Best In The Trenches Andrew Taylor Podcast Podcasts (2024)

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SS #145: Why Latin? (with Angela Reed!!) 1:10:25

8d ago1:10:25

1:10:25

Today’s guest is Latin teacher extraordinaire, Angela Reed! Angela has been a student of lingua Latina and classical civilization for over twenty-five years. She started on this path in high school when she took her first Latin class and, for extra credit, joined the Latin club. Angela has been enthusiastically carrying a classical torch ever since…

1
SS #144: De-stress With Natural Consequences 1:22:50

22d ago1:22:50

1:22:50

In today’s episode Mystie, Abby, and Brandy discuss the idea of natural consequences with a perspective shift that can really de-stress your motherhood. You’re going to love this conversation! *** Are you ready for our annual Homeschool Essentials retreat?? This year’s topic is attention, because without attention, we cannot learn. Join us LIVE on …

1
SS #143: If You Build It, Moms Will Come 59:29

2M ago59:29

59:29

In today's episode, Mystie, Abby, and Brandy dig into the history of the Scholé Sisters annual retreat, giving you a behind-the-scenes glance at our decision making that we've never shared before. *** Are you ready for our annual Homeschool Essentials retreat?? This year’s topic is ATTENTION, because without attention, you cannot LEARN. Join us LIV…

1
SS #142: Attention is a Homeschool Essential 1:07:33

3M ago1:07:33

1:07:33

In today’s episode Mystie, Abby, and Brandy discuss ATTENTION, because it’s the topic of the 2024 Scholé Sisters retreat. They do this using a chapter on solitude from AG Sertillanges’ book The Intellectual Life. You’re going to love this conversation! *** Are you ready for our annual Homeschool Essentials retreat?? This year’s topic is ATTENTION, …

1
SS #141: Raising Children Who Love to Learn 1:02:38

5M ago1:02:38

1:02:38

In today’s episode Mystie, Abby, and Brandy discuss what it means when we say we want to raise kids who love to learn. What are the implication of this goal? Does it affect how we teach? You’re going to love this conversation! *** It’s not too late to catch the replays of our annual Spring Training Sessions! The second session was just on MONDAY! O…

1
SS #140: Rewards and Motivation 1:24:45

5M ago1:24:45

1:24:45

In today’s episode Mystie, Abby, and Brandy discuss rewards and how to connect them to intrinsic rather than extrinsic motivation. *** Don’t forget to register for our annual Spring Training Sessions! This is happening SOON! Our coach this year is Andrew Zwerneman from Cana Academy. Andrew is going to teach two sessions on history. The first sessio…

1
SS #139: A Classical College Education (with Andy Patton!!) 1:10:50

6M ago1:10:50

1:10:50

Our guest today is Andy Patton. Andy Patton has held various roles in healthcare technology and venture capital. As an entrepreneur in the healthcare space, he built and successfully exited his first company. He has also started and currently owns a company in the construction industry. Before going into business, Mr. Patton spent his early career …

1
SS #138: A Little More Conversation, Please (with Andrew Zwerneman!!) 1:10:47

6M ago1:10:47

1:10:47

Our guest today is Andrew Zwerneman. Andrew J. Zwerneman serves as President and Master Teacher at Cana Academy. For 40 years, he has taught and consulted in secondary schools that emphasize classic humanities. For 19 years he headed schools — 2 at the public charter school, Tempe Preparatory Academy in Tempe, Arizona, 17 at Trinity School at Meado…

1
SS #137: Fairy Tales are True (with Vigen Guroian!!) 1:14:38

7M ago1:14:38

1:14:38

Today’s guest is Vigen Guroian. Until his retirement in 2015, Dr. Guroian was Professor of Religious Studies in Orthodox Christianity at the University of Virginia. He is now a Permanent Senior Fellow of the Russell Kirk Center for Cultural Renewal, Senior Fellow at the Center on Law and Religion at Emory University, Distinguished Fellow of the Joh…

1
SS #136: Moral Training with Charlotte Mason 1:17:10

7M ago1:17:10

1:17:10

Today’s episode is the third in our four part series on Charlotte Mason’s chapters from School Education that cover the training of physical, intellectual, moral, and religious habits. Today, we’re discussing the training of MORAL habits. You’re going to love this conversation! *** Did you sign up to do the 5x5 reading challenge this year? If so, y…

1
SS #135: Unit Studies Are Overrated 1:07:00

8M ago1:07:00

1:07:00

Today’s episode is on unit studies and why Charlotte Mason disapproved of them so much. You’re going to love this conversation! *** Did you sign up to do the 5x5 reading challenge this year? If so, you need to join the Sistership as a Sophie membership and get the accountability you need and the support you want. With weekly check-ins and quarterly…

1
SS # 134: What is the 5x5 Reading Challenge? 21:00

9M ago21:00

21:00

It has come to our attention that while we discuss and refer to the Scholé Sisters 5x5 Reading Challenge regularly, we've never actually done an episode on it. Today, we remedy that problem! We discuss the history of the challenge as well as how it works. Today's episode is hosted by Abby Wahl (because Brandy is in the middle of a cross-country mov…

1
SS #133: Mom is the Magic of Christmas 55:08

10M ago55:08

55:08

Today’s episode is our annual Christmas episode. We begin by revisiting the theme of our very first Christmas episode, Don’t Be the White Witch. We continue with a discussion of generosity and tradition-making that you will love. *** Every year, we give our Sophie members a special Christmas gift. This year, our Sophie members are receiving a works…

1
SS #132: Intellectual Training with Charlotte Mason 1:10:33

11M ago1:10:33

1:10:33

Today’s episode is the second in our four part series on habits and training. Last time, Mystie, Abby, and Brandy talked about physical training. Today they’re discussing intellectual training, including that most controversial assertion of Charlotte Mason, that attention can be trained. You’re going to love this conversation! *** Have you heard ab…

1
SS #131: Outsourcing for High School (with Jami Marstall!!) 1:12:49

11M ago1:12:49

1:12:49

Our very special guest today is Jami Marstall. Jami has been homeschooling with Charlotte Mason’s principles, primarily following AmblesideOnline, for the past 17 years. She has graduated three of her four children from the family homeschool and has one high schooler left. Jami loves to read about and discuss educational history and philosophy. She…

1
SS# 130: Empathy Is Bad for Your Kids 1:13:06

12M ago1:13:06

1:13:06

Today’s episode is the annual episode we recorded at the retreat when we were together in real life, which means we have to apologize to you for the sound. You’d think it’d be better in person, but the reality is that a single shared microphone is a questionable idea. With that said, we had so much fun discussing a portion of Edwin Friedman’s excel…

1
SS #129: Physical Training with Charlotte Mason 1:24:58

1y ago1:24:58

1:24:58

Today’s conversation is the first in a four-part series covering Charlotte Mason’s chapters from School Education on training children physically, intellectually, morally, and religiously. Today we cover physical training — not so much the how as the what and the why. You’re going to love this conversation! *** Have you registered for our fall onli…

1
SS #128: Division or Dialogue (with Pastor Chad Vegas!!) 1:01:29

1y ago1:01:29

1:01:29

Our guest today is Chad Vegas. Chad is the founding pastor of Sovereign Grace Church in Bakersfield, CA, where he has served since 2006. Chad received his M.A. from Talbot School of Theology. He also spent nearly two decades in public school education as both a teacher and Board Member. He has been married to Teresa since 1994 and they have 2 child…

1
SS #127: Curriculum as Crutch 1:17:08

1y ago1:17:08

1:17:08

Today’s conversation is all about curriculum. What does it mean to say that curriculum can be a crutch? Is that a bad thing? What does a healthy relationship with curricula look like? You’re going to love this conversation! *** Have you registered for our fall online local retreats yet? Our physical hostess kits are just about sold out, but digital…

1
SS #126: Hosting a Desert Retreat (with Kara Hughes!!) 27:55

1y ago27:55

27:55

Our guest today is Kara Hughes. Kara is a Christian homeschooling mama to 5 children – a toddler, and then a 4th grader, 5th grader, 7th grader and 9th grader, all of whom use AmblesideOnline. She loves reading and hiking, and especially the two together when she can get them. Kara is also the librarian at a homeschool curriculum library, and is tr…

1
SS #125: Numbering the Days of Your Homeschool 46:12

1y ago46:12

46:12

Today is the first of our two summer episodes. In this one, Mystie, Abby, and Brandy wax philosophical about this year’s retreat topic: time. *** Are you ready for the annual Scholé Sisters Online Local Retreat? Our annual Homeschool Essentials retreats always take a deep dive into one aspect of homeschooling. This year’s topic is TIME, the most es…

1
SS #124: Redeeming the Five-Paragraph Essay (with Renee Shepard!!) 1:01:44

1+ y ago1:01:44

1:01:44

Our guest today is Renee Shepard. Renee was one of the fortunate few to be homeschooled back when that wasn’t really a thing. When she had her own children, she wanted to provide an even better education for them. That drove her to a study of classical education, and over the last ten years she has been homeschooling her children while staying a st…

1
SS #123: Honor Thy Philosophical Fathers (Brent Pinkall on Chinese Classical Education) 1:07:47

1+ y ago1:07:47

1:07:47

Our guest today is Brent Pinkall, author of the fabulous new book, Redeeming the Six Arts: A Christian Approach to Chinese Classical Education, which the Sisters cannot recommend enough. Brent Pinkall is a Lecturer of Rhetoric at New Saint Andrews College. Before joining the NSA faculty, Pinkall taught rhetoric at a classical Christian college in C…

1
SS #122: Put the Masterly Back in Masterly Inactivity 1:05:42

1+ y ago1:05:42

1:05:42

Today, Mystie, Brandy, and Abby attempt to straighten out one of the biggest misunderstandings in the Charlotte Mason world: masterly inactivity. The term is constantly misused, so they start off with definitions. But keep listening because they'll go into detail on how exactly this concept can be applied to real life. You’re going to love this con…

1
SS #121: Barefoot in the Kitchen with the Ideal Type (featuring David Hicks!!!) 1:04:11

1+ y ago1:04:11

1:04:11

Today's very special guest is David Hicks. Does the famed author of one of the bestest books EVER, Norms and Nobility, really need any further introduction? Well, what you may not know about him is that he spent thirty years of his life in private education, serving as head of school for a number of schools across the country, and culminating as Ch…

1
SS #120: Let Them Go (Launching Boys with Toby Sumpter!!) 1:10:37

1+ y ago1:10:37

1:10:37

Our guest today is Toby Sumpter. Toby pastors King’s Cross Church in Moscow, Idaho. He and his wife Jenny have been married over twenty years and they have 4 kids, one of whom has recently flown the coop. He is a co-host of the CrossPolitic Show and author of Blood-Bought World and No Mere Mortals. He holds a Master of Arts in Theological Studies w…

1
SS #119: Rewards Revisited (with Jason Barney!!) 1:01:46

1+ y ago1:01:46

1:01:46

Our guest today is Jason Barney from the Educational Renaissance Podcast! Jason serves as the Principal of Coram Deo Academy in Carmel, IN. In 2012 he was awarded the Henry Salvatori Prize for Excellence in Teaching from Hillsdale College. He completed his MA in Biblical Exegesis at Wheaton College, where he received The Tenney Award in New Testame…

1
SS #118: Grit and Bear It 1:16:04

1+ y ago1:16:04

1:16:04

We’re discussing GRIT today. What is grit REALLY? And do kids need grit? DO moms need grit? And if we need it … how do we get it? You’re gonna enjoy thinking through these questions. *** Have you joined the Scholé Sistership yet? In January, we kicked off our annual 5x5 Reading Challenge. It is not too late to join us! All you have to do is head on…

1
SS #117: Religion is Essential 1:02:27

1+ y ago1:02:27

1:02:27

Is real education necessarily religious? And if so, where does that leave modern claims to a secular education? These are the questions we raise in today's episode. *** Have you joined the Scholé Sistership yet? In January, we kicked off our annual 5x5 Reading Challenge. It is not too late to join us! All you have to do is head on over to scholesis…

1
SS #116: Feasting in a Time of Fasting 1:23:40

2y ago1:23:40

1:23:40

Today, we present our annual Christmas episode! In light of inflation and the fact that, for many of us, Christmas has to be different this year compared to last, we thought we’d go over the first couple chapters of Little Women and discuss how to feast in a time of fasting. *** Have you joined the Scholé Sistership yet? We are really enjoying the …

1
SS #115: Indoctrinate Me 1:08:11

2y ago1:08:11

1:08:11

Today’s episode is a response to the popular saying that real education teaches kids “not WHAT to think, but HOW to think.” We think this is a dangerous false dichotomy. Can we make a good argument in favor of indoctrinating your kids? We’re gonna try! *** Have you joined the Scholé Sistership yet? We are really enjoying the current Sophie Seminar,…

1
SS #114: Well-Educated Daughters (with Rebekah Merkle!!) 54:36

2y ago54:36

54:36

Our guest today is the one and only Rebekah Merkle. Rebekah has dabbled in a number of occupations ranging from running her own clothing label to designing fabrics to becoming a full-time high school humanities teacher (which is fitting, because she was a student in one of the founding classical Christian schools in the USA). Most importantly for t…

1
SS #113: The Ideal Type 1:02:26

2y ago1:02:26

1:02:26

Today’s episode is our annual retreat episode, meaning we recorded it when we were in Dallas. As is typical of that style of recording, the sound quality is questionable ... but the content is great (if we do say so ourselves)!! We discussed the existence of the Ideal Type using David Hicks’ authoritative book, Norms and Nobility. We think you’ll l…

1
SS #112: How to Build an Educational Philosophy (Part 3: What Does a Well-Educated Person Look Like?) 1:04:32

2y ago1:04:32

1:04:32

Today’s episode is the final in our three-part series designed to get you started on forming an educational philosophy. Whether you have been studying philosophy for years, or you are brand new to classical homeschooling, you are going to LOVE today’s discussion, which explores what a well-educated person is like. *** Have you joined the Scholé Sis…

1
SS #111: How to Build an Educational Philosophy (Part 2: What is Education?) 55:43

2y ago55:43

55:43

Today’s episode is the second in our three-part series designed to help you get started forming an educational philosophy. Whether you have been studying philosophy for years, or you are brand new to classical homeschooling, you are going to LOVE today’s discussion, which centers on the definition of education. *** Are you as excited about this yea…

1
SS #110: How to Build an Educational Philosophy (Part 1: What is Man?) 53:48

2y ago53:48

53:48

Today’s episode is the first in three-part series designed to get you started on forming an educational philosophy. Whether you have been studying philosophy for years, or you are brand new to classical homeschooling, you are going to LOVE today’s discussion, which centers on the nature of man. *** Are you as excited about this year’s local online …

1
SS #109: Aristotle vs. The Behaviorists (The Habits Episode!) 46:47

2y ago46:47

46:47

In today’s episode, Mystie, Abby, and Brandy discuss the new retreat format and why we love it, what’s different compared to last year, and also take a deep dive into this year’s theme, habits, by discussing what Aristotle had to say about habit in Nichomachean Ethics. We hope you’re ready to geek out about habits with us because that’s what today …

1
SS #108: Hostess with the Mostess: It's Retreat Time (with Danielle Cyrus!) 32:15

2y ago32:15

32:15

Our special guest today is Danielle Cyrus. Danielle was a pre-law student when God disrupted her plans and led her to education. She has 4 children and has been married to Grant for 20 years. She began homeschooling as her oldest reached school age and has been neck deep in books ever since. Danielle is a tutor in the Classical Conversations Essent…

1
SS #107: Building a Community (with Melissa Cummings!!) 1:08:26

2+ y ago1:08:26

1:08:26

Our special guest this week is Melissa Cummings. Melissa and her husband Steven are second generation Christian homeschooling parents of five. She directs a Classical Christian homeschool co-op in her rural community, and also manages to pull off the annual Paideia Northwest conference for mamas raising kids for Christ. You can find her at JoyfulDo…

1
SS #106: Stop Looking for Hacks (You Need a Philosophy) 1:04:49

2+ y ago1:04:49

1:04:49

So many people are turning to homeschooling these days, and the first question they usually ask is about curriculum – what should they use and how should they use it. In today’s episode, Mystie and Brandy discuss why it’s useful to back up and talk about why everyone needs a philosophy and how to go about building one. *** Earlier this week on Tues…

1
SS #105: You're Not the Boss of Me, Now (A Discussion About Authority) 1:03:51

2+ y ago1:03:51

1:03:51

To prepare for today’s episode, Abby, Mystie, and Brandy read the first two chapters of Charlotte Mason’s third volume, School Education, which is all about authority. Our conversation centers on trying to grasp exactly what is unhealthy authority, what is healthy authority, and then how do we fight the anti-authority culture we live in? It was s a…

1
SS #104: Political Rehab (with Brett Stroud!!) 1:04:11

2+ y ago1:04:11

1:04:11

Our guest today is Brett Stroud. Brett is the President of Providence Classical Academy in Bakersfield, California. He is a graduate of the Torrey Honors Institute, a great books program at Biola University, and of the Pepperdine University School of Law. The mission of Providence Classical Academy is “To provide the children entrusted to its care …

1
SS #103: Becoming More Human (How Could You Say Such Things?) 1:08:11

2+ y ago1:08:11

1:08:11

In today’s episode, Brandy, Pam, Mystie, and Abby discuss the idea that classical education “makes you more human.” Depending on what you think this means, the phrase can come off as offensive, in conflict with Charlotte Mason’s assertion that children are born persons, and more. Because of this, they’re taking a deep dive into what this really mea…

1
SS #102: Music to My Ears (with Greg Wilbur!!) 1:02:57

2+ y ago1:02:57

1:02:57

Our special guest today is the one and only Gregory Wilbur! Greg is founder and president of New College Franklin—a Christian college that concentrates on the classics and the seven liberal arts with a discussion-based approach and spiritual formation. In addition to teaching and developing curriculum, his current academic focus is advancing the di…

1
SS #101: Tell Me What I Wanna Hear (Josef Pieper on Flattery and Lies) 1:05:52

2+ y ago1:05:52

1:05:52

In today’s episode, Abby, Mystie, and Brandy dig into Josef Pieper’s lesser-known work Abuse of Language, Abuse of Power. They end up spending a lot of time on the idea of flattery which is … super uplifting. The good news is that they decide in the end that what we are already doing in classical education works for this issue, too! *** It’s not to…

1
SS #100: The 100th Episode Book Bash 1:04:32

2+ y ago1:04:32

1:04:32

Welcome back to Scholé Sisters. Today kicks off our 17th season of the show. This episode has been SIX YEARS in the making! It’s our one hundredth episode! In honor of 100 episodes and also over a MILLION downloads, Mystie went through and figured out our top five most-referenced books. Today we’re sharing a little bit of the personal history of th…

1
SS #99: The Ordinary Homeschool 1:00:33

3y ago1:00:33

1:00:33

Today is our annual so-called Christmas episode, and the least Christmassy one we’ve ever done. Oops. No matter! We were all together in Idaho and recorded this conversation, inspired by chapter 3 of the book The Supper of the Lamb just for you. It might not be super Christmassy, but we like to think this episode is a gift nonetheless. *** Please n…

1
SS #98: Ordo Amoris: Ordering the Affections 54:33

3y ago54:33

54:33

Today’s episode is the second of the two that we are doing that cover ideas from CS Lewis’ book The Abolition of Man – more specifically from his first essay in that book, entitled "Men Without Chests." If you haven’t listened to episode 97 yet, we recommend you go back and do so before listening to this one. Today we’re discussing yet another phra…

1
SS #97: Men Without Chests 1:09:10

3y ago1:09:10

1:09:10

Today’s episode is the first of two that we (Brandy, Pam, Mystie, and Abby) are doing that covers ideas from CS Lewis’ book The Abolition of Man – more specifically from his first essay in that book, entitled Men Without Chests. This book contains a lot of terminology that gets thrown around in classical circles and we’re going to tackle those defi…

1
SS #96: Can Virtue Be Taught? 54:29

3y ago54:29

54:29

Today, Mystie, Pam, Abby and Brandy toss around the question of whether or not virtue can be taught. This can be a controversial subject, but we think you’ll find it is worth talking about rather than avoiding. *** Last Saturday was our annual retreat and it went SO WELL. It was so refreshing to spend a whole day thinking about memory and rememberi…

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