CiRCE Institute

09/15/2026

Presented at the 2021 CiRCE National Conference: A Contemplation of Glory.

In his epistle to the Ephesians, St. Paul makes it clear that we ought to do what is right, not as men-pleasers, but as servants of Christ. In his epic poem, the Iliad, Homer presents the struggle for glory through his hero, Achilles.

What can we learn from Achilles about the struggle for glory? What is glory in the mind of the ancient Greek, and how does that compare to the glory in the mind of the first-century Christian?
What do they both contribute to the idea for us today, that we may know how to pursue, receive, and give glory?

We ourselves are often in pursuit of glory or are the recipients of it. We are also bestowers of glory to our children, to our students, to our co-workers, to our spouses.

In this talk, Matt Bianco will think through what glory is and where it comes from, but also what that means for us in our everyday life and interactions by examining the plight of Achilles and the teachings of Scripture.

Presented at the 2021 CiRCE National Conference: A Contemplation of...

09/14/2026

🎉 GIVEAWAY! In celebration of Let There Be Play: A Classical Guide to Joyful Discovery, we're giving away 3 copies of the book + a $100 gift card to the CiRCE Store!

To Enter:

Tell us in the comments on the most recent post: What was your favorite way to play as a child?

Bonus Entries:

Get creative and show us what play looks like for you!

You can either:

1. Share a photo of your copy of Let There Be Play in a playful setting. Think somewhere unexpected, colorful, or out of the ordinary.

2. Take a photo showing how you use play in your teaching, such as a playful activity, learning environment, resource, or moment that brings play into your practice.

Share your photo on Instagram and tag us () so we can see it. Each post will earn you two bonus entries!

We can’t wait to see the ways you’re bringing more play into your teaching.

Good luck and have fun!

Winner Chosen on Sept 21st.

Let there be play!

09/10/2026

Brand new! Learn Latin through play! Legends of the Round Table, Volume One: A Latin Coloring and Activity Book helps young students reinforce their Latin learning through immersive activities and coloring pages while introducing them to the stories of King Arthur.

A companion to Legends of the Round Table: Volume 1 (published by the CiRCE Institute), the illustrations depict scenes from that volume, and the crossword puzzles feature questions about the narrative. Use as a companion to the Legends of the Round Table, as a resource for Latin students, or both!

This book also includes a wide variety of activities: word-picture matching games, word searches, crossword puzzles, and drawing pages.

The activities in this book are intended to reinforce Latin vocabulary acquisition by having students recognize, recall, and produce the vocabulary they just learned through the preparation pages and illustration descriptions.

Designed for independent use by the elementary-aged student, this activity book is easy to use by even those with no knowledge of Latin.

09/03/2026

"When I meet a sane adult, I assume his sanity comes largely from having heard Frog and Toad stories in his youth. Yesterday, I read my sophomore humanities students four stories from a Frog and Toad anthology. It would be impolite to assume you, noble reader, are not intimately familiar with all the Frog and Toad stories, but, in case too many years have elapsed between today and your last reading, I will briefly describe the four stories I read to my sophomores."

From Joshua Gibbs

If I were not a Christian, Arnold Lobel’s Frog and Toad books would be my holy scripture. When I meet a sane adult, I assume his sanity comes largely from having heard Frog and Toad stories in his youth. Yesterday, I read my sophomore humanities students four stories from a Frog and Toad anthology...

09/03/2026

How Orual Can Heal Your Homeschool Co-op by Katy Schaff.

"There is no checklist or formula that will deliver us or our co-ops or schools from the wounding of sin. Orual realizes that the holy internal rebuke that accompanies our angry accusations is itself the lancing of the wound."

https://circeinstitute.org/blog/how-orual-can-heal-your-homeschool-co-op/

09/01/2026

What happens to a culture when it stops believing in heroes?

Not merely superheroes or larger-than-life figures, but heroes as embodiments of what human beings are meant to become . . . people who give us a vision of courage, virtue, sacrifice, wisdom, and glory.

For much of human history, heroes have been woven into our stories, our art, our literature, and even our understanding of education. But what happens when a culture begins to distrust ideals altogether? What does a world without heroes do to our children, our schools, our churches, and ultimately, to our understanding of what it means to be human?

This fall, the CiRCE Institute is gathering in McKinney, Texas, to wrestle with those questions at A World Without Heroes: Restoring the Glory through Education and Worship, October 8–10.

Featuring speakers including Jonathan Pageau of The Symbolic World, Heidi White, Andrew Kern, Nicholas Kotar, Andrew Pudewa, and many more, the conference will explore what heroes offer us, why they matter in education and worship, and whether we can recover a vision of the heroic in an age that often rejects ideals.

“The CiRCE Apprenticeship has been a deeply formative experience . . . I have grown in my ability as a teacher and am learning how to truly love my students.”

09/01/2026

08/26/2026

Lessons from Jack and Jill: The Value of Passing Down Nursery Rhymes

From Rebecca Salazar.

"When children chant or sing nursery rhymes, they are unknowingly deepening their cultural awareness. These rhymes, along with the Great Books, music, art, and all other cultural achievements that have been passed down as part of the Western canon, are what we want our students to inherit and build on."

08/26/2026

📚Final Day! 📚

08/21/2026

What happens to a culture when it stops believing in heroes?

Not merely superheroes or larger-than-life figures, but heroes as embodiments of what human beings are meant to become . . . people who give us a vision of courage, virtue, sacrifice, wisdom, and glory.

For much of human history, heroes have been woven into our stories, our art, our literature, and even our understanding of education. But what happens when a culture begins to distrust ideals altogether? What does a world without heroes do to our children, our schools, our churches, and ultimately, to our understanding of what it means to be human?

This fall, the CiRCE Institute is gathering in McKinney, Texas, to wrestle with those questions at A World Without Heroes: Restoring the Glory through Education and Worship, October 8–10.

Featuring speakers including Jonathan Pageau of The Symbolic World, Heidi White, Andrew Kern, Nicholas Kotar, Andrew Pudewa, and many more, the conference will explore what heroes offer us, why they matter in education and worship, and whether we can recover a vision of the heroic in an age that often rejects ideals.