How is Covenant Classical Academy Different?
Does finding the right educational model for your family feel like an uphill climb? It doesn’t have to be. At Covenant Classical Academy (CCA), we offer a unique collaborative model, combining classroom learning on Tuesdays and Thursdays with guided home education on other days. This hybrid approach encourages independent thinking, strong family bonds, and a biblical worldview woven into every aspect of learning.
What sets CCA apart:
- Collaborative learning with a blend of campus and home-based days
- Active parental involvement supported by school resources
- Christ-centered education fostering faith and wisdom
- Proven classical Christian curriculum refined over decades
- Small class sizes for personalized attention
- Holistic academic, emotional, and spiritual development
How the Collaborative School Schedule Works
CCA’s collaborative schooling model ensures a balanced approach to education, where students benefit from both classroom instruction and home learning, guided by expert teachers and supported by engaged parents.
Weekly Schedule:
On-Campus Days – Tuesdays & Thursdays
- 8:30 AM – 2:50 PM
- Classroom instruction by professional teachers
- Covenant Classical Academy Campus Location:
Sunset Church
14986 NW Cornell Rd
Portland, OR 97229
Home Days – Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays
- Structured home-based learning with parental guidance
- Parents as co-teachers, delivering lessons in subjects like math, reading, and writing
- Access to sample schedules, lesson plans, and ongoing support from classroom teachers
- No virtual or online instruction, ensuring focused and personalized learning
About CCA
Covenant Classical Academy supports families and churches by providing an academically excellent classical Christian education that cultivates knowledge, wisdom, eloquence, and godly character and equips students with the tools of learning that will last a lifetime.
Covenant Classical Academy (CCA) was established in 2024 to expand accessibility to academically excellent classical Christian education for Beaverton-area parents who are looking for a school that embodies the values and goals of a Christian home. The curriculum and culture of CCA are purposefully designed to amplify the discipleship work of families and churches and to promote human flourishing by training children to be lifelong learners who enjoy and magnify the Good, the True, and the Beautiful, namely the Triune God who has revealed Himself in the Scriptures. CCA classroom teachers, staff, and administrators assist parents in providing their children with a body of knowledge that enables them to rightly understand and enjoy the world in which they live; to engage contemporary culture with a biblical, Christ-centered worldview; and to communicate truthfully, graciously, and effectively.
CCA is neither traditional private education nor homeschool. Rather, it is a shared-instruction collaborative model that offers the best of both worlds: proven curriculum, guidance by expert teachers, and high levels of parental involvement and awareness. CCA exists to support parents in their God-given role as the primary educators of their children; it recognizes parental involvement as the most significant factor in student success. CCA teachers, administrators, students, and parents work together as a team. In this model, parents are co-teachers.
Philosophy of Education
Classical methods of education have been tested and refined for over 2,500 years and were still the dominant approach to schooling in the United States as recently as the early 20th century. Building on the cultural heritage of the ancient Hebrews, Greeks, and Romans, a classical education equipped nearly every great thinker, leader, scientist, and scholar of Western civilization.
Following Sayers’s 1947 essay “The Lost Tools of Learning,” the modern resurgence of classical education is built around the Trivium, or “three paths” of learning. In ancient and medieval education, the Trivium described the meeting place or intersection of the three essential language arts — Grammar, Logic, and Rhetoric — which were considered fundamental to the education of free people. These paths generally correspond to the natural development of the student’s mind as he or she grows in knowledge, understanding, and wisdom:
Grammar
Grammar deals with the foundational rules and facts of any given subject. It is the focus of Kindergarten through 5th grade.
Logic
Logic is emphasized during the middle school years (6th-8th) and is concerned with the reasoning that ties all the various particulars together.
Rhetoric
Rhetoric, the art of effective communication, is taught during the high school years when students are trained to express their thoughts clearly and persuasively.
With a classical education, students acquire “the tools of learning,” the ability to listen, read, interpret, understand, think, and communicate clearly, which enable them to continue as lifelong learners wherever God calls them to serve, whatever He calls them to do.
A classical Christian education is built on the conviction that every person is created in the image of the Triune God who has revealed Himself and His purposes for us in creation, in the person and work of His only Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Bible. A classical Christian school is an expression of our firm belief that God created and called us and our children to love and worship Him with all our hearts, souls, minds, and strength. Consequently, every aspect of the school’s instruction and operation reflects the Gospel, which teaches us that all people are fallen and in need of redemption and restoration, and that God accomplished this redemption through the finished work of Christ and applies it to us by the Holy Spirit. We strive to maintain a learning environment where each child is given the opportunity to develop his or her thoughts and affections within the framework of a biblical worldview.
Partnering with Parents
Covenant Classical Academy affirms that the education of children is the responsibility of parents and the immediate family rather than the state. Consequently, the education offered at CCA is inherently different in philosophy, content, and goals than that offered in public or other private schools.
CCA hires and trains qualified, highly effective teachers and staff who love and follow Jesus, who understand and are committed to the classical model, and who will pass on a love of learning to their students. Teachers and other staff members do not function with independent authority, but rather with limited, delegated authority, which is given directly to parents by God and granted by parents to the school for specific purposes. This acknowledgment ensures that parents’ authority over the education of their children is always respected at CCA. The principle of in loco parentis applies to all teachers and staff who exercise authority of any kind over students.
Statement of Faith
Covenant Classical Academy is a distinctly Christian community. The following Statement of Faith expresses the theological foundation and biblical convictions upon which CCA is based. It reflects the key elements of Christian doctrine that are held by Protestant Christian churches and taught in various ways throughout the entire school. All parents and employees at CCA must agree with and support these statements:
FAQs
How is the curriculum at the Collaborative School different from SSA’s current five-day curriculum?
We seek to closely mirror the curriculum currently used at SSA. Our curriculum is centered around approaching learning with a Biblical worldview, classical methodology, and user-friendliness for parents and students. In the core subjects, we are able to accomplish the same learning goals using the collaborative model as with the five-day model. While in the wonder subjects, the five-day curriculum may include greater breadth within a subject, but our collaborative curriculum allows for greater depth.
I’ve never taught before. How could I teach my child at home?
All parents instruct their children! Our teachers are here to support you in your own personal teaching journey. We support our co-teachers (that’s you) with training, support materials, and help from your child’s on-campus teacher during home days. Our proven curriculum has been adapted to the needs of individual families and can be effectively implemented at home.
When will my child’s teacher respond to communications from parents on home days?
All teachers are required by contract to be available during home days. Teachers will check email at regular intervals during those days in order to respond to questions in a timely manner. Teachers will respond to all communications within 24 business hours. Many questions and concerns parents may have about a lesson are addressed within the weekly lesson plan document.
What subjects are taught on campus versus at home?
Classroom teachers teach all subjects over the two days students are on campus. They focus on essential questions and key learning objectives in class. At home, co-teachers instruct new material in core subjects such as math, reading, and writing. Work may be assigned in other subjects such as history, but assignments outside of core subjects will typically be reinforcement or application activities.
How will I receive weekly lesson plans?
Weekly lesson plans for both the on-campus classroom and the home classroom are available by Friday of the previous week. The co-teacher is expected to review plans for the week each Friday to prepare for the next week’s lessons in advance and to email any questions to the classroom teacher.
How often will I hear from my child’s teacher aside from weekly lesson plans?
Teachers communicate frequently and promptly with parents via email, Google Classroom announcements,
Google Meets, and face-to-face meetings. Parents are expected to also communicate frequently and promptly.
What is the time commitment for a parent or student?
We expect that families will spend Monday, Wednesday, and Friday completing schoolwork at home. The benefit of parent-led learning is freedom to progress at the student’s individual pace. Time will vary greatly for each student depending on their personality. Our aim is for students to spend at most two hours a day for grades K-1 and three hours a day for 2-3 one Mondays and Wednesday. Fridays will tend to take less instructional time as they mostly wrap-up the week’s lessons with assessments and review. This amount assumes a parent will be working with multiple children at the same time and that students will be working more independently as they mature.
How will I receive weekly lesson plans?
The Classroom teacher posts the next week’s lesson plans every Friday by noon and is available Friday afternoon to answer any questions.
How can I teach children in various grades at the same time on school days?
The younger the student is, the more time you will spend with them elbow-to-elbow on each subject. As a student gets older, you can progress towards teach-and-release for some independent work. These students will check back in with you when their assignments are complete. While one student is working independently, you can usually sit with the other student(s) to move through the lesson.
Another model is that the whole family sits at the table to “do school.” Everyone begins with one subject together; the older ones read through their lessons while you are available to answer questions before they get up to work on that subject independently for the allotted time. Then, you sit with the younger students for their subjects, and the older ones come and go as they check in and need help. When the time is up for this subject, the whole family moves on to the next and so on. No matter your at-home model, it is typically best to accomplish any harder learning tasks as early as possible in the day!
What if the information my student is learning is above my own knowledge as a parent?
To help with this, we have chosen curricula that are user-friendly and contain adequate teaching resources. Additionally, classroom teachers are available for questions. One benefit of this model is that parents are given the gift of time to learn alongside their child. Often, the best learning comes when we have to work for it.
Can I apply to teach at the Collaborative School?
As openings become available, we welcome applications from teachers who are excited to be a part of our
growing community! Email lhidde@ststephensacademy.com for information about applying.
How do I know that Covenant Classical Academy is right for me?
Covenant offers the predictable structure of the traditional private school classroom, the flexibility and affordability of homeschooling, the confidence of well-trained teachers, the benefits of one-on-one attention from parents, social development within the classroom environment, and the strength of a community committed to the progress of each child as he or she grows toward mature Christian adulthood.