Alphonzo Shuler
Head of school
Leads the school, teaches grade 8 literature and greets families at the door most mornings.
Classical K-8 in Loveland, Ohio
Latin, a reading life and a plain school
Trivium teaches kindergarten through grade 8, with one class in each grade. Families apply a year ahead, and visits begin in October.
The year at a glance
When to visit, apply and hear from us
Families apply a year before the first day. Open houses begin in the fall, and decisions go out in March.
This school year
Open houses
October and January
Walk the building, hear from the head of school and meet the teachers.
- Tour
Visit days
Most Thursdays, October to March
A morning in a classroom, then a conversation with the head of school.
Book a visit Applications open
November
For the fall a year away.
- Deadline
Application deadline
Early February
Every family hears at the same time.
Decisions
Mid-March
By letter and by phone.
- Deadline
Enrollment agreements
Early April
Signed to hold a place.
First day
Late August
Sample dates.
The trivium
Three stages, one road through grade 8
Children move through grammar, dialectic and rhetoric, learning what is so, why it is so, and how to say it well.
- 01
Grammar
Kindergarten to grade 3SkillsLatin chants and a first vocabulary
Poems, songs and math facts said aloud and kept
Stories read aloud, then read alone
History told as a story along one long timeline
Moving upChildren move up with their class. Teachers and families talk in the winter about what the next year asks.
- 02
Dialectic
Grades 4 to 6SkillsLatin grammar and short passages to translate
Logic: a claim, a reason and a gap in the reasoning
Paragraphs and short essays with a plan
Math that asks for the reason as well as the answer
Moving upThe class stays together, and the teachers change. Each child keeps a reading journal that travels with them.
- 03
Rhetoric
Grades 7 and 8SkillsLonger essays and a spoken defense of an argument
Latin readings in the original
A weekly seminar on a text the whole class has read
Science and math written up like a lab notebook
Moving upGrade 8 ends with a spoken piece before families, and the school helps each family look at what comes next.
Where to startAsk which grade fits your child
Sample levels.
Classes
Classes by grade and by day
Each grade is one class. Hours and days are the same for every stage unless a note says otherwise.
| Ages | Class size | Monday to Thursday8:15 am to 3:15 pm4 days | Friday8:15 am to 12:15 pm1 day | Before care7:30 am to 8:15 am5 days | After care3:15 pm to 5:30 pm5 days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grammar stageKindergarten to grade 3Friday lessons are music, art and a long read-aloud. | 14 | Offered | OfferedEnds after lunch | Offered | Offered |
| Dialectic stageGrades 4 to 6 | 16 | Offered | OfferedEnds after lunch | Offered | Offered |
| Rhetoric stageGrades 7 and 8Friday afternoon is a seminar. | 16 | Offered | OfferedSeminar until 2:30 pm | Offered | OfferedStudy hall |
Fees and what each is for
- Application
- Covers reading the application and meeting the child. Due when a family applies.
- Enrollment
- Holds a place after an offer is accepted.
- Books and supplies
- The texts and materials for the year, ordered by the school.
- Uniform
- The dress code pieces on the office's list, bought from any shop.
- Before and after care
- Billed by the month for the days a family uses.
- Field trips
- A few day trips in the year, billed when a family signs the permission slip.
Sample programs.
A day at school
Mornings begin together
Every child is greeted at the door. The day runs on a plain, steady rhythm that children come to know by heart.
- 01
Morning meeting
The class says a poem together and hears the day's plan.
- 02
Latin and math
The first half of the day, when minds are fresh.
- 03
Lunch and recess
Long tables, then time outdoors in all but the worst weather.
- 04
History, art and a book aloud
Afternoons turn to the timeline, drawing, music and the day's read-aloud.
How tuition and aid work
The school gives its figures at a visit and on the admissions page, so you never read an old one.
- 01
What sets tuition
Tuition is set by the year and by the stage a child is in. Before and after care are billed apart, by the month, for the days a family uses. The school's figures are on the admissions page and are given at every visit.
Read how tuition worksOne class in each grade
Before and after care are billed apart
Figures given at the visit
- 02
Registration
A family pays an application fee when it applies, which covers reading the application and meeting the child. After an offer there is an enrollment fee that holds the place. Both are listed, with their purpose, in the program matrix.
Application: when a family applies
Enrollment: when an offer is accepted
- 03
Help with tuition
Financial aid is available; here is how to apply. After you submit an application, the office sends an aid form. A small committee reads each form and answers in the same week as admissions decisions. Ask the office about Ohio's scholarship programs for families who may qualify.
Ask about aid at a visitAn aid form follows the application
Decisions come with admissions decisions
Ask us about state programs
- 04
Siblings
A second child, or a third, is handled differently, and the office will explain how when you apply. Brothers and sisters are read in the same admissions season so a family hears about everyone at once.
Faculty
The people at the door and at the table
Fourteen teachers share the grades. Four of them are here.
Dagmar Hendry
Dialectic-stage teacher
Teaches logic and writing to grades 4 to 6 and runs the reading journal.
Alyce Arakaki
Latin teacher
Teaches Latin from kindergarten through grade 8, starting with chants and ending with the poets.
Buford Jiles
History and seminar teacher
Teaches the long timeline and leads the weekly seminar in the rhetoric stage.
From families
What families tell us
“We visited in October and sat in on a morning lesson. The room was quiet, and the teacher knew every child by name.”
Kurtis P.Parent of a second grader
“Poems and Latin roots come up at our dinner table now. We like that the school is plain and the days are full.”
Rihanna W.Parent of a fifth grader
“The head of school answered our questions at the visit and again by email. Applying a year ahead gave us time to decide.”
Brice H.Parent of a kindergartener
Sample reviews.
Come and see the school
Book a visit day, or come to an open house in the fall.