Even as your child is entering grade school it is important to look forward to their future and do all you can to prepare them for high school and college. While there are other more important goals of a classical education, statistics show that students who have a classical education score much higher scores on the SAT, ACT, and PSAT. For the graduating class of 2010, classically educated students averaged 114 points higher than the rest of the nation on the reading portion of the SAT. In math, classical students scored 76 points higher than all other types of education, and in writing they scored 109 points higher.

PSAT scores demonstrate the same conclusion: classically educated children receive the best test scores of every education method in the nation. The classically educated class of 2010 scored 12 points higher in reading, 6.6 points higher in math, and 12.9 points higher in writing.

Classically educated students also score higher on the ACT than students at all other kinds of schools. They scored 6.7 points higher in English, 4.1 points higher in math, 5.6 points higher in reading, and 3 points higher in science.

All of these statistics prove one thing: at least in terms of test scores, the best education and preparation you can give your student is a classical education. A mere one hundred points on the SAT can mean the difference between your student being accepted at the school of their choice or having to go with second best. In addition, thousands of dollars of scholarships are distributed based on students’ SAT, ACT, and PSAT scores. While the goal of a classical education is to teach students to think and communicate effectively and to develop a lifelong love of learning, the natural byproduct is better performance on tests that will give students a boost in their college education and their careers.

PSAT: Data from 2009 ACCS survey of member schools.
The ACCS Average represents scores from 378 students in 35 schools.

SAT: Data from the 2009 ACCS survey of member schools.
The ACCS average represents scored from 209 students in 30 schools.

ACT: Data from 2009 survey of ACCS member schools.
The ACCS average represents scores form 147 students in 22 schools.

Even though Latin is no longer a spoken language, The Cambridge School begins to teach it to all students beginning in Kindergarten. But many people wonder why it’s so important to teach a “dead language.”

Latin is not only the foundation of the English language, but it also helps give students a better understanding of the roots of the English language, which greatly expands their vocabulary.

Another benefit of learning Latin is that it lays a foundation for learning other languages. By learning Latin at an early age, it will be much easier for students to learn languages such as French, Spanish and Italian. It is also easier for students to learn languages that aren’t based on Latin because the study of Latin has given them a good understanding of how languages are structured.

Moreover, when student learn a root language, such as Latin, they have an improved understanding of English grammar, which helps them to be better writers and communicators. For example, students of Latin discover that there are seven times when pronouns, adjectives and verbs must match. In addition, they learn the difference between a direct object and an indirect object, the varieties of verb tenses, and much more. When they take the SAT in high school, students’ knowledge of Latin will allow them to correctly identify the meanings of many more words than the average student who hasn’t studied Latin.

Ultimately, the point of learning Latin is to teach children to think logically and to organize their thoughts well. Dorothy Sayers said, “I will say at once, quite firmly, that the best grounding for education is the Latin grammar. I say this not because Latin is traditional and medieval, but simply because even a rudimentary knowledge of Latin cuts down the labor and pains of learning almost any other subject by at least 50 percent.”