Old's Cool "Back-to-Basics" Summer Camp
We've gotten many requests from parents who are looking for a summer camp program, so we're putting together a simple but rigorous curriculum which will essentially be the same as the first eight weeks of the Academy's regular schedule.
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Since we believe in the benefits of total immersion, we encourage students to board with us at the Academy for this two-month intensive. Students who wish to continue with the full one-year program are welcome to stay on and will be able to transition seamlessly.
Tuition for the eight-week summer program (July 1–September 1) is free, and will include the forty days of school, in addition to breakfast and lunch every day, as well as the course/shop materials and tool kit.
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Room/board is also included as part of this special summer program package.
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The complete curriculum for the summer camp can be downloaded here.
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"I am not young enough to know everything."
– Oscar Wilde
Freedom really is free.
We like to say our target demographic age is 18-80, whether you're just starting out your journey in life and don't know if college is right for you (or you want to take a gap year), or are already sick and tired of the 9-5 desk job and are desperate to pivot to something that demands excellence and spine.
Or maybe you've already retired and are looking to get your hands dirty again in some meaningful, elbow-grease way, dive deep into philosophical thoughts, or cram your thick skull with some timeless wisdom and verve. College, career, and retirement isn't always what it's cracked up to be.
Our hearts, minds, and door are open to everyone.
Tuition for the twelve-month Old's Cool program (starting July 1st and January 1st) is free.
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Eat, sleep, drink, and breathe the classical education is the only way to go, in our opinion, and we have an in-house "dormitory" for our students to live the Old's Cool life. Room and board will also be offered for free.
COURSE MATERIALS AND UNIFORMS
The course materials include: The 7 Habits of Highly Successful People; Liar’s Poker; The Prince; Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Frankenstein, Empire of the Sun, Lord of the Flies, West with the Night; The Iliad, Moby Dick; The Gulag Archipelago; and The Road to Serfdom.
Also: a leather-bound notebook; the fantastic Pilot Metropolitan Fountain pen with ink, one pack of Ticonderoga #2 pencils, and an old school eraser and pencil sharpener.
Each student will also receive an Old’s Cool polo, an Old’s Cool Academy tie, a black blazer and black pleated pants.
There is no cost for the "Course Materials and Uniforms."
TOOL KIT AND SHOP MATERIALS FEE
Old's Cool Tool Kit includes Old’s Cool coveralls, gloves, safety glasses, ear plugs and tool bag, which the students will make themselves. It'll be filled with numerous essential tools starting with our old's cool pal Tim Leatherman's Sidekick or Wingman.
Shop materials include boat building and car restoration supplies, parts, and paint.
Tool Kit and Shop Materials are also free of courtesy our generous sponsors and kind patrons.
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N.B. Classes are scheduled to start on July 1st, 2025
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A day in the life of an Old's Cool Wiseacre.*
At 7:00 am the American flag is raised every morning to start the day.
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From 8:00 am to 10:45 am there are three morning classes: 1st, 2nd, and 3rd period. First period always starts with the Pledge of Allegiance.
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Every Monday morning from 10:00 am to 10:45 am there is a mandatory school-wide assembly to reflect on the previous week, plan the upcoming one, and make sure we're all ready to give (and take) our best shot, with Tysonian toughness.
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From 11 am to 12:30 pm students plan, prepare, cook, eat and cleanup the midday meal together.
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At 12:45 pm afternoon shop class begins and ends at 3:30. These traditional skills classes can be anything from car restoration to boat building to beekeeping to brewing beer.
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From 4 pm to 5:30 pm is the time for sports and extra-curriculars, where students participate in activities of their own choosing: sailing, skeet shooting, sewing.
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At 6 pm Retreat is played to end the day.
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*Our nickname. Mascot is "Smart Aleck."
Old's Cool "Poetry and Penmanship" After-School Program
Our “Poetry and Penmanship” introductory class is a condensed version of our regular curriculum, aimed at introducing younger students to the life-changing joys of a classical liberal arts and the beauty of valuable and almost-forgotten traditional crafts.
Students meet once a week for eight weeks, from 3 - 5 pm. Sessions are 4 times per year starting February 1st, April 1st, July 1st (Junior Summer Camp), and September 1st. Enrollment is limited to six students per session.
Since this is an old-school program, we’re going to dispense with cellphones and computers. All school work/homework will be written in longhand in white-lined notebooks with Pilot fountain pens.
SCHEDULE
First session starts February 1st and ends on March 30th. The second session starts on April 1st and ends on June 1st. And then July 1st-August 31st; September 1st-November 31st.
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The two-hour classes will be filled with fun as follows:
At 3 pm – We’ll recite the “Pledge of Success.”
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From 3 - 3:30 pm – A student will introduce and play the music of the week. Another student will introduce the Word of the Week (WoW) – an unusual or instructive vocabulary word that we’ll define and learn how to spell.
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From 3:30 - 4 pm – A student will read the week’s chosen poem out loud, and we’ll all discuss. Everyone will then write the poem out longhand, in cursive in their notebooks.
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At 4 pm – We will take a 5-minute break and either do a few jumping-jacks or a bunch of pushups. Maybe a quick trot around the block.
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From 4:05 - 4:55 pm – Invigorated, students will either engage in a traditional skills activity such as baking bread or sewing beach totes, or making soap. Or, anyone and everyone can play a game or two of One Up!*
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Five minutes before 5 pm – Class assignments for the following week, and then, “Dismissed!”
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You can download the reading list, the "Pledge of Success," and the rest of the basic curriculums here.
A free ride isn't a free lunch
You'll pay for your time here, in sweat and effort.
Seriously, the Academy's education is a significant (and wondrous) investment in any student's wider and wilder worldview. Our goal is to make this opportunity available to anyone who has the ways but not necessarily the means to embrace their own unlimited potential.
Every student who qualifies and is accepted into any of our programs is guaranteed a "scholarship."
If you're interested in applying, please contact us anytime:
learnmore@oldscoolacademy.com or (401) 572-7090.
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