Join Us for Classics Week on the Campus of Pepperdine

Socratic Discussion, Critical Thinking, and Fun!

The renowned Great Books Summer Program gives advanced middle and high school students an exceptional pre-college experience on seven prestigious campuses in the U.S. and abroad. In Summer 2025, we are thrilled to launch a very special Classics Week program on the spectacular campus of Pepperdine University in Malibu, California. Residential and Day. Rising grades 6-8, rising grades 9-12, and gap year.

Known for its respected Classical Literature department, Pepperdine is the perfect place to delve into the classics and heroic literature of the Western Canon. Here we will nurture a lively community of learning where free inquiry, reason, and civil discourse shape critical thinking skills. Students will enjoy intellectually inspiring seminars with peers who share their passion for great literature and learning, as well as social activities outside of class in a welcoming, fun, and well-supervised environment.

Engaging the Life of the Mind

Esteemed college professors and award-winning educators lead seminars in the Socratic-style pedagogy of “Shared Inquiry” where they model the valuable skills of critical thinking, analytical reading, open inquiry, and self-expression.  Students come away with heightened powers of reason and expression and the confidence to engage with professors in a college setting!

We strive for respectful, probing, conversation in search of knowledge, as we explore timeless themes of humanity in classic literature, philosophy and art. Most of all, we invite students to embark on the quest to develop their own best thinking and engage in the Life of the Mind.

Let us help you explore and choose…

We are also at these locations in summer 2025:
Amherst College, Haverford College, Stanford University, Pepperdine University, and abroad in Oxford, Edinburgh, Dublin, Madrid, and Athens! Great your custom grand tour!

Our programs include:
Great Books & Big Ideas, Classics Week, Writer’s Workshop, Literary Travel, Reasoning & Persuasive Skills for Leaders.

We are invested in your child’s success. We are educators, scholars, camp enthusiasts, and yes, we are parents too. We believe every student deserves an enriching summer experience full of challenge, fun, and friendship.

Call: 203-612-9470
Email: info@greatbookssummer.com