The Torch
A deep dive into classical education
Principle 8: Embodied Education
Have you ever known something “in your bones”? Perhaps it is the “right” texture of bread dough: when you know that you’ve kneaded it enough and it’s ready to roll out without sticking. Or the feeling of the basketball leaving your fingertips with the certainty that you have made the shot. Perhaps you have felt this knowing while playing an instrument or arranging flowers. Whatever your touchpoint is for this feeling of knowing, that feeling is the result of the eighth principle of classical education: Embodied Education.
When discussing classical education, we tend to emphasize the disciplines of reading, writing, language, science, math, and history, but embodied education manifests most naturally in our specialists: physical education, art, and music. While in a Ceramics class last week, I watched as Ms. Hoiland instructed her students to stabilize their bodies over the potter’s wheel so that they were controlling the clay, not the clay controlling them. They had to lean forward in a slightly awkward manner with their forearms braced against their quadriceps. Ms. Hoiland let them know that she could be coming around to (gently) knock them off balance in order to test their stability, and that they could feel what “recentering” was.
Students in physical education class experience embodied education in the skills building for all of their activities. Mr. Martin and Mr. Butts teach where their feet should be when swinging at a softball, and how a plank should feel when done correctly. We can see embodied education in our music concerts: students watching their music teachers for cues that they have practiced many times. In preparation for these concerts, Ms. Anderson has her students read through the lyrics of the song, and then ask how their faces should look when they sing certain words. In doing so, the class imagines the scene created by the lyrics and reacts accordingly.
There are two crucial parts of embodied education: imagination and the virtue of fortitude. I was listening to a book by Dr. Joseph Parent yesterday about golf, who recommended a fascinating exercise to work on aim. In this exercise, Dr. Parent says to approach the ball on the tee, then look at the flag on the green (indicating the hole). Then bring the head down to the pre-swing posture and close my eyes. With the arm closest to the target, point to where I think the flag is, then open my eyes. This is to test the connection between my mind (my imagination) and my body (the reality of the situation). As they say online these days, iykyk (if you know, you know)- and the body knows in embodied education.
Research over the last three decades suggests that embodied education demands fortitude due to the need for risk-taking and curiosity in physical education, art, and music. I was in a Kindergarten Oratory class two years ago where five and six year old scholars volunteered to get up and stand in front of the podium so that they could share their special object (stuffed animal) with the class. I know adults my age who would shudder at such an assignment, but our brave scholars are able to work on this oratory principle for their entire time at Nova Classical Academy, which has everything to do with the body: stand up straight, establish eye-contact with your audience, and look confident.
Let us keep aiming for the target with imagination and fortitude,
Dr. Missy Johnson
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As a teacher and student of Latin and Greek, the classical model was a natural choice for me as an educator. I hold the teaching of grammar, logic, rhetoric, and virtues in high regard for learners of all ages and backgrounds. Nova Classical’s community model is inspiring, and I hope to bring thoughtfulness and openness to the Great Conversation.