Teaching Science Classically: 10 Essential Principles

In 1999, Novare Science founder John D. Mays began teaching in a classical Christian school, only to discover a complete lack of literature on teaching science classically. John set out to develop the pedagogical principles for classical science instruction and to make a contribution to this essential teaching field. Much of what John discovered is presented in his book, From Wonder to Mastery. In 2020, John began musing on the question, What advice would I give to a science teacher who was new to the classical Christian education tradition? Clearly, the principles he had already published would be part of the answer to this question. However, it was also clear that for Christian education, there were additional vital elements that must be included. A clue to what some of these vital elements are is seen in the titles of the first two sessions of this course—Love and Gift, crucial words for both teachers and students to consider as they meditate on the meaning of creation and science, and as they seek to improve their understanding of the trinitarian God of Christian faith.

In this course, John Mays recovers the ways in which Christian science educators can teach science not as a discrete, isolated subject, but as part of tapestry of the true, good, and beautiful that evokes wonder and curiosity.  With 10 words or principles, John Mays discusses the key ideas that inform and transform science pedagogy. Unpacking these 10 words is what this video series is about. If you are like most people, you probably never took a science course in which the instructor referred to creation as a gift or attempted to relate science to goodness and beauty or the fine arts. These brief lectures will inspire and stimulate important conversations among science educators in classical schools and homeschools and are part of the Novare Science teacher training video series focused on Mastery, Integration, Arts, and Wonder.

John Mays’ degrees include a BS in Electrical Engineering from Texas A&M University, a Master of Education degree in Secondary Education from the University of Houston, a Master of Liberal Arts degree from St. Edwards University. He also has completed 36 hours of graduate study in the field of Physics. John worked as an engineer and engineering manager for 14 years from 1982 to 1999, with a break for graduate study and teaching appointments.

John entered the field of education in 1985 teaching math in the public school system. Since then he has also taught science and math professionally in various Christian high schools. He was instructor of 20th-century literature at St. Edwards University for nine years and taught statistics and linear algebra at Concordia University for six years. He taught full-time at Regents School of Austin from 1999-2012, serving as Math-Science Department Chair for eight years, and established the Regents Laser Optics Lab. John is the author of Novare’s physics and chemistry textbooks plus many resources including The Student Lab Report Handbook, From Wonder to Mastery: A Transformative Model for Science Education and Science for Every Teacher.

He has three adult children and lives with his wife in San Antonio, Texas.

To learn more about earning a certificate for this course, please visit “How do I Obtain a Course Certificate?” on our FAQ page. Our course certificates are valued by classical schools and co-ops worldwide, and you can also be on your way to obtaining an elective credit toward a Level 1 certificate with your completion of this course. Teachers certified with either ACSI or ACCS will see continuing education unit (CEU) credits listed on our course certificate for you to submit to either organization (with more information on certification credit here).