Although you’ll receive this in early March, I’m writing this in the toughest month for many homeschoolers: February. It is cold; the kids are mostly inside; and the family is often fighting bouts of the sniffles. Not easy. The Bortins family must stay on course, just like you.

Lily’s gymnastics season has started, and she finished second and fourth overall in her first two meets. She ought to have finished second in both, but she let a single mistake beat her twice on the uneven bars, and she fell two spots. Learning from mistakes is a valuable life lesson for a nine-year-old. It’s a lesson I constantly teach the rugby team my wife and I coach in the summer.

Trey is playing basketball. As his team’s coach, I am not convinced children under the age of eight should play organized basketball. But this is our second season, so I guess we’ll forge on! I look forward to baseball starting, as competitive sports are an important part of family life for us.

We’re nearly to the end of the terrible threes for Jonah “the Destroyer.” He’s mellowing out a little at a time, and we officially enrolled him in our local CC community for the next academic year. This is big news for our family, as all three children will participate in our local CC community. They’re growing up quickly.

Life is moving fast. My wife, April, is going to tutor Essentials in the 2024–25 academic year. We have a lot on our plate, and we’re looking forward to all of it!

Robert Bortins
Husband to April, son to Leigh, first CC graduate
Father of three, ages nine and under
Chief Executive Officer

Get a $30 discount to the CC Bookstore when you complete all enrollment steps and pay enrollment fees by March 15!

International Community

Community: A Reason to Rejoice!

Mom, is today CC? This is a phrase heard weekly in many homes across the United States and around the globe! “CC day” is a busy day. Backpacks are packed, lunches are made, presentations are gathered.

It is also a day of excitement and rejoicing! Students and parents look forward to the day’s activities and conversations.

If one of your favorite things about your CC community is the community, then you are not alone! It is the same in South America: Foundations families gather to sing “The Timeline Song” in Guayaquil, Ecuador; Essentials students diagram sentences in Bogotá, Colombia; Challenge A students prepare for Science Fair in Caracas, Venezuela.

Across the globe in the cities and provinces of Africa, Australia, Brazil, Canada, India, Mexico, the Philippines, Russia, Singapore, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, and more, families are celebrating community with their CC friends.

In his book Life Together, Dietrich Bonhoeffer writes, “Therefore, let him who until now has had the privilege of living a common Christian life with other Christians praise God’s grace from the bottom of his heart. Let him thank God on his knees and declare: It is grace, nothing but grace, that we are allowed to live in community with Christian brethren.”¹

This week as you busily prepare for community day, don’t forget to rejoice!

1. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together (San Francisco: HarperOne, 1978), 20.

Introducing: Corporate Community

Greetings from the newly formed Strategy and Corporate Affairs team! The SCA team leads the strategic approach to global and domestic government affairs, public policy advocacy, brand engagement through public relations, strategic partnerships, philanthropic initiatives, and new business initiatives for Classical Conversations. We’re pretty diverse in our reach!

We cherish the privilege of stewarding a network of over 45,000 families, esteemed educators, and accomplished CC graduates. This extensive network is a testament to God’s grace, presenting a unique opportunity to radiate Christ’s influence globally.

Beyond education, our team advocates for policies upholding family and religious freedom, expanding our impact through strategic partnerships, robust public relations, and initiatives that nurture leaders on a global scale.

Our team has been actively posting content on Homeschool Freedom Action Center. We hope you’ll read all the articles—but this is a great one with which to begin: “Problems with the Michigan Homeschool Registration Regulation.”

Front (left to right): Jennifer Bright, Lauren Gideon, Sadie Aldaya

Back (left to right): Jeff Collins, Kyle Nichols, David Tran, Elise DeYoung, Edward Murray

Classical Parents in Community

Willing to Make a Difference?

Homeschooling with Classical Conversations is more than an education; it’s living as the larger family of Christ, locking arms together in raising the next generation of Christ followers. One of the biggest joys we get to experience at CC is seeing how classical, Christian communities provide a wide variety of opportunities for parents to support one another.

Licensed Directors make all the difference in helping local communities thrive—and we need more! In multiple locations, we have families who desire to join local communities, but we don’t have openings available. Would you be willing to learn more about this leadership opportunity and consider making a difference where you live? 

Are You Listening?

With only so much time in a day, we work hard to bring you content that is easy to access, whether you’re on the go or finally sitting still. Be sure to check out all our podcast episodes. Here are some of the latest:

• “Helping Children Manage Their Emotions and More”
• “What Teaching Children Teaches Me”
• “Homeschooling: A Rewarding Opportunity for Dads”
• “How to Be More Organized, Confident, and Influential | Applying the Classical Tools to Business”

What to Read Now?

Our blog team has been lining up some fire content that is not to be missed! We hope you enjoy these articles for yourself and would love it if you shared them with family and friends. Remember, registration for 2024–2025 is open now. CC might just be the local classical, Christian homeschooling community those families are looking for!

• “How to Homeschool through High School”
• “Elements That Make Up the Best Homeschool Curriculum”
• “From Fear to Faith: A Global Homeschooling Journey through Motherhood and Homeschooling”