Welcome to SPACE, our adult continuing education program which offers interactive monthly courses for personal enrichment! Learn more here.

January 2023March 2023

February 2023 Modules

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A Brief Exploration of Japanese Poetry

Meeting Tuesdays and Thursdays at 6:00 PM Eastern for eight 1-hour sessions on February 2, 7, 9, 14, 16, 21, 23, 28
Over the course of this module we will read and explore the work of a few major pre-modern Japanese poets in translation, putting them in their historical, cultural, and religious contexts along the way, but always focusing on the poetry itself. Group discussion is strongly encouraged. Poetry and poets covered will include that of the Manyōshū, Saigyō, Princess Shikishi, and Bashō. Time permitting, we can add to the list.

Advanced Old English: Alice in Wonderland

Meeting Mondays and Wednesdays at 7:00 PM Eastern for eight 1-hour sessions on February 1, 6, 8, 13, 15, 20, 22, 27
Dr. Peter Baker, then of the University of Virginia, translated Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland into Old English. This module will work with and translate back into Modern English this fun and delightful text, Æðelgyðe Ellendæda on Wundorlande: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland in Old English.
Precepted by Dr. Larry Swain

A Journey Through The History of Middle-earth: The Book of Lost Tales, Part Two (HoMe 2)
(Section 1)
 Hybrid

Section 1: WEBINARS MEETING (Recorded) for four 1-hour Webinars with James Tauber & John Garth on Mondays: Jan 30 at 10:00pm Eastern; Feb 6 at 10:00pm Eastern; Feb 13 (Mon) at 3:00pm Eastern NOTE time change; and Feb 20 (Mon) at 10:00pm Eastern.
DISCUSSION SECTION 1 MEETING with Tom Hillman on Thursdays at 10:00 PM (Eastern Time) on February 2, 9, 16, 23.
Christopher Tolkien’s twelve volumes on the History of Middle-earth give unparalleled insight into the development of J.R.R. Tolkien’s legendarium. They contain early drafts of familiar texts, different conceptualizations of well-known stories, and in some cases completely new material.

This module is part of a series of modules covering all twelve volumes of The History of Middle-earth. This particular module will provide an overview of Volume Two, The Book of Lost Tales Part Two, as well as readings from and discussion of highlights in that volume. It will include a guest appearance from Tolkien scholar John Garth.

Whether you’ve read The History of Middle-earth before or not, the hope is that these modules will make the volumes more accessible and will enhance your appreciation of the works of J.R.R. Tolkien. There is no requirement that you do every single module in the series as each will be largely standalone, although in later modules, references will be made to earlier volumes.
Precepted by Dr. Tom Hillman (Section 1) and James Tauber (Lecturer)
with guest John Garth

A Journey Through The History of Middle-earth: The Book of Lost Tales, Part Two (HoMe 2)
(Section 2)
 Hybrid

Section 2: WEBINARS MEETING (Recorded) for four 1-hour Webinars with James Tauber & John Garth on Mondays: Jan 30 at 10:00pm Eastern; Feb 6 at 10:00pm Eastern; Feb 13 at 3:00pm Eastern NOTE time change; and Feb 20 at 10:00pm Eastern.
DISCUSSION SECTION 2: MEETING for four 1-hour discussion classes with Sara Brown on Thursdays at 11:00 AM (Eastern Time) on February 2, 9, 16, 23.
Christopher Tolkien’s twelve volumes on the History of Middle-earth give unparalleled insight into the development of J.R.R. Tolkien’s legendarium. They contain early drafts of familiar texts, different conceptualizations of well-known stories, and in some cases completely new material.

This module is part of a series of modules covering all twelve volumes of The History of Middle-earth. This particular module will provide an overview of Volume Two, The Book of Lost Tales Part Two, as well as readings from and discussion of highlights in that volume. It will include a guest appearance from Tolkien scholar John Garth.

Whether you’ve read The History of Middle-earth before or not, the hope is that these modules will make the volumes more accessible and will enhance your appreciation of the works of J.R.R. Tolkien. There is no requirement that you do every single module in the series as each will be largely standalone, although in later modules, references will be made to earlier volumes.
Precepted by Dr. Sara Brown (Section 2) and James Tauber (Lecturer)
with guest John Garth

A Journey Through The History of Middle-earth: The Book of Lost Tales, Part Two (HoMe 2)
(Section 3)
 Hybrid

Section 3: WEBINAR MEETING (Recorded) for four 1-hour Webinars with James Tauber & John Garth on Mondays: Jan 30 at 10:00pm Eastern; Feb 6 at 10:00pm Eastern; Feb 13 (Mon) at 3:00pm Eastern NOTE time change; and Feb 20 (Mon) at 10:00pm Eastern.
DISCUSSION SECTION 3 MEETING for four 1-hour discussion classes with Tom Hillman on Thursdays at 3:00 PM (Eastern Time) on February 2, 9, 16, 23.
Christopher Tolkien’s twelve volumes on the History of Middle-earth give unparalleled insight into the development of J.R.R. Tolkien’s legendarium. They contain early drafts of familiar texts, different conceptualizations of well-known stories, and in some cases completely new material.

This module is part of a series of modules covering all twelve volumes of The History of Middle-earth. This particular module will provide an overview of Volume Two, The Book of Lost Tales Part Two, as well as readings from and discussion of highlights in that volume. It will include a guest appearance from Tolkien scholar John Garth.

Whether you’ve read The History of Middle-earth before or not, the hope is that these modules will make the volumes more accessible and will enhance your appreciation of the works of J.R.R. Tolkien. There is no requirement that you do every single module in the series as each will be largely standalone, although in later modules, references will be made to earlier volumes.
Precepted by Dr. Tom Hillman (Section 3) and James Tauber (Lecturer)
with guest John Garth

A Journey Through The History of Middle-earth: The Book of Lost Tales, Part Two (HoMe 2)
(Section 4)
 Hybrid

Section 4: WEBINARS MEETING (Recorded) for four 1-hour Webinars with James Tauber & John Garth on Mondays: Jan 30 at 10:00pm Eastern; Feb 6 at 10:00pm Eastern; Feb 13 at 3:00pm Eastern NOTE time change; and Feb 20 at 10:00pm Eastern.
DISCUSSION SECTION 4: MEETING for four 1-hour Webinars with James Tauber/John Garth (details coming soon) and four 1-hour discussion classes with Tom Hillman on Thursdays at 8:00 PM (Eastern Time) on February 2, 9, 16, 23.
Christopher Tolkien’s twelve volumes on the History of Middle-earth give unparalleled insight into the development of J.R.R. Tolkien’s legendarium. They contain early drafts of familiar texts, different conceptualizations of well-known stories, and in some cases completely new material.

This module is part of a series of modules covering all twelve volumes of The History of Middle-earth. This particular module will provide an overview of Volume Two, The Book of Lost Tales Part Two, as well as readings from and discussion of highlights in that volume. It will include a guest appearance from Tolkien scholar John Garth.

Whether you’ve read The History of Middle-earth before or not, the hope is that these modules will make the volumes more accessible and will enhance your appreciation of the works of J.R.R. Tolkien. There is no requirement that you do every single module in the series as each will be largely standalone, although in later modules, references will be made to earlier volumes.
Precepted by Dr. Tom Hillman (Section 4) and James Tauber (Lecturer)
with guest John Garth

Beginning Greek 5
Continuing Series

Meeting Tuesdays & Thursdays at 9:00 PM for eight 1-hour sessions, with classes scheduled for February 2, 7, 9, 14, 16, 21, 23, 28
Want to read the NT in the original Greek? The Greek translation of the Old Testament? This module’s for you! We continue our study introducing learners to the basics of ancient Greek: the alphabet, introduction to the verb system (tenses and moods) and the noun system (the very helpful article, first and second declension). Over several modules, the students will learn the foundations of the language and then students will be able to read texts.
Precepted by Dr. Larry Swain

Conversational German 2
Continuing Series

Meeting Mondays and Wednesdays at 7:00 PM Eastern for eight 1-hour sessions, with classes on February 1, 6, 8, 13, 15, 20, 22, 27
This course continues along the track established by the first Conversational German Series module. This month, the topics are a bit more “fun,” focusing a great deal on “free time” activities and the students’ subjects of interests. Grammar is a bit more limited, but the biggest grammatical subject – modal verbs – are complicated enough to merit intense study. A final grammatical case, the dative, is introduced in the final two sessions. Because this module builds on the previous one, there is slightly more repetition in the sessions listed below.

Session Breakdown:

1. Introduction and review; nominative and accusative case; conjugation of regular conjugations

2. Der Alltag (the normal day); Irregular and Stem-changing verbs in the present; the German breakfast;

3. More practice with “irregular” verbs; Einkaufen gehen (going shopping); repetition of modal verbs; gern; Obst und Gemüse

4. Freizeit; modal verbs; review of Wochenplan vocabulary (date and time); repetition of coordinating conjunctions

5. Kleider (clothing); Musik hören (listening to music);

6. Sport treiben (exercise); evaluating hobbies (adjectives like entspannend “relaxing” or interessant “interesting”); Restaurant vocabulary

7. General review of cases; indirect objects and the dative case for nouns.

8. The dative case for pronouns; dative prepositions.

Note: This list is not meant to be exhaustive and can change depending on student wishes.
Precepted by Dr. Isaac Schendel

Creative Writing: Workshop

Meeting Mondays and Thursdays at 8:00 PM (Eastern) for eight 1-hour sessions on February 2, 6, 9, 13, 16, 20, 23, 27
We will meet to blend learning, discussion, and playing games with reading, appreciating, and commenting on one another’s work as it is submitted for peer review. Writers are encouraged—but never required—to submit new pieces in any state of draftiness or readiness up to 2,000 words each week for peer reading and feedback. Our Collaborative Feedback method, developed here at Signum University, asks us to comment at the author's comfort level through a structured reader (not editor) response. We gather to encourage the story that the author wants to tell. Our philosophy of kindness first might just turn around your previous experience of writing groups.





A seat has been reserved in this module for any writer (especially a beginner) of marginalized identity to support them finding their voice. Please simply write to [email protected] to identify yourself if you wish to join the class.





Note: For more information about the Collaborative Feedback Method in SPACE, please check out our video here.

Japanese for Beginners 2
Continuing Series

Meeting Tuesdays and Thursdays @5:00 PM for eight 1-hour sessions (Eastern Time), with classes scheduled for February 2, 7, 9, 14, 16, 21, 23, 28.
In this series of modules, you will get familiarized with basic Japanese vocabulary and structures. Using a communicative approach, you’ll learn basic expressions, start to learn the hiragana script, and recognize katakana and kanji in a fun and interactive way. We will also explore Japanese culture in general. いっしょに日本語を学びましょう!
Precepted by Pilar Barrera

Latin in a Year 11
Continuing Series

Meeting Mondays & Wednesdays at 10:00 AM for eight 1-hour sessions (Eastern) on February 1, 6, 8, 13, 15, 20, 22, 27.
Latin in a Year continues, in its penultimate month, with additional forms and uses of participles and subjunctives as well as a handful of useful constructions and forms that function in slightly irregular ways. Covering the final three chapters in Wheelock’s Latin (38-40), this module reviews many earlier constructions and introduces a few new forms and functions.



This module covers chapters 38-40 of Wheelock’s Latin::
- 38: Relative Clauses of Characteristic; Dative of Reference; Supines
- 39: Gerund and Gerundive
- 40: -Ne, Num, and Nonne in Direct Questions; Fear Clauses;Genitive and Ablative of Description
Precepted by Dr. Faith Acker

Latin in a Year 2
(Section 1)
Continuing Series

Section 1: Meeting Tuesdays & Fridays at 6:00 PM Eastern for eight 1-hour sessions on Jan 31, Feb 3, 7, 10, 14, 17, 21, 24,
Students taking this module will learn to decline Latin nouns in the 3rd declension and conjugate Latin verbs (including sum/esse) in the imperfect and future tenses, applying these new skills to sentences and short Latin passages. The second part of Signum SPACE's Latin in a Year sequence, this module covers chapters 5-7 of Wheelock's Latin.
Precepted by Dr. Faith Acker (Section 1)

Latin in a Year 2
(Section 2)
Continuing Series

Section 2: Meeting Meeting Mondays & Wednesdays at 3:00 PM Eastern for eight 1-hour sessions on February 1, 6, 8, 13, 15, 20, 22, 27
Students taking this module will learn to decline Latin nouns in the 3rd declension and conjugate Latin verbs (including sum/esse) in the imperfect and future tenses, applying these new skills to sentences and short Latin passages. The second part of Signum SPACE's Latin in a Year sequence, this module covers chapters 5-7 of Wheelock's Latin.
Precepted by Dr. Faith Acker (Section 2)

Old English 2
(Section 1)
Continuing Series

Section with Dr. Larry Swain: Meeting Tuesdays & Fridays at 7:00 PM Eastern Time for eight 1-hour sessions, with classes on February 3, 7, 10, 14, 17, 21, 24, 28
Ready to begin learning Old English? This series of modules introduces students to the vocabulary and structure of the earliest recorded form of the English language. One year of modules prepares the student to read texts from over a thousand years ago! Each one-month module builds on the previous one, so students ready to learn Old English will communicate with our Director and Professor Swain to make the right placement for everyone.
Precepted by Dr. Larry Swain (Section 1)

Old English 2
(Section 2)
Continuing Series

Section with Dr. Isaac Schendel: Meeting Tuesdays & Thursdays at 7:00 PM Eastern Time for eight 1-hour sessions, with classes on February 2, 7, 9, 14, 16, 21, 23, 28
Ready to begin learning Old English? This series of modules introduces students to the vocabulary and structure of the earliest recorded form of the English language. One year of modules prepares the student to read texts from over a thousand years ago! Each one-month module builds on the previous one, so students ready to learn Old English will communicate with our Director and Professor Swain to make the right placement for everyone.
Precepted by Dr. Isaac Schendel (Section 2)

Old Norse 2
Continuing Series

Meeting Mondays & Thursdays at 4:00 PM Eastern Time for eight 1-hour sessions, with classes on February 2, 6, 9, 13, 16, 20, 23, 27
This series of modules introduces you to the vocabulary and grammar of Old Norse, preparing you to read medieval sagas, eddic poetry, and even Viking-Age runic inscriptions. Each one-month module builds on the previous one, so students ready to learn Old Norse will communicate with our Director and Professor Anderson to choose the right placement for everyone.
Precepted by Dr. Carl Anderson

Weird Languages

Meeting Tuesdays and Thursdays at 8:00 PM Eastern for eight 1-hour sessions on February 2, 7, 9, 14, 16, 21, 23, 28
Many people do not realize the variety of language structures and strange language phenomena that exist in the world's languages. This class will introduce a number of features that can be found across the globe. These include object agreement, verbs that necessarily encode the shape of items, ergativity, discourse particles, languages with 20 grammatical gender classes, pronoun hierarchies, circumfixes and infixes, and the complex systems of taboo words that arise in some languages. We will look at a number of these, at what is rare, common, surprising, but all of which are real. Language families from Africa, the Caucasus, Siberia, Australia, and the Americas.

The module will follow an 8-session structure as shown below.
Outline 8-Session Structure
Week 1 Lecture 1: Introduction to languages, English, linguistics, and glossing
Discussion 1: How to we make sense of English and what else to expect in the world's languages?
Week 2 Lecture 2: Agreement, ergativity
Discussion 2: Problem set and identifying parts of unusual phenomena
Week 3 Lecture 3: Evidentiality, Genders
Discussion 3: Noun class, word gender exercise
Week 4 Lecture 4: Taboo language and word classes, and shape
Discussion 4: Word class and shape puzzle
Precepted by Shawn Gaffney
If you have any questions about the SPACE program, please reach out to [email protected].