A book worth a second look
Scholars return to the text, test interpretations, and ask what the evidence can—and cannot—tell them.
LIVE, LITERATURE-LED SEMINARS · AGES 8–12
Answers are everywhere now.Good questions are rare.
The Stories We Believe · Begins January 12, 2027 Explore This Journey ↗
Welcome to Hawthorne.
The liberal arts seminar, reimagined for young scholars.
Six scholars. One professor. Exceptional books.Six weeks of big ideas, unexpected connections, challenged assumptions,and the joy of growing together.
A book is where we begin. Not where our thinking ends.
THE HAWTHORNE EXPERIENCE
An intellectual life as rich as their imaginations begins with books, thoughtful peers, and room to question.
Small by design.
Serious by nature.
Room to think together
No more than six scholars meet for a live 45-minute conversation each week. The facilitator invites different views and protects time to think.
Challenge with thoughtful support
Intellectual complexity and emotional demands receive separate attention. Prompts, preparation time, and different ways to respond help scholars enter the inquiry.
“The reading is an invitation to interpretation, not an exercise in recall. It is a jumping off point for questions of reason, ethics, logic, perception, and meaning.”Maria Frisch, PhD
A NOTE FROM THE FOUNDER
Curiosity deserves good company.
I founded Hawthorne on a conviction shaped by years in developmental science, research, and university teaching: children deserve more than increasingly difficult work. They deserve extraordinary ideas, thoughtful peers, and adults who take their questions seriously.
Hawthorne brings that intellectual companionship to young scholars, combining the rigor of a seminar with the wonder of childhood.
Dr. Maria Frisch, PhDFounder, Hawthorne Institute
Meet our founderDifferent families, different paths — the same appetite for books that ask a little more.
THE STORIES WE BELIEVE · JANUARY 2027
The Stories
We Believe.
When everyone believes a story, does that make it true?
Beginning with Kelly Barnhill’s The Ogress and the Orphans, scholars investigate how rumors become accepted truths, why communities look for someone to blame, and what it takes to challenge a convincing story.
Three Big Inquiries
Belief & Evidence
What makes a story convincing rather than true?
Belonging & Blame
Why do communities need someone to blame?
Courage & Responsibility
What do we do when everyone else is wrong?
Begins January 12, 2027 · Six weekly online sessions · 45 minutes each · Up to six scholars per group.
Sparks · Ages 8–10 / Lanterns · Ages 10–12
Ask about a start month, session times, and reading expectations before making a commitment.
First-seminar offer
Through
$249 USD$365standard rate
Per scholar · six-week journey Save $116
Founders Circle with your first seminar. Register and pay for your first seminar to lock in 30% off all other seminars with open registration during 2027.
For the six-week seminar. Exact meeting dates, book and material requirements, and payment details are provided with enrollment information. An inquiry does not reserve a place.
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THE FOUNDERS CIRCLE
Your first seminar.
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Register and pay for your first seminar to join the Founders Circle. This locks in 30% off all other seminars with open registration during 2027.
No child information is requested. Email updates are optional. Email signup does not enroll a scholar, reserve a place, or confer Founders Circle membership. Read our privacy information.