Available courses

HIST 0610

Minnesota Catholic History

Course Description

Catholic Minnesota invites middle school students to study the state’s land, peoples, institutions, and Catholic heritage through an integrated course in history and geography. Students trace rivers, ecological regions, Native homelands, mission routes, settlements, dioceses, and communities while considering how place shapes human opportunity without determining moral choice. Readings, primary sources, maps, and timelines present missionary work, sacramental life, immigration, institutions, works of mercy, conflict, failure, repentance, and reform. A distinctly Catholic perspective affirms Christ as Lord of history, the Church’s evangelical mission, the dignity of every person, and the duty to judge actions according to truth and justice rather than ethnicity or political fashion. Students especially examine how courage, charity, prudence, fortitude, stewardship, fidelity, and holiness shaped Minnesota’s Catholic witnesses and continue to call every Christian toward sanctity and service.

LIT0601 The Legend of King Arthur

This literature course introduces sixth-grade students to the legendary world of King Arthur, Camelot, and the Knights of the Round Table. Through a thirty-chapter retelling written for middle-school readers, students will follow Arthur from his mysterious childhood and rise to the throne through the founding, triumphs, trials, and eventual fall of the Round Table.

The course emphasizes careful reading, character development, and moral decision-making. Students will examine how Arthur, Lancelot, Gareth, Gawain, Tristram, Galahad, Guinevere, and other major figures respond to challenges involving courage, loyalty, justice, mercy, pride, temptation, repentance, and the proper use of power. Special attention is given to the difference between true honor and personal glory, as well as the importance of conscience, lawful authority, human dignity, and forgiveness.

Each chapter includes structured study materials designed to strengthen comprehension and literary analysis. Character guides help students follow important relationships and motivations, while vocabulary exercises build understanding of challenging words in context. Reading-comprehension questions review major events, causes, and consequences. Virtue studies connect the characters’ choices to broader moral principles and encourage students to evaluate both good actions and serious failures.

Chapter assessments include multiple-choice and True/False questions, while short written responses ask students to support their ideas with specific details from the text. A cumulative final assessment reviews the major people, events, themes, and lessons of the complete story.

LIT 0601 The Adventures of King Arthur

This literature course introduces students to the legendary world of King Arthur, Camelot, and the Knights of the Round Table. Through a thirty-chapter retelling written for middle-school readers, students will follow Arthur from his mysterious childhood and rise to the throne through the founding, triumphs, trials, and eventual fall of the Round Table.

The course emphasizes careful reading, character development, and moral decision-making. Students will examine how Arthur, Lancelot, Gareth, Gawain, Tristram, Galahad, Guinevere, and other major figures respond to challenges involving courage, loyalty, justice, mercy, pride, temptation, repentance, and the proper use of power. Special attention is given to the difference between true honor and personal glory, as well as the importance of conscience, lawful authority, human dignity, and forgiveness.

Each chapter includes structured study materials designed to strengthen comprehension and literary analysis. Character guides help students follow important relationships and motivations, while vocabulary exercises build understanding of challenging words in context. Reading-comprehension questions review major events, causes, and consequences. Virtue studies connect the characters’ choices to broader moral principles and encourage students to evaluate both good actions and serious failures.

Chapter assessments include multiple-choice and True/False questions, while short written responses ask students to support their ideas with specific details from the text. A cumulative final assessment reviews the major people, events, themes, and lessons of the complete story.

LIT 0804 The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Course Description

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

This course guides students through The Return of the King, the final volume of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings. Students will follow the climax and resolution of the quest as Aragorn embraces his kingly vocation, Gondor faces the shadow of Mordor, and Frodo and Sam endure the final road to Mount Doom. Through the lens of the Hero’s Journey, students will examine sacrifice, perseverance, hope, mercy, kingship, and the cost of victory. Through Catholic moral teaching, they will consider how Tolkien presents true greatness through humility, service, self-denial, and fidelity to one’s mission. Special attention will be given to Aragorn’s rightful authority, Sam’s steadfast love, Frodo’s suffering, Éowyn’s courage, and the mercy shown to Gollum. Students will learn to read the story not only as an epic conclusion, but as a profound meditation on providence, virtue, and redemption.

LIT 0703 The Last Battle

Course Description

Course Description

Enter the final days of Narnia in The Last Battle by C.S. Lewis, the concluding book of The Chronicles of Narnia. In this course, students will follow King Tirian, Jewel the Unicorn, Eustace, Jill, and the faithful Narnians as they face deception, betrayal, courage, judgment, and the final unveiling of the true Narnia.

This course teaches students to read the novel through the lens of whole-book narrative structure. Rather than using the Hero’s Journey, students will study how Lewis shapes the story through exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. They will examine how the early chapters introduce Shift’s deception and Puzzle’s weakness; how the conflict rises as falsehood spreads through Narnia; how the stable becomes the central place of testing and revelation; and how the final chapters resolve not only The Last Battle, but the whole Narnia series.

Students will also study the virtues and vices revealed through the characters’ choices. They will consider Tirian’s courage, Jewel’s loyalty, Eustace and Jill’s faithfulness, Puzzle’s repentance, Shift’s manipulation, the Dwarfs’ cynicism, and Aslan’s justice, mercy, and final authority. Special attention will be given to the moral danger of deception, the misuse of holy names, the difference between true faith and false appearances, and the hope represented by the true Narnia.

Designed for students in grades 7–10, this course strengthens literary analysis, moral reasoning, written expression, and the ability to see how the ending of a great story can reveal the meaning of the whole.

LIT 0701 The Magician's Nephew

Course Description

Step into the beginning of the Chronicles of Narnia with The Magician's Nephew by C.S. Lewis, the remarkable story that reveals the creation of Narnia and the origins of many of its greatest mysteries. Through the adventures of Digory Kirke and Polly Plummer, students will encounter themes of courage, temptation, sacrifice, redemption, and the triumph of good over evil while discovering how Lewis weaves Christian truths into an unforgettable work of fantasy.

Throughout this course, students will develop a deeper understanding of literary analysis by exploring narrative arc structures, including exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. They will also examine character development, symbolism, and the Hero's Journey while learning to identify the virtues and vices demonstrated by the characters and consider how these habits shape their choices and destinies.

Designed for students in grades 7–10, this course combines guided reading, vocabulary development, literary analysis, discussion, and written reflection to strengthen reading comprehension and critical thinking. By the end of the course, students will not only appreciate The Magician's Nephew as a classic work of literature but will also recognize how great stories illuminate timeless truths about virtue, moral formation, and the human person.

LIT 0702 The Lion, Witch, and the Wardrobe

Course Description

Step through the wardrobe into the wintry world of Narnia in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. In this course, students will follow Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy as they discover a land under the power of the White Witch, encounter Aslan, and witness a story of betrayal, sacrifice, courage, forgiveness, and restoration.

This course teaches students to read the novel through the lens of whole-book narrative structure. Rather than using the Hero’s Journey, students will study how Lewis shapes the story through exposition, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. They will learn how the early chapters introduce the children, the Professor’s house, the wardrobe, and the world of Narnia; how the conflict rises through Edmund’s betrayal and the Witch’s power; how the story reaches its decisive climax through Aslan’s sacrifice and return; and how the final chapters resolve the conflict through battle, restoration, kingship, and return.

Students will also identify the virtues and vices revealed through the characters’ choices. They will examine Lucy’s faithfulness, Edmund’s betrayal and repentance, Peter’s courage, Susan’s prudence, the Witch’s pride and cruelty, and Aslan’s authority, mercy, and sacrificial love. Through reading comprehension, vocabulary study, written reflection, and whole-book narrative arc analysis, students will grow as careful readers who can see both the literary structure and the moral meaning of a great story.

Designed for students in grades 7–10, this course strengthens literary analysis, moral reasoning, written expression, and appreciation for classic Christian fantasy.

MATH 0801 Pre-Algebra

This course introduces students to the foundations of prealgebra through a steady study of whole numbers, algebraic language, integers, fractions, decimals, percents, real number properties, linear equations, geometry, polynomials, and graphing. Students will build fluency in arithmetic while gradually learning the symbolic language of algebra.

Special attention is given to step-by-step problem solving, mathematical vocabulary, written explanations, and mastery of prerequisite skills. The course prepares students for success in Algebra I by strengthening number sense, equation solving, proportional reasoning, geometry applications, and graph interpretation.

LIT 0803 The Lord of The Rings: The Two Towers

This course guides students through The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, the second volume of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings. Students will follow the divided paths of the Fellowship as Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli pursue Merry and Pippin, while Frodo and Sam continue their dangerous road toward Mordor.

Through the lens of the Hero’s Journey, students will examine courage, loyalty, suffering, temptation, leadership, and perseverance. Through Catholic moral teaching, they will consider how Tolkien presents true heroism as humility, sacrifice, mercy, and fidelity to duty rather than worldly power or glory. Special attention will be given to Aragorn’s growth in kingship, Théoden’s renewal, Sam’s faithful friendship, Frodo’s increasing burden, and Gollum’s tragic struggle between mercy and corruption. Students will learn to read the story not only as an adventure, but as a serious moral journey toward virtue.

LIT 0802 The Lord of The Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, by J.R.R. Tolkien

This course introduces students to Book I of The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien, beginning in the peaceful Shire and following Frodo Baggins as he is drawn into a dangerous quest far greater than himself. Students will study Tolkien’s world of hobbits, elves, wizards, Black Riders, ancient songs, hidden dangers, and heroic friendship while learning to read carefully, think deeply, and recognize the moral seriousness of fantasy literature.

Special attention will be given to the themes of courage, temptation, friendship, mercy, providence, sacrifice, and the call to adventure. Students will consider how Frodo, Sam, Merry, and Pippin begin as ordinary hobbits but are gradually tested by fear, loyalty, and the burden of the Ring. The course will also explore how Tolkien uses setting, poetry, myth, and mystery to create a world where small choices matter and where even the weakest characters may be called to play a great role in the struggle against evil.

By the end of the course, students will have a stronger understanding of Tolkien’s storytelling, the beginning stages of the heroic journey, and the way The Lord of the Rings presents virtue, friendship, and perseverance as essential weapons against darkness.

Course work: 12 Chapter Quizzes, 3 Essay Responses, 1 Final Multiple Choice Assessment and 1 Final Written Assessment.

LIT 0801: The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

In this literature course, students journey through J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit as both an adventure story and a moral tale of growth, courage, and virtue. Following the pattern of the Hero’s Journey, students will trace Bilbo Baggins from the comfort of the Shire into danger, trial, temptation, and transformation. Along the way, they readers will examine themes of humility, friendship, loyalty, prudence, mercy, courage, greed, and true heroism.

Through close reading, written reflection, and literary analysis, students will consider how Bilbo becomes more than he imagined without becoming less himself. This course invites readers to see heroism not merely as strength in battle, but as the quiet courage to do what is right when fear, comfort, or treasure tempt the heart away from virtue.

Recommended Grade Band: 7th-10th grade

Course Load: 19 Chapter Quizzes, 5 essay responses, 1 final multiple choice exam and 1 final essay.

[LA0401] Reading Short Stories and Poems

This 12-week Language Arts course, built around the Free and Treadwell Fourth Reader, develops strong reading, writing, and thinking skills through classic literature. Students will explore myths, poems, and stories from authors such as Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Washington Irving.

Each week, students engage in guided reading, narration, vocabulary study, grammar practice, and short written compositions. Emphasis is placed on reading aloud, clear expression, and forming complete, thoughtful sentences.

Beyond academics, this course cultivates character by highlighting themes such as courage, humility, kindness, and responsibility. Students learn not only to understand what they read, but also to reflect on the moral lessons within each story.

By the end of the course, students will have grown in reading fluency, writing clarity, and their ability to think carefully about both literature and life.