Events

“To everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.”

— Ecclesiastes 3:1

Events Through the Great Hearts Network

A classical school year is marked by more than quarters and grades. It is marked by traditions — moments of ceremony and celebration that teach students how to honor what is excellent, what is beautiful, and what is worth remembering. From convocation in August to commencement in May, every serious classical school weaves ceremony into the school year as deliberately as it weaves the reading list.

Because Virtualis delivers its instruction through Great Hearts Online, our families are welcomed into events hosted by Great Hearts Online and, where geography allows, by local Great Hearts academies across Arizona. The events listed below are real Great Hearts events that Virtualis families can plug into — not a list of things we invent.

Great Hearts Online hosts Virtual Open Houses and Info Nights, virtual clubs, virtual field trips, and an annual Virtual Athletic Field Day for its scholars. Great Hearts Online also staffs a Community Engagement Coordinator whose full-time job is to foster human connection across the online community. Virtualis families participate as members of that community.

The Community Behind the School

When your student enrolls at Virtualis, they join the Great Hearts network — the largest classical school community in America.

47 Great Hearts academies nationwide

30K+ Students in the network

3 States: AZ, TX, LA

K–12 Virtual community K through 12th grade

Source: Great Hearts Academies, 2024–2025 published figures.

Hosted by Great Hearts Online

These are events that Great Hearts Online hosts for its scholars and prospective families. Virtualis families participate in these gatherings as part of the Great Hearts Online community.

Virtual Open House

Great Hearts Online hosts periodic Virtual Open Houses and Info Nights for prospective families. Meet the Head of School and deans as they walk through the student experience, curriculum, and daily schedule. Dates are posted on the Great Hearts Online website and announced through our newsletter.

Virtual Clubs

Great Hearts Online operates a range of virtual clubs for enrolled scholars — open to all Virtualis students as part of the Great Hearts Online community. Club offerings vary by year and student interest.

Virtual Field Trips

Guided virtual trips curated by Great Hearts Online for its scholars, tied to the curriculum. An opportunity to study art, history, and the natural world together as a school community.

Virtual Athletic Field Day

An annual athletic field day hosted by Great Hearts Online for the entire online community. A celebration of movement, friendly competition, and community across the network.

Source: Great Hearts Online Community Engagement program, 2025–2026.

Academic & Curricular Celebrations

At Great Hearts schools, each grade level caps a major unit with a shared celebration that honors what students have read and learned. These are among the network’s most beloved traditions, and we bring their spirit into the Virtualis year.

Western Civilization Day

A school-wide celebration at the culmination of each grade level’s major first-semester unit on one topic or period in the history of the West. Students present, recite, and share what they have studied.

Storybook Festival (K–5)

A Grammar-stage celebration of “our shared love of words, books, and reading.” Students come as favorite characters, listen to read-alouds, and see their own writing honored.

Math Night for Parents

A presentation on the Great Hearts math curriculum — how understanding precedes calculation, why we teach the way we do, and how parents can support mathematical formation at home.

Spelling Bee

Grade-level finalists compete in a school-wide spelling bee. Winners in qualifying grades advance toward the Scripps National Spelling Bee — a Great Hearts tradition across the network.

Bard Competition

A four-round poetry recitation contest to find the most gifted Bards at every grade level. The network-wide Great Hearts Bard final brings together top reciters from Great Hearts schools across the country.

Science Symposium

Upper School students present original research projects in the natural sciences — experiment design, data, and conclusions — in the classical tradition of natural philosophy as inquiry into the real.

Grade-Level Curricular Celebrations

Upper School students in Great Hearts schools gather each year for a celebration rooted in a central text they have read that year. The tradition turns a book into a shared memory.

6th Grade — World Cultures Day. A celebration at the end of the 6th grade study of ancient civilizations and world cultures.
7th Grade — Regional History Celebration. Students honor the year’s study of American regional and state history.
8th Grade — Folkmoot. An annual 8th grade curricular celebration where students gather in camaraderie to read selections from Beowulf and delight in a medieval feast.
9th Grade — Night at West Egg. A Gatsby-themed curricular celebration marking the end of the 9th grade study of The Great Gatsby.
10th Grade — Evening at Netherfield. A curricular celebration themed after Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, honoring the 10th grade reading of the novel.
11th & 12th Grade — Homerathon. A marathon recitation of Homer’s epics by the upperclassmen who have lived with the text through the Rhetoric stage.

Source: Great Hearts Irving Upper School Events, 2025–2026. Specific celebrations at Virtualis will vary by year and enrollment.

Senior Capstone Traditions

The Shape of a Senior Year

The Great Hearts senior year is shaped by a sequence of ceremonies as old as classical education itself. Each one honors the student’s work and the community that made it possible.

Junior Blazer & Senior Pin Ceremony

An early-year ceremony recognizing upperclassmen and their role as leaders in the school community — a formal marker of entry into the Rhetoric stage.

Senior Thesis Defense

The capstone of a Great Hearts classical education. Beginning at the end of junior year and finishing in the last quarter of senior year, each student writes a 15–20 page thesis on one of six great ideas — Truth, Beauty, Goodness, Justice, Equality, or Liberty — analyzing at least three works from philosophy, art, literature, or music. The process requires approximately 40 hours of independent reading, the same of writing and editing, and roughly 10 hours of faculty advisor meetings. Students defend the thesis before a panel of three faculty members, with family and friends invited to observe. See College Preparation for more.

Senior Walk

On the last day of school, seniors don caps and gowns and walk through the school as their 6th–11th grade peers and the faculty line the halls to cheer them on. A tradition that reminds younger students what is possible and reminds seniors of the community that brought them there.

Senior Banquet & Commencement

The Senior Banquet is a semi-formal evening where each senior is honored with a short speech from a faculty member. Commencement follows, closing the formation of twelve years of classical study.

Seasonal & Fine Arts Traditions at Great Hearts

Long-standing seasonal traditions at Great Hearts academies that Virtualis families in Arizona are welcome to attend at local campuses when open to the public.

Winter Concert

A celebration of the Advent and Christmas seasons through music. Students perform classical and liturgical repertoire studied through the first semester — a beloved tradition at Great Hearts lower and upper schools.

Fine Arts Winter Fête

A celebration of student accomplishments in Drama, Music, and Art across the Great Hearts Upper School — the classical curriculum’s commitment to beauty made visible.

Grandparents’ Day

Many Great Hearts lower schools welcome grandparents into the classroom for a morning of recitation and show-and-tell — a chance for the older generation to see the classical curriculum at work.

Storybook Festival

A Grammar-stage celebration of “our shared love of words, books, and reading” — students come dressed as favorite literary characters, listen to read-alouds, and see their own writing honored.

Source: Great Hearts Irving Lower & Upper School Events, 2025–2026. Public attendance and availability varies by campus and event.

How Virtualis Events Work

Virtual first, in-person where possible

Because Virtualis serves families across Arizona and beyond, most events are hosted virtually so every family can attend regardless of geography. When the calendar and geography allow, we also host in-person gatherings in the greater Phoenix area. Each event announcement specifies the format.

Built on the Great Hearts partnership

Many of our academic events happen through Great Hearts Online — Virtual Open Houses, virtual clubs, virtual field trips, Virtual Athletic Field Day, and the network-wide Great Hearts Bard. Virtualis students participate as members of the Great Hearts Online community. On top of that, Virtualis hosts its own Virtualis-family gatherings anchored in the Christian and classical year.

Open to current and prospective families

Open Houses, Curriculum Nights, and most Admissions events are always open to prospective families. Academic and curricular celebrations are for enrolled students and their families.

Announced through the newsletter first

The fastest way to hear about events is our newsletter. Scroll to the footer of any page and subscribe — event announcements go out there first, and on the Announcements page.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are Virtualis events virtual or in person?

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Most of our events are hosted virtually so every family can attend regardless of geography. Great Hearts Online hosts its own Virtual Open Houses, virtual clubs, and virtual field trips in which Virtualis families participate. When possible, we also host in-person gatherings in the greater Phoenix area. Each event announcement specifies the format.

Which events come from Great Hearts Online and which from Virtualis?

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Academic events — Virtual Open Houses, curriculum nights, virtual field trips, Virtual Athletic Field Day, Great Hearts Bard — are hosted by Great Hearts Online as part of our partnership. Community gatherings, liturgical-year events, and Virtualis-family meetups are hosted directly by Virtualis. Both appear on this page.

Can prospective families attend Open House?

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Yes. Open Houses and Curriculum Nights are specifically for prospective families. If you are considering Virtualis and want to meet our founders and faculty before enrolling, these are the best way to do it. Register through the event announcement when it is posted.

Are curricular celebrations like Folkmoot or Homerathon happening at Virtualis?

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These are long-standing traditions at Great Hearts brick-and-mortar schools, and they reflect the spirit Virtualis brings into its own curricular celebrations. Specific events offered at Virtualis each year depend on grade-level enrollment and faculty availability. Contact us for the current academic year’s event calendar.

How do I find out when the next event is?

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Subscribe to our newsletter — the signup is in the footer of every page. Event announcements will also be posted here and on the Announcements page.

Is there a cost to attend?

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Open Houses, Curriculum Nights, and community gatherings are free to attend. Curricular celebrations for enrolled students are part of the school program. Any event that requires a registration fee will say so clearly in its announcement.