How did TOCS begin?

In the Fall of 2000, two fathers began discussing the idea of starting a school. They wanted their children to receive the God-honoring and academically excellent education that they didn‘t see being offered anywhere else in this area. After 5 years of board meetings, we opened our doors in the Fall of 2005, and we’re now in our 3rd year of schooling.

How is Tall Oaks different from other schools in our area?

- Christian: a worldview integration. As we learn about God’s world, the facts of each subject are not ‘neutral’ facts. God, as the creator of all these facts, knows where they go and how they fit in. Our task is to think God’s thoughts after Him and to learn how they fit in. Every student will come out of school with a worldview. At TOCS, students gain a worldview that honors God in all things. We integrate all subjects with the Bible and with each other.
- Classical: the tools of learning. Classical education is different from most educational philosophies in that it steps back from the parade of ever-changing educational theories to ask “What was education like in the past? What books were used? What goals were thought important?” Methods that have stood the test of time and have brought amazing results are worth repeating. In modern education, we have put the cart before the horse by expecting students to master a great number of subjects before they have mastered the tools of learning. At TOCS, teachers use the God-given pattern of training students’ minds to use those tools of learning. God made young children’s minds to absorb facts easily, middle-school students’ minds to value analyzing and arguments and logic, and high-schoolers’ minds to value effective self-expression.
At TOCS, we teach to these strengths. (Also see “A Fire to Kindle” article and the Trivium Chart.)
- Staff/Tuition: At TOCS, we have hired experienced, talented, caring teachers who are well-paid, and we couple that with a reasonable student tuition. We are able to do this because our families strongly believe in and are willing to financially sacrifice for Christian education. But tuition alone doesn’t cover our expenses. We have been blessed with generous donors who don’t have children in the school but who so strongly believe in our vision that they are eager to support it with their finances to help us meet our budget. (Compared to Indiana public schools that reported a cost of $8,000 to educate the average student in 2002, we do a lot more for a lot less money!).
- Other benefits: parental involvement, small student/teacher ratio, comprehensive phonics that develops strong readers while introducing students to the classics, hands-on teaching methods coupled with fun repetition activities resulting in mastery of and love for each subject.

Are there other schools like Tall Oaks?

- There are no other schools like Tall Oaks in northern Indiana. Some are strong academically and some teach God’s views, but none combine the two to offer such a powerful education. However, we are not unusual in our methods. TOCS is a member of ACCS (Association of Classical and Christian Schools) which has 200 member schools across the U.S. (See the ACCS website to learn more.)
- There are some strong academic schools in Chicago that use the classical methods (particularly the integration of subjects with each other, hands-on projects that connect students with the real world, and the study of the classics), however they are not Christian, the drive is too far for most families in this area, and their tuition is about $18,000 per year! At Tall Oaks, your student can receive an excellent education very close to home and for a lot less money. (Also see Miss Metcalfe’s summary of Chicago schools’ similarities with TOCS.)
- Tall Oaks is also a member of CSI (Christian Schools International) which has about 600 member schools across the US and around the world. There are a few CSI schools in NW Indiana (in Crown Point, DeMotte and the Illiana area). See the CSI website to learn more.

What is the background of the name “Tall Oaks”?

- The “Christian“ part: It is of utmost importance to us that this school stand for and teach about God and His world in all subjects on a daily basis. Our goal is for Tall Oaks students to eventually internalize and embrace God’s truths for themselves and joyfully live lives consistent with His Word.
- The “Tall Oaks“ part: Our goal for our students is to grow into “tall oaks” for God, strong and firmly rooted in His Word. Isaiah 61:3 says, “…bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of His splendor.” A tree springs up from just a tiny seed, but eventually it can split rock and soar skyward a hundred feet or more. The root system of a tree anchors it in the ground and supplies it with nourishment for life. Our students also need roots in their lives -- something to provide strength and stability, something to anchor them when the winds of trouble and disappointment blow all around. God and His Word are what give all of us strong roots!

Does Tall Oaks have a Statement of Faith?

Yes, you will find it in its entirety in the Parent Handbook and on the website under "Learn About Us."  In short, we are committed to the system of doctrine taught in the creeds of historic reformed Protestantism, in particular the Westminster Confession of Faith.

What is a typical day like at Tall Oaks?
- We teach grades K-6 with 16 students, 2 full-time teachers, 3 part-time teachers, 2 main classrooms (plus a lunchroom, library and playground) and several wonderful volunteers!
- We teach the typical subjects of Bible, math, language arts, science, music, art and physical education, plus we have the advantages of multi-age learning, recitations, drama, hands-on projects, Latin, cultural studies and chronological history -- all integrated with the Bible and with each other!
- Each Wednesday, our weekly parent newsletter, the Nuntius (Latin for “Messenger”), goes on our website. There you can be updated on the latest learning and events going on at Tall Oaks.
- We welcome you to come for a visit and see first-hand what’s going on at TOCS!

What about the basics of math and reading?
Some may think that because we spend time on ‘extras’ such as Latin, drama and recitations, that we don’t cover the basics. That is far from the truth. It is extremely important to us that our students gain a strong foundation in the building-block subjects of reading and math. We have spent a considerable amount of time selecting and improving our curriculum and methods in these two important subjects. Each student is placement tested before being enrolled in Tall Oaks, and is placed at his/her learning level in both math and reading. So we have students in the younger grades who are reading with the higher-level reading group, and the same for math. Conversely, we have students who need more time to achieve mastery, such as in the subject of math, and these students are working at a lower level to give them the time they need to grasp the concepts.

What are the benefits of a small school and multi-age classrooms?
Though we aim to grow each year as the Lord wills, there are some benefits to being a small school for now. The low student/teacher ratio allows teachers to have more time to meet each child’s specific academic, behavioral, emotional and spiritual needs. Students learn the valuable skills of having to work independently sometimes while other kinds of things are going on in the room. Students learn to effectively work with those who are younger and older than they are, learning how to be a leader as well as a follower. These are all skills they will use for the rest of their lives in this diverse world. (Also see “The Multi-age Classroom” article for more info. on how our teachers effectively conduct multi-age learning.)

What about all the memory work and difficult academics?
TOCS students are wonderful and precious, and most are average kids (not “gifted“). They are able to handle the academics because of the effective methods we use to get all that valuable information to stick in their brains. We have an obligation to present God’s truths in an appealing manner, so we use lots of songs and body motions and group chants to do this in every subject matter. The kids love it, and they remember it Come observe our classrooms, and you’ll see how much fun it is!

Why Latin? (Also see Parent Handbook and the “Latin as an Honor” article.)
- The most practical reason for learning Latin is that is also teaches English, resulting in students who are more effective in oral and written expression. Over half of our English words are really Latin words -- and it’s not just any half but the difficult half! One Latin word could be the basis for 5 to 10 English words. For example, the Latin word sisto means I stand, or I stop. From it we derive consist (stand together), desist (to stop), insist (to stand upon), exist (to stand out), and persist (to stand through).
- Latin is the mother tongue of our 2,000-year-old Western civilization. So the study of Latin pulls together language arts, history, geography, culture, art, architecture, music, values, religion, government, logic, science and math. By examining the roots of our culture in its mother language (Latin), knowledge begins to integrate naturally!
- For some parents, the most compelling reasons for having their children learn Latin are found in the statistics…
>In a Philadelphia study, students in the 4th, 5th, and 6th grades received 15-20 minutes of daily instruction in Latin for one year. The performance of the Latin students was one full year higher on the Vocabulary Subtest of the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS) than the performance of matched control students who had not studied Latin.
>In D.C., elementary school students who studied Latin developed reading skills that were 5 months ahead of those who studied no foreign language and 4 months ahead of those who studied French or Spanish. (Two years earlier, the same students had been excluded from foreign language classes because of substandard reading performance!)
>Sixth grade students in Indianapolis who studied Latin for 30 minutes each day for five months advanced 9 months in their math problem solving abilities, 8 months in world knowledge, 1 year in reading, 13 months in language, 4 months in spelling, 5 months in science, and 7 months in social studies.
>>Latin students tend to have higher grade point averages and Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores than non-Latin educated students. A study of freshman college student performances conducted by the University of Tennessee, yielded the following results in Language: Latin students had a GPA of 2.89 overall; Spanish students had a 2.76 GPA; German students had a 2.77 GPA; French students a 2.78 GPA; and students with no foreign language had a GPA of 2.58.

Why uniforms? (Also see Parent Handbook.)
- They lessen distractions, they promote good behavior and hard work, and they look sharp!
- They encourage unity within the school and become a social equalizer. Everyone looks the same regardless of family income.
- They reduce the amount of money that parents must spend on school clothes.

What will TOCS look like in 10 years?
- God is growing us in His time. In our first year, we had 7 students and we now have 16. In our first year we had 4 families and now we have 10. In our first year, 2 churches were represented by our student body and now we have 7 churches represented!
- Our goals for the next 10 years include (but are not limited to!): continuing our low studentteacher ratio as we increase our enrollment and staff, hiring a teacher for each grade level, staying true to our vision and goals (see Parent Handbook for details), growing the school to include grades K-12, hiring a headmaster and development director, and beginning a capital campaign to build our own school building.

What will TOCS graduates be like?
Recognizing that all people deal with sin and imperfections in this life but also wanting to have high aspirations as a school, we aim to graduate young men and women who think clearly and listen carefully with discernment and understanding; who reason persuasively and articulate precisely; who are capable of evaluating their entire range of experience in the light of the Scriptures; and who do so with eagerness in joyful submission to God. We desire them to recognize cultural influences as distinct from biblical, and to be uninfluenced towards evil by the former. We aim to find them well prepared in all situations, possessing both information and the knowledge of how to use it. We desire that they be socially graceful and spiritually gracious, equipped with and understanding the tools of learning, desiring to grow in understanding, and
fully realizing the limitations and foolishness of the wisdom of this world. We desire that they have a heart for the lost and the courage to seek to dissuade those who are stumbling towards destruction, that they distinguish real religion from religion in form only, and that they possess the former, knowing and loving the Lord Jesus Christ. All these we desire them to possess with humility and gratitude to God.