Seton’s 2024 Curriculum Updates

Even the best Catholic homeschool curriculum can always be better, and in this pursuit of excellence, Seton has always placed a heavy focus each year on curriculum improvements. As we continue to replace books from other publishers with our own Seton Press materials, we improve our materials and help keep our costs low, which in turn helps keep our tuition low. In fact, there are no tuition increases in 2024!

The following is a list of significant changes by grade level that parents might like to be aware of. These changes are all available now.

History

History 5 has a new Seton Press Geography Skills 5 workbook. This is the second half of Geography Skills 4, which came out last year. Both books teach basic map skills, but they also focus on learning about the different states in the U.S. The 4th-grade book covers each eastern state in detail, and this new 5th-grade book covers each of the western states in detail.

Religion

For Religion 4 and Religion 5, which use the Baltimore Catechism #1, we have made an excellent older resource available for free for enrolled families.

This resource is a series of video commentaries by the late Fr. Pablo Straub on the Baltimore Catechism. Originally recorded at a television studio in the 1990s, these recordings have been digitally upscaled to preserve the profound reflections that Fr. Straub offers to students.

My mother and I watched these when I was in elementary school with Seton, and I still have fond memories of them to this day. You can find these pearls in the course resources in MySeton.

Literature and Composition

We have added a Literature and Composition Reading Guide, which improves and enriches the book analysis assignments.

The reading guide contains a daily reading schedule, guidance to help students better prepare for book analysis essays, and explanatory enrichment material about the authors and historical contexts to help students better understand and enjoy the books they have chosen.

Catholic Apologetics

We have revised the written tests in Catholic Apologetics. It is a slight change in most respects. Still, it improves the students’ quality of life, as they are better able to study for the tests, and the scope of the questions is more reasonable. It also highlights the most important Apologetics content from the course.

Online Tests

Several of our high school courses have weekly tests. Most of our students take these tests online and receive instant feedback. We have previously been in the practice of sending out paper versions of all the tests to anyone enrolled for courses with weekly tests, which are an extra hundred pages that are never used by the vast majority of families.

This year, we will not send out those paper tests by default with four courses: U.S. History, Understanding the Scriptures, The Early Church and the Fathers, and World Geography. Paper tests will still be available for any family who requests them at no additional cost, but we estimate this one little change will save a couple hundred reams of paper (over 100,000 sheets). Printable copies of the tests will also be made available online.

U.S. Government Online

U.S. Government Online addresses the theoretical and practical aspects of the United States government from a Catholic perspective. It evaluates America’s federal, state, and local governments in light of Catholic morality and social teaching, which means that the way government functions is gauged by its effect on the Church and society.

This course addresses the Framers’ intent in creating America’s government. It examines what the authors of the Constitution and the other laws that govern our nation meant when they created those laws. The course contains numerous sections of The Federalist Papers, which most people consider the finest explanation of the U.S. Constitution ever written. Students will also read sections of Supreme Court opinions that have shaped America’s government.

Finally, the course traces the development and growth of government, often contrasting what the Founders intended with how things are today and how they became that way. Students will study the federal government’s executive, legislative, and judicial branches and their roles in domestic and foreign policy. Students will also study state and local government and the relationship of those governments to the federal government and individual citizens.

This course differs from the other U.S. government courses in that it is a ½ credit and only available online. Second, it has 18 chapters, each with a twenty-five-question multiple-choice test. There are no essays. Dr. Paul Clark, who holds both a law degree and a Ph.D. in Philosophy, was the primary course author. This course will become the default government option. It is open only to Juniors and Seniors.

Honors Civil Liberties & Constitutional Law

This is an advanced course designed for students interested in Political Science, Pre-Law, or American History.

Designed by Dr. Paul Clark, this course examines the most important Supreme Court cases affecting our rights and liberties as American citizens.

Students will learn about the moral, social, political, and economic issues confronting American Catholics.

The course will examine the function of government, the role of the American citizen, and that citizen’s civil liberties and responsibilities in light of Catholic social teaching, prominent Catholic philosophers such as Augustine and Aquinas, and contemporary Catholic philosophers and Church documents.

There are written essays for which students are challenged to pick positions on controversial legal questions and be able to support their arguments from the precedents they learned about in the course. Dr. Paul Clark has also recorded eight excellent video lectures for the course.

Special Services

Our curriculum improvements have not been limited to our standard curriculum. Some of the high school courses in our Special Services program, specially modified for students who need special accommodations, are also being colorized and made available in the SetonOnline format.

Special Services course changes are being made available as they are ready and are not aligned with a June 1st date, as are the standard curriculum updates. Please contact the Special Services Department with any questions.