Stoa Club

Via Sapientiae

Bonham, Texas

Welcome to Via Sapientiae (“sa-pi-EN-ti-ay”) Stoa Club!

Competitive speech and debate helps students develop an arsenal of skills.  The life-impacting arsenal of instrumental skills includes public speaking, research, writing and critical thinking, as well as conflict resolution and effective listening.  Stoa alumni often cite speech and debate as the most rewarding and beneficial extra-curricular activity they participated in during their homeschooled years.

Via Sapientiae (Wisdom’s Way) Stoa club launched in 2022, and during our first year we have been amazed at the growth in every one of our students.  If you have a heart for teaching your children serious Christian worldview, excellent communication skills, and the ability to face challenges and rise to meet them, we invite you to join us!

What is Stoa?

Stoa is a Christian homeschool speech and debate league.  The local clubs are independently-run, and there is a lot of variation in how they are operated.  These independent clubs host amazing tournaments where students compete with students from other clubs in Texas, as well as from far-off states!

At the tournaments, there are several different categories of Speech events, including Limited Preparation events, Platform Speech events, and Oral Interpretation events; and three types of Debate events—Team Policy, Lincoln-Douglas, and Parliamentary Debate.  At Stoa tournaments, you can be assured that immoral content, vulgar language, and blasphemy are all strictly forbidden.  These tournaments serve as qualifying contests for NITOC.

The National Invitational Tournament of Champions (NITOC) is put on by Stoa each year in the springtime.  At NITOC, top students from across the country compete for national recognition in their events.  Learn more about Stoa.

Commitment

Via Sapientiae, and Stoa in general, is a welcoming place where students are safe to try hard things, fail, learn from their mistakes, and try again.  At Via Sapientiae particularly, we make no bones about Christian worldview; we plainly teach that God is sovereign over all, that He created the world and everything in 6 days, and that the Bible holds the answers we need to know for all of life.

What can families expect at Via Sapientiae Stoa club?  Our students work hard and strive after excellence.  This may not necessarily mean winning at tournaments, but our students strive after excellence personally, and we leave tournament results in God’s hands.

Stoa’s flagship Speech event is Apologetics, and participation in the Apologetics event is required for every participant in Via Sapientiae.

Expectations:  Weekly club attendance is required.  Students will be given homework each week, both to research and to practice their speeches, and they are expected to return with that homework completed.  Parents are needed to help at club meetings and at the tournaments.  The good news is that even if you know nothing about speech or debate, parents learn alongside their students.  Everyone in our club started out knowing nothing about speech or debate; this is something absolutely accessible for everyone.  By God’s grace, we all work together to provide something amazing for our students!

Cost

Stoa membership is required to join, at an annual cost of $95/family.

Tournaments have entry fees, which are typically around $15-25 per speech event, and $40 for debate events.  (You can probably plan on attending at least 3 tournaments annually.)

Additionally, students are required to dress professionally for tournaments; young men dress in suits, and young ladies in equivalent feminine apparel.  (I hear that making it a habit to pop into your favorite thrift store regularly is an excellent way to equip your students to fulfill this requirement without breaking the bank.)

Join Us!

Time

Thursdays, 4:30 – 8:45 pm

Location

Wisdom’s Way
402. N. Center St. (upstairs)
Bonham, TX 75418

To visit us sometime, or for more information, contact us through the contact form below.

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We’d love to hear from you at info@grammarofgrace.com.

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