Academy

The Adair Academy – building strong foundations

We are delighted to announce the brand new Adair Academy, an online space open to all Somerset Light Blues, regardless of how long you have been in the craft.

The Adair Academy will be a relaxed and supportive online space for any light blue within the province to join together and build confidence in a number of areas. It will be an evolving project, shaped by the needs of our members.

We are very fortunate to have amazing resources and support in the way of Lodge Mentors, our fellow brethren within our lodges, the Adair Club, Solomon, and the various publications supplied by the province during each of the ceremonies.

Every light blue in the province represents the future of our craft within it, and the Adair Academy offers another way to help support and guide. In the first instance, the sessions will be online, and will focus on ritual, as described below. We hope to also deliver additional sessions on topics including questions and answers (pre-submitted) and also ones that focus on specific officer roles such as Inner Guard, Junior Deacon etc that will go through best practices, shared experiences etc.

Each monthly session from February is designed to be practical, relaxed and useful, especially if you are preparing to deliver your first piece of ritual or answer degree ceremony questions – but all are welcome! We will cover topics such as:

  • Why ritual matters and how it supports your masonic journey.
  • Practical memorisation techniques and how to handle hiccups when delivering ritual.
  • Guided work on the first degree working tools and the second degree questions.
  • Time for Q&A, open practice and finer points such as court bows and saluting after delivery.
  • Sessions are planned to be 90 minutes, made up of two 45 minute halves: first half focus on 1st degree tools, second half will be the questions for the second degree – join just the first half, second, or both!
  • There will be downloadable sheets available in the correct format to support the memorisation techniques being taught.

Sessions after this will be the same format, but discussing the 2nd degree tools and third degree questions.  However, we will always run the first degree sessions as a mainstay for newer members.

Who is it for:
Adair Academy is open to all brethren, but is especially aimed at those at the start of their journey who want to feel more confident before stepping onto the lodge floor.

  • Newly initiated brethren preparing to deliver their first piece of ritual.
  • Brethren working towards their second (and later third) degree questions.
  • Anyone who would like to gain general confidence with speaking in lodge and ritual delivery in a no‑pressure space.
  • The emphasis is always on a welcoming environment where you can ask anything and learn at your own pace.
  • Brethren who are taking an officer role (later sessions).

How it works
The first phase of Adair Academy is simple: one monthly Zoom session focused on ritual learning, with the day and time set by a short poll so it fits as many diaries as possible.

  • Sessions hosted via Zoom once a month by Central Area Adair Rep Michael Beasley.
  • Day and time chosen by a quick poll circulated by email and WhatsApp.
  • Downloadable sheets for each piece of work, with space for your own notes and mnemonics, so everyone learns from the same layout.

Over time, extra sessions may be added for officer roles and other topics, guided entirely by feedback and demand.
Register your interest here.

You will have heard that you get out what you put in, with respect to freemasonry. We look forward to seeing you online soon!