Fine Arts Classes to help you and your family balance your humanity & AI and Creative Writing cla...

I’ve been teaching for over 20 years and currently offer several courses online. ALL CLASSES are on FRIDAYS and the registration links are for the 2026-2027 school year. Head’s up: I’m giving central times below because I’m from Louisiana, but the website will give eastern times.

  1. RICHES for Adults - Have you ever wondered what you could do to keep your human intelligence in balance with the AI we increasingly appreciate? One way is to pull a chair up to the feast of poetry, classical art and music, Shakespeare, and the Psalms. Fill the “Leafe-mould of your mind” as Tolkien calls this type of rich soil of the imagination. You asked for it and St. Athanasius online academy is making it possible: RICHES for adults. We meet for 55 minutes, once a week, and enjoy the feast together. The class provides gentle accountability to help build humanity into your week. No homework, no grades, just beauty! (1 pm central on Fridays)

  2. RICHES for Students, grades 4-12 (9am central) - Siblings of all ages gather for a shared experience of fine arts, everything in the adult class but for a different audience. They form a community as they are enriched by Paying Attention and Narrating the poems of William Blake and Alfred Lord Tennyson and look at paintings by Camille Pisarro and Caravaggio. We will listen to music composed by Hayden and Vivaldi and read aloud a tragedy (Macbeth) and a comedy (Twelfth Night) by Shakespeare.

  3. RICHES for Students, grades 4-12 (2pm central) - Same class, different time.

  4. Creative Writing for TWeens age 9-12 (11am central) - Using a classical education and Charlotte Mason teaching style, I read aloud samples of good old books and point out tools of the craft for my students. We talk about how to use them today and they get to practice with a weekly prompt. I train them how to give encouraging feedback that makes their classmates want to keep writing. It’s a place to experiment and grow!

  5. Creative Writing for TEENS age 13-18 (11 am central) - same material as the age 9-12 TWeen class but more complex by nature.

  6. Creative Writing for TEENS age 13-18 (3pm central) - same material as the age 9-12 TWeen class but more complex by nature.

Hear what my students have to say:

This class has been one of the best ones I ever took in my life. It was one of the only classes with a real sense of community and comradeship, where I truly felt like I belonged.

This class has made me a better writer in every way. When I read my stories from before I took it, I find them lacking in aspects I can’t quite articulate, but when I read my more recent writing I find myself appreciating my creation more. I have learned several things about story structure and various tropes that I wouldn’t have noticed on my own. Matushka Monica is a fun and inspiring teacher that I’ve enjoyed studying under and can easily talk and relate to. If I ever become a published writer, it will be because of this class.

Best teacher ever! Keep training Inklings!

Common questions:

Q: Are there grades?

A: RICHES has NO GRADES. In Creative Writing, I do keep a record, assigning points every time a student turns in a scene, but I do not stress the idea of grades because I want students to feel free to try and fail. Having said all that, I can create an official looking document to meet the needs of your state/nation’s grading requirements.

Q: What is the schedule of the school year?

A: Here’s the 2026-2027 Academic Calendar and classes are recorded if you can’t make one live.

Q: Are students required to read aloud in class?

A: Nope. I respect the fact that some students need time to get to that stage and they may not be ready while in my class. Reading aloud and answering questions aloud in class is optional. I’ve often been surprised that the quietest students will later write me a message about the deep things they are contemplating. God will use what I teach them to give them what they need in His time, whether I see it or not. RICHES students do periodic memorization/recitation in class, but I allow them to do it for their parents instead of live if needed.

Q: Do you really put students ranging from grades 4-12 in the same room?

A: Yes, on purpose! Many of them are siblings and it is a blessing for the whole family to be reading the same poetry at snack time, listening to the same sonata in the car on the way to the store, or helping each other memorize the same Psalm. Even students with no siblings often benefit from the interaction with different age groups. The young ones bring enthusiasm and the older students bring wisdom. I learn from them all!

Q: I’m an adult who wants to take RICHES for my own enrichment, but I don’t have kids. Or my kids are in public school. Do I have to be a parent to take this class?

A: No - all adults are welcome to Adult RICHES.

Q: Do students have to be homeschooled?

A: No - I teach several teens in my 3pm Creative Writing class that start class in the car on the way home from their brick and mortar school.

Any other questions? I’m happy to answer them through dm.