios the Athonite writes,
"Because modern conveniences have exceeded all bounds, they have become inconveniences. Machines have multiplied and so have distractions;
man has been turned into a machine. 
All kinds of machines and inventions now rule over man. This is why human hearts are turning into steel." 
How do you see St. Paisios' words relating to education today? How should families and schools approach modern technology in relationship to education? 
In your essay, work to develop depth and breadth, using concrete examples and drawing from the wisdom of the Church in developing your position
Essay Topic - Option #2:
St. Nectarios of Aegina writes,
"Who can deny that it is mothers who produce great and virtuous men?"
Write an essay on what you think St. Nectarios means when he says these words in relationship to the role and importance of mothers in the formation of saints. You may want to consider the Theotokos, St. Anna, and other mothers of saints in your response, including both how they were raised and how they parented their children. Further, you may also want to consider the role of mothers in the home within the life of the family today. In your essay, work to develop depth and breadth, using concrete examples and drawing from the wisdom of the Church in developing your position.
Essay entry deadline is December 16, 2020.
Open to all Orthodox Children regardless of jurisdiction or method of schooling.
Future of Orthodoxy
Monthly Periodical
BY Orthodox Youth, FOR Orthodox Youth
Open to all Orthodox Children
regardless of jurisdiction, method of schooling, or country of residence.
Building a Library of Orthodox Children's Books
The top 100 favorite Orthodox children's books of the editors of Saint Kosmas Orthodox Education will be presented to you one book at a time as a new regular feature of our bi-monthly newsletter. We hope that for families just starting an Orthodox children's library in their home, the pace of this presentation (two or three books per month) may be a realistic pace for collecting the books. The sequence that the books are presented does not imply any rating or hierarchy. However, we are putting forth first the books that are the most foundational to your child's early catechism in the Orthodox faith.

By Metropolitan Hierotheos Vlachos
“A Visual Catechism” is a book written in an original way, which offers essential information to young children and those wishing to come to the Orthodox Church and be baptised. In a simple and concise manner it communicates the basic truths of our faith and what the Orthodox Church is. The first part of the book contains iconographic illustrations with short titles which make clear the central meaning of the picture. In the second part there are brief explanations which analyse and interpret the illustration in more detail. Thus the book provides a visual catechism and makes us aware of Orthodox teachings.
HOMESCHOOLING
HSLDA:
  • Dark Blue: No notice required
  • Light Blue: Low Regulation
  • Light Purple: Moderate regulation
  • Dark Purple: High Regulation
Orthodox Homeschool Alumni and Parents
Share Their Experiences and Offer Encouragement for the Homeschool Journey
An Interview with:
  • A Civil Engineer
  • An Artist / Homeschool Mom
  • A Medical Lab Technician
An Interview with:
  • A Medical Doctor
  • An Architect
  • A Financial Journalist
To introduce myself a little bit, my husband and I have seven children, all grown now. I started homeschooling in 1991 with kindergarten for my oldest, and finished in 2015, with my two youngest graduating from high school. Everybody went the whole way through at home. I was asked to focus on the most frequently asked questions, or “getting started,” and the most frequently asked question I got, all through those years, was “How can you do it?” with the idea that maybe I can’t do it, or it’s too hard, or how are you sure you know what to do?

... Each of our families is vastly different. Our relationship with our husband is what our children watch throughout the whole time that we are on this homeschooling adventure and this adventure of parenting. It is the gospel that we preach to them without words over all these years. As I mentioned, I am a sinner, married to a sinner. So, the foremost thing that we realize, is that a life of repentance is what we hope to model to our children, asking forgiveness, begging God for Grace to really own our own human frailty, and to be honest about that with our children...
Entry deadline extended until March 1, 2021.
Make the Saint Kosmas Art & Photography Contest
part of your child's school year!
Supporting Orthodox Vendors
(updates/corrections on three products that we have promoted)
To guarantee delivery of chocolates by December 6
(St. Nicholas Day on New Calendar), order chocolates by Thanksgiving. Questions? Contact Studion Ministries. Purchase of this product supports St. Katherine's Monastery on Sinai.
is on SALE from Nov. 10-16
Each month lists saints and feasts of note for both the Old and New Calendar, as well as fasting days. We also have handy Festal Planners to help organize instruction for feasts. They run through July 2021
To pre-order the wooden block church, contact Alex by email: <alex@orthodoxtoys.com>.
Though pre-orders now for the block church will not deliver until January, other products such as the Orthodox Iconostasis deliver in time for Nativity 2020.
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