Testimonials: Student Voices

The voices on this page belong to St. Thomas Aquinas Academy students reflecting on their courses and the lessons that have stayed with them. Their reviews are organized by historical cycle. Read straight through, or use the links below to jump to a particular cycle.

If you are exploring whether STAA might be a good fit for your family, you are warmly invited to schedule a free consultation with an advisor.

In This Section

• U.S. Studies
• Greek Studies
• Roman Studies
• European Studies
• Science

U.S. Studies

U.S. Studies is the historical cycle for ninth grade. Students study American history, literature, and Catholic faith in the New World, alongside U.S. History-Based Writing Lessons.

“We enjoyed how clear Miss Bethany was for expectations for homework, behavior, assignments and class time. We loved how easy it was to see what was due when. We are so grateful for her thorough feedback on each and every assignment. Miss Bethany was kind, amiable and knowledgeable. Everything was well organized. The sheer amount of information that was packed into this course was incredible.”

“The lesson that I benefited from most, and continue to benefit from, was lesson five. This lesson contained the Story Sequence Chart. The Story Sequence Chart is a simple structure that uses simple questions to help break down telling a three-paragraph story. “Each paragraph has a distinct purpose. The first paragraph tells about the people or animals in the story and when and where they live. The second paragraph tells about the conflict or problem that occurs within the story. The third paragraph begins with the climax, the turning point in the story, and ends with the resolution, the events that occur after the climax.” (U. S. History Based Writing Lessons lesson 5 pg. 43) I felt that with this structure I gained new freedom. Everything came a lot easier when I asked myself the questions, “who is in the story? What are they like? What do they need/want? What do they say and do?” Writing became less overwhelming and more enjoyable. I feel confident that I will take this skill of breaking things down and accomplishing them step by step throughout my entire life.”

— A. B., Grade 8

“I really liked the Teaching the Classics discs and lessons, and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was really engaging. At times I found the book crude, but overall I enjoyed it.”

“Since I was little, I’ve always loved to read. I had picked up the Adventures of Tom Sawyer a few years ago at the library after my brother told me how exciting the book was. I loved the story, so I was looking forward to reading another of Twain’s books this semester, but I had accustomed to the thought that I wouldn’t enjoy reading if it was part of my schoolwork. Throughout the weeks, I found that, rather than distracting me from what I was reading, the course assignments prompted me to delve deeper into the story and savor each chapter more than I would have normally. Huck’s insight on life is so interesting, and I looked forward to seeing how he dealt with strange problems and characters. Dishonesty came easily to him in every situation, but for a short moment in chapter 31, he experienced the wonderful feeling of honesty. “I felt good and all washed clean of sin for the first time I had ever felt so in my life, and I knowed I could pray now.” (Twain 238) Huck’s struggle with his conscience was the aspect of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn that I found most intriguing.”

— A. S., Grade 9

“I enjoyed reading Our Lady of Guadalupe and the Conquest of Darkness. The geography was the most challenging part of this course for me.”

“Coming into my first semester of high school, I was not looking forward to History and Geography. It had never been one of my favorite subjects in middle school, and more times than not, I left more confused than I had been before I opened the history book. But the materials in this course had me really intrigued, and I enjoyed reading about the origin of our country and the notable Catholics throughout the centuries. I loved how the lessons intertwined so well with some of my other subjects, such as Composition and Church History. The topic that struck me the most was how prominent the Catholic faith was in the lives of some of the most famous explorers and heroes in Christ and the Americas. Despite the many horrors and setbacks they faced, the Church on earth persevered to complete their holy mission. As St. Elizabeth Ann Seton said, “May the most holy and high will of God be accomplished forever.” (Carroll 142)”

— A. S., Grade 9

“Although I went into this class intimidated by the difficulty of the work, it ended up being the highlight of my semester. I enjoyed the live classes and discussing my faith and morals with other Catholic high schoolers.”

“Throughout my first semester, it was difficult to adjust to the schedule and workload that accompanied the freshman curriculum. My parents encouraged me to take a live class, so I could better understand the somewhat daunting material of my Church History class. As the discussions went on, I came to realize that I enjoyed spending my time talking about my studies with other students. The conversations that arose helped me see my faith in a new perspective. The readings that I would have otherwise found boring became intriguing and provided an opportunity for me to learn more about the incredible history of our Church, As the devil Screwtape remarks in The Screwtape Letters, “The humans live in time but our Enemy destines them to Eternity.” The lessons of this course renewed a fervor in me to pursue the heavenly reward of eternity that the Lord promised to us.”

— A. S., Grade 9

“The organization was excellent. The STAA Staff was extremely patient and helpful. The value was lasting. The course was enjoyable. And lastly, the difficulty was well-balanced. Overall, these qualities deserve five stars.”

“To begin with, I have throughly enjoyed this first semester of Composition. In my first live class for this subject, I learned that quality writing was extremely important because it was a way to clearly express one’s ideas and thoughts. This piece of wisdom has further deepened my love of writing. Jensen’s Punctuation and Jensen’s Grammar were indispensable in helping me navigate the English language. For instance, I used to have a difficult time finding which part of speech a word was in. But Jensen’s Grammar provided me with trustworthy test frames to correct my problem (Jensen 47). Above all, I savored the weekly discussions with Miss Bethany and the other students. In conclusion, the course exceeded my expectations and elevated my understanding and use of writing.”

— J. J., Grade 9

“I loved this course! However, it was difficult for me because this is the only class I take with STAA, and some of the assignments used outlines from other courses that I didn’t attend, such as the TRIAC outline. However, this was on my end! I think one important lesson I have learned is the toll war takes on innocent people. When we read Hiroshima by John Hersey, I learned just how deadly nuclear war is. The bomb dropped on the city is described as a “tremendous flash of light.” (Hersey 5) The people struggle with radiation sickness, injuries, and death. This made me realize just how terrifying that would be and how unethical it was for the US to drop the bomb on Hiroshima. This caused me to learn the lethality of nuclear bombing and how war changes the lives of uninvolved people forever.”

— N. F., Grade 9, on U.S. History and Geography

“This course was explained well and helped me further understand the history of our country and our faith.”

“One important lesson of this course is that nothing comes easy. The history of our world is built on battles and disagreements. However, these negative experiences built a better world that we stand in today. The book Christ and the Americas, written by Anne Carroll, shows that the founding of America was caused by many battles and many hardships, For example, “Washington wrote the Continental Congress that if they did not receive provisions soon, the army had only three choices: ‘starve, dissolve, disperse.’” shows that the Continental Army, which was the army of the colonies at the time, almost starved during the battles with the Britians. However, these difficult things all built our world today, and I wouldn’t change a thing about America.”

— N. F., Grade 9

“This course gets five stars because it teaches well how to write. Before encountering U. S. History-Based Writing Lessons by Lori Verstegen, published by the Institute for Excellence in Writing, second edition 2019, my writing was not notably engaging. Every sentence started with the subject, which makes it boring for the reader, so the sentence openers helped particularly. Effectively this composition course teaches how to write extraordinarily well. At first the dress-ups seemed completely unnecessary, but when comparing before and after they were included into a paragraph the end result was strikingly drastic. Since there is so much practice with dress-ups and sentence openers it becomes second nature to include them in all your writing. This journey into quality writing is worth the work. The stylistic techniques I have learned from this course will be used throughout my life.”

— J. O., Grade 9, on Composition IB with English Mechanics 1

“This course was great! I enjoyed all the books, yet I did not enjoy that each week I was given three to four quizzes. With so many quizzes it is very hard for me to keep up with the prescribed school weeks.”

“My favorite lesson from Jensen’s Format Writing was “The Cause and Effect Essay”. I thought it was so amazing that “The function of the cause and effect essay is to give reasons as to why something has happened or perhaps will happen in the future” (Jensen 119). Of all the books I read for Essay Writing B, I enjoyed Jensen’s Format Writing the most since it displayed so many different formats for writing a paper in such an easy manner. Jensen, Frode. Jensen’s Format Writing. Master Books, 2016.”

— C. O., Grade 9

“I thought that I learned so much from taking this course and that Miss Bethany really helped me understand everything much better and helped me improve on my writing skills. One important lesson that I think will have a lasting impact on my life would have to be the lessons on TRIAC paragraphs in the U. S. History-Based Writing Lessons Student Book. I had never learned about these kinds of paragraphs before and think they will definitely enhance my writing a lot. In lesson 30, it explains how these paragraphs help us write a great character analysis, and a well-structured one at that. It helps the writer focus on one character from a story and really hone in on how to structure the analysis on that character.”

— P. S., Grade 10, on Composition IIB with English Mechanics 2

“The course organization was excellent. The STAA staff was wonderful. The lasting value was priceless. The personal enjoyment was overflowing, and the difficulty was well-moderated.”

“To begin with, this semester of American Literature has been a fantastic experience. Using the Teaching the Classics course with Mr. Andrews was very helpful and enlightening. Miss Bethany’s advice was wonderful and the work was rewarding. Week 15’s live discussion was a lasting reflection. The talk about conflict in the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn opened my mind the complexity of human nature and the genius of Mark Twain. Overall, the course has deepened my love of quality American literature and laid the foundations for me to expand even more in new books.”

— J. J., Grade 9

“I liked the books we read and I felt that I really learned a lot and retained a great amount of information about our country’s history from this class. One important lesson from this semester that I believe will have a lasting impact on my life would have to be the Hiroshima story. The way John Hersey described the events with such vivid imagery and how he shared the stories of the survivors after the bombing made me really think about the events of that day. I also never really read about the story before in depth so it was interesting to be able to understand that history better.”

— P. S., Grade 10, on U.S. History and Geography

“The book selection of Huckleberry Finn. The course of Teaching the Classics. The flexibility included in the schedule”

“Take your time with this course. Huckleberry Finn is an exciting read, so if you want, it is fine to read everything in one day, or drag it out, as long as your week is finished on time.”

— M. M., Grade 9

“I chose 5 stars because I learned a lot more about the world wars than I had ever known and that was really interesting for me The most important lesson was the lesson where we talked about the Great Depression and the impact it had on the world.”

— P. S., Grade 10, on U.S. History and Geography

“The flexibility of the course. The textbook, History of the Church. The selection of the Screwtape letters”

“Time is important. You can finish it in a day, or even it out over the week. It does’t matter, as long as the week is finished.”

— M. M., Grade 9

“Use of Catholic resources Never procrastinate. All the starred assignments should be ahead of all other lesser assignments. Thoroughly go through the Memorize the Faith book, for there is a lot of good material there, and a lot of questions waiting for you upon it.”

— M. M., Grade 9, on Catholic Apologetics

“The use of Our Lady of Guadalupe and the Conquest of Darkness. The relative easiness of the assignments”

“Reading always comes in first priority. Our Lady of Guadalupe and the Conquest of Darkness should never be put off, for instance.”

— M. M., Grade 9

“The relative easy-going assignments. The textbook.”

“As always, homeschool is meant to be self-paced. If a certain subject does fit your style, finish up on that’s easier, allowing to finish up your reading in your textbook, for example.”

— M. M., Grade 9

“Use of Catholic resources Understand the importance of knowing history. It is imperative that a Catholic knows his background. Christ and the Americas should be well thumbed by the time you leave this course.”

— M. M., Grade 9, on U.S. History and Geography

“U. S. History Based Writing Lessons”

“Never even think you can put things off. It is important to simply gets things done, but not at the last second.”

— M. M., Grade 9

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Greek Studies

Greek Studies is the historical cycle for tenth grade. Students read Homer, Sophocles, and the early Christians of the Eastern Church, while their writing studies move into composition and essay form.

“Miss Bethany was really helpful during the live classes and I found the course as a whole really enjoyable and amazing.”

“Greek Literature 1 was one of my favorite courses. In particular, it helped me learn the importance of working hard on an idea that mattered to me. In week 06 of the semester, I had to create a multicolor study sheet - a paper using multiple colors to talk about certain characters in the Iliad. I had an image in my head of a fortress and terms in and around it, but I was worried it would take too long. Eventually I grabbed some paper and tried to do it. It took me two sheets of paper, but I thought it looked amazing. It was well worth the time and effort. The course reminded me of the value of hard work again when I had to write a paper about the theme of the Iliad. I wanted to make a shorter essay but instead I buckled down and wrote an essay I was pleased with. The course semester in general was really fun and fascinating - I particularly loved the character of Hektor in the Iliad - but I really valued how much the course taught me how important it is to be willing to work hard on something, even if it takes a little longer than if you took an easier approach. The course really showed me how much that little extra work pays off.”

— L. P., Grade 11

“I learned I lot from and really enjoyed this course.”

“One life lasting lesson that I have taken from Greek Literature 1 is learning to appreciate the beauty of similes in literature. While reading the Iliad of Homer, I discovered many similes that brought both understanding and beautiful poetry, an occasional laugh or a jaw drop. One of my favorite similes was “Now when the man of both sides were set an order by their leaders, the children’s came on with clamor and shouting, like wildfowl, as when the clamor of cranes goes high to the heavens, and when the crane escaped the winter time and the rains unceasing and glamorously wing their way to the streaming Ocean, bringing to the Pygmaian men bloodshed and destruction: at daybreak they bring on the baleful battle against them. But the Achaian men went silently, breathing valor, stubbornly-minded each in his heart to stand by the others” (Homer 3.1-9). I hope many fellow STAA students may experience what I have in this course, for I have learned so much and am truly grateful for it.”

— L. W., Grade 11

“The course was really helpful. I’d tried to learn about Greek History before but I always forgot a lot. Studying Herodotus and Thucydides really helped.”

“One thing about this course that had a lasting impact on me was the challenge it offered. Before, I’d been pretty apt at just memorizing any important information and avoiding any note-taking I didn’t think was necessary - or just writing down whatever occurred to me as something interesting I wanted to remember whether or not it was important. Once I reached the ancient historian Herodotus, though, I found myself really having to concentrate and focus my notes. The study guide STAA offers was really helpful then. It had “Terms to Know” and “Study Guide Questions” that I could fill out the answers to and become a whole lot more confident in my memory. The whole course really helped me stay on track with note taking. The reading itself, particularly in Herodotus’ The Histories, was also absolutely fascinating. I thought the course was amazing.”

— L. P., Grade 11

“I thoroughly enjoyed this course and learned much from it. One important lesson I have learned in taking Greek Literature 2 is the value of studying the actual text and verse in the plays and books being studied. Although time-consuming, it is vitally important to contemplate our own understanding of the text. One challenging time in particular was picking apart a quote from the third act of Oresteia, Eumenides, when Athena accepted the role to judge the case of Clytemnestra’s murder, and the Chorus prophesied the outcome: “Catastrophe now is comingfrom new ordinances, if a justicewhich is harm to justice shall prevailfor this man here, the matricide.” (Aeschylus 3. 490-93)While trying to explain it to my teacher, I felt the great thrill of appreciation and passion for the excellent authors who detailed every aspect and word of their stories, creating something deep and quite frankly beautiful. I had many other moments like this and cannot express my gratitude for the experience of studying texts of such ancient history.”

— L. W., Grade 11, on Greek Literature

“I learned a lot from this course.”

“One important life lasting lesson that I learned from this course is how writing is so vastly different in each historian’s account of history. When reading Herodotus and then Thucydides I came to realize how different each Historian wrote, even if it was the same information. I learned this especially through writing about each of them in GH1 Reflection Paper 11. In working on this assignment, I realized how much historians wrote from their personal point of view, especially in including or not including details. In the introduction to Thucydides, Hanson explains “Rather, the differences between the two stories lie more in approach, method, and the generation in which they lived” (Thucydides xii). I learned a lot in taking Greek History 1 and I hope many other STAA students can experience what I have.”

— L. W., Grade 11

“I enjoyed learning how to defend my faith and just learning more about it in general. One important lesson that will probably have a lasting impact on my life isn’t really one specific lesson but a whole book that we read. That book was A Philadelphia Catholic in King James’s Court. I loved how in this book it showed that anyone, even people that are close to my age, can effectively defend their Catholic faith. I also loved how this book describes how one can defend their faith against other Christian denominations. When Michael attends the Bible studies at his uncle’s church, he respectfully and intelligently defends his faith but also tries to hear and understand the other Protestant views, and I think this is a really important thing to note and a great way to go about defending your faith.”

— P. S., Grade 10, on Catholic Apologetics

“I loved the Greek mythology! It was so interesting. The only part I disliked was when I had to read about the Egyptian mythology.”

“All the books I read this semester were very interesting. It was amazing that I got to read The Iliad! Greek Literature was probably my favorite course this year. I very much enjoyed Bulfinch’s Mythology also. My favorite chapter from that book was probably “Chapter XV—The Graeae or Gray-Maids—Perseus—Medusa—Altas—Andromeda”. By reading these classics I have a better understanding of the Greek mythological world.”

— C. O., Grade 9

“This course really helped me understand how to write good papers and was really clear on how to do everything well. Miss Bethany is a great teacher.”

“There really wasn’t one important lesson to me. I really enjoyed all of the lessons in the U. S History-Based Writing Lessons where we had to write the KWO. I had never done KWO before, and I thought it really helped me write a better paper.”

— P. S., Grade 10

“It was really fun learning everything, and all the lessons were very clear and helpful. Miss Bethany is also a great teacher.”

“I really enjoyed reading The Screwtape Letters so much because of how interesting and fun they were to read. I thought it was a great book, and a great choice for reading because I never got bored of it.”

— P. S., Grade 10

“The lessons were very clear and interesting, and Miss Bethany is a great teacher.”

“I don’t really have one important lesson for me, but I really enjoyed the Teaching The Classics videos. I really enjoyed them because they weren’t very boring at all and fun to watch, and I felt that I benefited a lot from them.”

— P. S., Grade 10

“Learned a lot”

“This course is really good if your trying to learn a lot about the History of our church and religion. I learned a lot in this course and it helped have a better perspective in my religion and how it was formed.”

— P. S., Grade 10

“This course was very interesting and I liked it. Miss Bethany made it enjoyable and is a great teacher.”

“I Liked reading about the Aztects with Hernan Cortez because it just interested me a lot.”

— P. S., Grade 10

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Roman Studies

Roman Studies is the historical cycle for eleventh grade. Students engage with Virgil, Cicero, and St. Augustine; their writing studies turn toward essay writing and apologetics.

“From the start, Essay Writing A was an exciting, challenging course for me. In a matter of weeks, I was learning how to write quick, concise essays. However, the weekly quizzes proved frustrating for me because they addressed topics I was not studying. For instance, the EWR quizzes covered concepts discussed in the live classes; however, I was not a live-class student, so a majority of the quiz material was irrelevant and unfamiliar. For this reason, I rate this course 4/5 stars.”

“Reflecting on this past, rigorous school semester of Essay Writing A, I find that the most important lesson I learned is the importance of literary conciseness. In Jensen’s Format Writing, one of the textbooks used in this course, author Frode Jensen discusses this principle. Specifically in the introduction of section five, Jensen lists the hallmarks of concise papers: Good papers are not padded; they are composed of muscle and bone, not fat [...] Learn to digest the information you read and hear so that you can penetrate to the heart of the matter. When you write, be clear and concise; don’t waste your reader’s time. Have something to say (176). This advice transformed my papers. Instead of repeating verbose language throughout my essays, I learned how to condense my thoughts and tighten my structure. In the beginning, I must admit that writing concisely was challenging. It required practice. However, the more I applied Jensen’s timely instructions, the clearer and more rewarding my papers became. Learning the importance of conciseness in writing proved the most impactful lesson I received this past semester. Thus, I highly recommend to incoming STAA students to pay attention and heed the advice offered in Jensen’s Format Writing. By writing concisely, students can convey not only clear messages, but they can deeply penetrate the hearts of their readers and ultimately glorify God. Jensen, Frode. Jensen’s Format Writing. Master Books, 2016, p. 176.”

— G. O., Grade 11

“I really enjoyed getting to learn more about the Old Testament. The course also had the right level of challenge without being too difficult.”

“One important lesson from this semester that I believe will have a lasting impact on my life was studying First and Second Maccabees. The Maccabees are the last two books in the historical section of the Old Testament, and, in some editions, the last two books in the Old Testament in all. I knew a little bit about them, but not much. They were the book in the historical section I knew least about. I was amazed by their alliances with other nations, amazing generals, and even references to Purgatory. I hadn’t known that the Israelites were such important powers through history, and it was amazing seeing God’s work throughout the text. The various brave people in the tale of the Maccabees were absolutely inspiring, from Judas Maccabeus himself to a martyred mother and her sons. The course was amazing and I’m so glad I got to do it!”

— L. P., Grade 11

“I really appreciated this course especially in its impact on my writing skills.”

“In this course I learned many beautiful lessons of proper grammar, punctuation, and writing. I experienced the importance of knowing the content information and knowing it well before I would sit down to write my essay. The outline and brainstorm of an essay are half or most of the battle of writing the paper itself. Most days I would just lazily write the paper without doing the proper work of brainstorming and outlining it to spare time, however, I came to understand that it actually took an extremely shorter amount of time to work on the skeleton of the paper beforehand. I came to this conclusion from having to reformat my work after finishing a sloppy paper. Jensen’s Format Writing states, “Those who consciously outline their ideas according to a given pattern are often rewarded with a more tightly organized piece of writing and one that is more effective in its impact” (Jensen 20).”

— L. W., Grade 11

“I learned a lot from this course and really enjoyed it.”

“One important lesson I learned in Old Testament 1 is how there is so much more depth to the Old Testament than one would think. I was working on a paper about typology, “the study of types in Scripture” (STAA Study Guide 20). I learned how many figures in the Old Testament are types of Jesus Christ. Looking at Introduction to the Bible helped with this but also just the Bible itself. There are so many hidden mysteries to the Catholic faith, and, although, this mystery of typology took some more research, it was so well worth the gain of knowledge. This lesson was one out of many that had a great impact on me and I hope many other fellow students of STAA will take this course also. I hope to continue to discover these beautiful mysteries of Christ every time I open the Bible.”

— L. W., Grade 11

“This was an awesome course! It taught me so much about Roman history in a very concrete way.”

“RH1 taught me how to critically think about Roman history in a completely new way. I had previously known very little about the Romans, so, in addition to the new information that I was internalizing, I learned how to think about the Romans in terms of modern times and the rest of history. In the last few weeks, we read about Julius Caesar from Plutarch’s Lives; after reading it, we were required to write an essay about the causes and effects of his power in Rome. This essay made me think about the ultimate effects that Julius Caesar had on the world. It reminded me how large the world and her history is and how much I have and get to learn from it.”

— F. W., Grade 12

“I loved the amount of writing, the help from the staff, and the challenge the course offered. I learned a lot from it and really enjoyed it.”

“The course was a lot of fun and a lot of learning. The one lesson that really influenced me, though, was Jensen’s Format Writing’s lesson on thesis statements (Jensen 59-62). I had a vague idea of what thesis statements were, but I did not know how helpful and essential they were in essays. I also did not know (which I quickly learned) that I was supposed to put it in neutral terms and not immediately show my position, which was referred to as bias. Studying that one lesson really, really helped my essay writing, and what I learned from the rest of the course improved my writing and grammar skills a lot.”

— L. P., Grade 11

“I loved RL1! I really enjoyed reading The Aeneid and Julius Shakespeare! I loved our conversations as well!”

“In RL1, we read True Friendship, Where Virtue becomes Happiness, by John Cuddeback. This book was extremely informative about navigating friendships, and any relationships. It taught me that to have a true friendship, I must strive daily for virtue and commit to spending time with the other person. Cuddeback talks about how true friendship lead to friendship with God. He explained friendship with God in a way I had never thought of before; he said that the same aspects of human friendship apply to friendship with the divine. This idea is something I started carrying with me always, and something I think all people should know and understand.”

— F. W., Grade 12

“I thoroughly enjoyed this course, and learned very much from taking it. One lifelong lesson I learned from taking the course of Moral Apologetics is the importance of having an understanding of the bounds of the Catholic Faith. Catholic Morality by Fr. Laux especially talks about specific laws by which we are to live; well laid out and very clear. In these rules we, as children of God, can find the freedom and peace he desires for us, which I have certainly received through my reading. As Fr. Laux says “Law is the expression of God’s will. It is the external norm or rule of our actions. It is knowing and applying law to our individual actions that we can attain our final end” (Laux 17).”

— L. W., Grade 11, on Moral Apologetics

“The teacher was outstanding. She really placed the material in a context to better understand it.”

“The lessons on condensation were extremely useful. They taught me how to condense long and extensive writing into very small and simple sentences that still conveyed the same idea or topic.”

— M. K., Grade 11

“The use of Christ and the Americas. The use of a Catholic perspective in many points in history Never procrastinate about the starred assignments. With Hiroshima, it is always imperative to read ahead on your assignments, and put them ahead in your priorities above all else.”

— M. M., Grade 11, on Catholic Apologetics

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European Studies

European Studies covers two cycles: the European Studies B cycle for Grade 8HS, and the European Studies A cycle for Grade 12. Students engage Shakespeare, the Reformation, and the modern Western world; they refine their critical reading and composition.

“I enjoyed studying The History of the Church as well as The Quiet Light and The One Minuet Aquinas.”

“One important lesson that I have learned this year that will have an lasting impact on my life was how St. Thomas’s holiness and devotion to God changed the lives of those around him. Reading The Quiet Light by Louis de Wohl helped with reading about the High Middle Ages in lesson ten and it helped me to see what a good and holy person he was. St. Thomas was at the University of Naples and met a Dominican friar named Friar John who told him about the life of being a Dominican friar. Thomas, who then decided to be Dominican after what Friar John explained to him, became a Dominican friar against his family’s will for they wanted him to be a Benedictine monk. After escaping imprisonment from the Castle tower by being lowered to the ground in a basket with the assistance of his sisters, Thomas’s eldest sister Marotta decided and told her mother that she wanted to be a Benedictine nun. Because of Thomas’s words about God, it inspired Marotta to choose the life of God. Thomas had a great impact on all the people who were around him all because of his holiness, kindness, and great devotion to love and serve God. (The History of the Church p. 346-367)”

— A. K., Grade 9

“Amazing course! I loved all the reading and the discussions were extremely formative. I definitely wish that we had more time, and/or were able to discuss more of Rice’s work, 50 Questions on the Natural Law; I enjoyed his work immensely Government and Natural Law truly felt like a culmination of everything I have learned in high school. The assignments required all my tools in writing and all my skills in comprehension. The difficulty of the course was matched with intriguing readings in which I delighted. Throughout the course we read Declaration Statesmanship by Richard Ferrier and Andrew Seeley, which taught me about civic duties, and how, from the beginning of our Nation, the Founding Fathers intended for every citizen to be a statesman, that is, a member of the political body. We are called to echo the founders’ ideals of peace and unity for the U. S., an aspect which Ferrier and Seeley outline in their book, “Statesmen act in the real world, and their deeds are conditioned by what is actually possible. The founders faced the momentous task of establishing the first human government devoted to the propositions of natural right... They became the generals, congressmen, secretaries, and officers of that...government” (210).”

— F. W., Grade 12, on Govt & Natural Law

“I very much enjoyed this course, but I honestly wish I took it in Freshmen year, only because it is so helpful in studying and reading. I also sometimes was overwhelmed by the amount of grammar on top of my other studies. Critical Reading taught me how to read books in a different way than I had ever considered. How to Read a Book, by Adler and Van Doren, gave practical rules and advice for how to understand the book and learn as much as possible about it. It led me through concrete steps of note taking and application of the book’s elements. I feel truly confident in reading any kind of book after reading this book. I especially enjoyed the section on beginning to read and the process of understanding a book (Adler and Van Doren 32-35). I loved the idea that you can have a full scope of the book without actually reading it, and you should before you start, as the authors state, “You must know what kind of book you are reading, and you should know this as early in the process as possible, preferably before you begin to read” (60).”

— F. W., Grade 12, on Critical Reading with English Mechanics 6

“I very much enjoyed this course as it taught me how to formulaically write a five paragraph essay. I also enjoyed what we wrote about in our essays; the writing made me think more deeply about what I had read in other courses.”

“In EWR-A, I learned that there is no writing, only rewriting. I had a lot of trouble getting words down on a page until this course. Here, I learned that musing exercises, where I would set my pen to paper and write whatever came to mind about the subject, very much helped me organize my scattered thoughts. Great writing can come from unorganized ideas, but they must be turned into categorized topics and subtopics. Jensen’s Format Writing, by Frode Jensen, was especially helpful in this. In the book, he gives a method of construction for each type of paragraph, something I found vital in the writing process. another tool in writing that I especially loved is the formation of thesis statements. Having personal trouble with thesis statements, Jensen’s six guidelines for a good thesis improved my thesis statements and cut time out of the writing process.”

— F. W., Grade 12

“This book was so interesting, and I almost never got bored from reading it! In Christ the King, Lord of History in chapter 17, the section about Martin Luther had the most impact in my life. Before I even knew what Protestants believed, I asked myself why our faith is not as easy as that of Protestants. After reading that section, I found flaws in their faith, and I realized that Protestants don’t show their faith with actions! They even took out or changed parts of the Bible! Ever since I started learning about Protestantism more, I grew a lot deeper in my faith. Knowing drift your own faith like the back of your hand is very helpful in increasing your faith. Also knowing what other religions believe, and their flaws, can help you stay with the things you believe in! Out of the whole book my favorite chapter was chapter 17 (Carroll 215-229). When you are reading Christ the King, Lord of History, keep in mind that something in there could help you grow deeper in your faith! Have a blessed day!”

— E. L., Grade 9, on European History

“I like learning about history and stories related to the time period. The books we used to learn European history were detailed.”

“Throughout the semester I learned several things from my European History class. I believe the most important thing I learned came from a combination of two books in the course: Christ the King and The Making of the West. Between a secular and Christian history book, I learned that a house divided against itself cannot stand. The decline of peace in Charlemagne’s empire started with a civil war between his grandchildren (Hunt et al. 315-7). The Christian nations had to unite against the Turks in order to stop the Turkish advance into Europe and stop the Turks from persecuting Christian pilgrims (Hunt et al 352-6; Carroll 163-4). We many never know what would have happened if Charlemagne’s empire had never been divided, but whatever challenge they would have had to face would have been easier to overcome if they were united like the crusaders during the First Crusade against the Turks.”

— E. L., Grade 12

“Each play was epic, and very entertaining to read! When I read a few plays by William Shakespeare, it had a lovely impact on my life. Especially Hamlet, because I couldn’t stop talking about the tragic ending to all my friends. The plays, which I have read, were Macbeth, Hamlet, and The Taming of the Shrew. These stories helped me understand old English in an enjoyable way! I had lots of interesting learning moments, while working through the quiz for Shakespeare! I learned how to cite quickly, and take great notes. What else I learned was that if you enjoy reading the plays you will do a lot better in the class itself. I hope you enjoy reading the plays assigned for you, and have a blessed day!”

— E. L., Grade 9, on Shakespeare

“I learned a lot I learned from reading Christ the King, Lord of History that people turn away from God because of their riches. A man, who was known as King Solomon, started out very good and holy. He built a temple for God with precious metals and jewels. Even some of the nails were gold. He put two huge statues of cherubim, whose wings stretched from wall to wall, to “guard” the holy place. It was believed that God dwelt there in a special way. The people thought of it as the age of “Solomon in all his glory.” (Carroll 35) But soon, Solomon got too attached to wealth and personal prestige. He became a dictator, levying crushing taxes and enslaving thousands of men and women.”

— H. L., Grade 9, on European History

“The art of choice was mostly good, although I would have liked to exchange Gerard David’s Baptism of Christ and Tanner’s Annunciation for more Catholic renaissance art. Art is one field that is modernized to a radical degree. The new squiggly, color-blotted “art”, and the glass-dominated, geometrical skyscrapers of the modern world have tarnished the reputation of the beautiful Madonnas of Raphael, or the stunning architecture of Gothic cathedrals. Let the art discussed in Artfully Teaching the Faith sink in, and delve deep into the history and meaning of the paintings, as opposed to the ugly color blots of modern thinking that claim to be true art.”

— M. M., Grade 9, on Art Prac & Apprec

“I enjoyed this course immensely, while learning a lot but still having fun! I loved the online classes with Miss Bethany, and even though sometimes things were a bit tricky, they really helped me think deeply about literature.”

“One of the many lessons I learned during this course was how to think deeply about literature using the Socratic List (Teaching the Classics 79-92). It was interesting using these lists to think about books and stories completely differently than I ever had before. I look forward to use these questions from the Socratic List in the following years of my life.”

— C. B., Grade 8

“I completed it with an A and that is good enough for me. An important lesson to learn from The Taming of the Shrew is how women should be more feminine than they are right now. The book starts with a girl who is hard to tame. Meaning she is not very feminine and girly. Toward the end, she marries a man who does not do anything she likes. By the end, she learns that she must obey her husband since he does so much for her.”

— H. L., Grade 9, on Shakespeare

“it was fine.”

“Wars of Religion, The Reformation: Protestant and Catholic. It is important to learn the arguments Martin Luther gave and how they were wrong.”

— X. S., Grade 9

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Science

STAA students take a sequence of natural science courses across high school: Science Literacy, Astronomy, Biology, and Chemistry or Introductory Physics. The voices here reflect on what they encountered.

“This course was very enjoyable. I liked the subject matter and found that the learning structure was easy to follow. The only thing that I did not enjoy doing was the Multicolor study sheet; on the other hand, it was cool to study in a new way.”

“From the lessons in this semester, I have learned the most from week 15 when studying about light. I learned about the different wavelengths of light, and how astronomers know what stars are made of by the light that comes off of it, and if those stars are moving away from us or towards us using the same method “If the hydrogen lines from the object appear at longer wavelengths, then we know they are redshifted and the object is moving away from us. If the lines appear at shorter wavelengths, then we know they are blueshifted and the object is moving towards us. (Bennett 124) This amazing discovery led me to appreciate the science of astronomy more than I did before taking this astronomy semester.”

— L. G., Grade 10

“I thought that this subject was too complex and didn’t touch on human biology enough. It was interesting to learn about how the world works and why. My favorite modules were 15 and 16 in Exploring Creation with Biology because I felt like we were finally studying biological factors of animals. But it felt like there was too much extra information that seemed unnecessary.”

— N. S., Grade 12, on Biology

“It’s so easy and a little fun. I will always remember high pressure and low pressure when we discuss weather changes.”

— J. K., Grade 8, on Science Literacy

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Read More

If you would like to hear from more families and students, three other collections are available:

• Featured Voices — a curated selection of twelve voices from across our community
• What Families Say — daily life with STAA, the advisor relationship, and the live online classes
• Long-Term Formation and Outcomes — reflections on the curriculum, faith formation, and graduate outcomes