Material Logic (Memoria Press)

Material Logic is a Memoria Press logic course by Martin Cothran, listed for grades 9 and up. The publisher describes material logic as the study of the content of reasoning, in contrast to formal logic, which studies its structure, and presents the course as either a follow-on to its Traditional Logic program or an introductory thinking-skills course for high school grades.

Last updated: 2026-10-08 · Every Homeschool Editorial Team

At a glance

Method	Classical (Every Homeschool classification); the publisher presents the course as a follow-on to Traditional Logic or an introductory thinking-skills course, usable as a one-semester or one-year course
Worldview	Christian; Memoria Press describes itself as producing classical Christian education materials. Every Homeschool classifies it as Christian · Ecumenical, a term the publisher does not use
Grades	Grades 9+ on the publisher's product pages; Memoria Academy lists its live class for grades 9-12 (ages 14-18)
Formats	Print Student Text, Student Workbook, Quizzes & Test, and Teacher Key; streaming instructional videos in the Complete Set (DVDs are sold separately); a live Memoria Academy class
Cost tier	Standard (Every Homeschool classification); the Complete Set is $108.30 list and $97.48 current, retrieved October 2026
Parent intensity	3
ESA-common	Not verified
Accredited	Not applicable: a curriculum product, not a school. Memoria Academy, which teaches the live class, states that it is accredited by the Classical Latin School Association
Established	Not stated for the first edition; the publisher lists a Third Edition and the Student Text page shows a 2021 copyright date.
Website	memoriapress.com

Our scoreboard (1-5)

Criterion	Score	One-line reason
Academic rigor	5	In our assessment, a demanding course built on the Aristotelian categories, predicables, and causes that the academy's course page names as its emphasis, at a high-school level
Ease of teaching	3	Instructional videos with Martin Cothran, and a Teacher Key with the answers to the workbook and quizzes
Content quality	5	In our assessment, a clearly organized text of 15 chapters with a daily-exercise workbook and chapter quizzes
Flexibility	3	The academy's course page lists no prerequisite and notes that most students in its class have taken Traditional Logic I and II
Value for money	4	Complete Set $97.48 with streaming videos, retrieved October 2026
Worldview scope	3	The publisher's FAQ describes its whole curriculum as Christian; the academy page names Aristotle and the product page names St. Thomas Aquinas, Hillaire Belloc, and Sir Francis Bacon
Visual/design	3	In our assessment, a restrained, text-driven layout; the publisher's Student Text page describes an easy-to-read text layout
Support resources	4	Streaming videos in the Complete Set, a Teacher Key, and a live Memoria Academy class

Who the publisher is

Memoria Press describes itself as a publishing company that produces classical Christian education materials for home and private schools, and states that it was founded by Cheryl Lowe. Its footer gives a Louisville, Kentucky mailing address, and the About page says it has developed its K-12 classical curriculum at Highlands Latin School there, where its programs are written and field-tested. The About page calls Memoria Academy an extension of Memoria Press and Highlands Latin School and says it offers live audio/video courses for grades 3-12 in subjects including Latin, logic, classical studies, literature, history, and mathematics.

Martin Cothran is listed on the publisher's staff page as Editor of The Classical Teacher, Memoria College Provost, and author. The product pages list him as the author of Material Logic, Traditional Logic I, Traditional Logic II, and Classical Rhetoric with Aristotle. The publisher subtitles the Traditional Logic I Complete Set An Introduction to Formal Logic and lists it for Grades 7+; it describes Traditional Logic II as a continuation of Traditional Logic I and lists it for Grades 8+; and it lists Material Logic and the full-year Classical Rhetoric course for Grades 9+. The product pages we read describe Material Logic as a possible follow-on to Traditional Logic and do not call it a capstone.

The publisher's product page says the principles of material logic, which it calls an important part of trivium language study, are now almost forgotten, and presents the course as a way to teach them. It also describes a gap between formal logic courses and so-called thinking-skills courses, and says the course can serve either as a follow-on to Traditional Logic or as an introductory thinking-skills course for high school grades.

The core pedagogy

The publisher's product page says formal logic studies the structure of reasoning and material logic studies its content, summarizing the difference as the how of reasoning versus the what. It describes its Traditional Logic I course as an introduction to formal logic. The academy's course page describes the course as a practical study of the conceptual elements of rational thinking, through how to define, classify, and identify the basic components of language and thought, with emphasis on Aristotle's ten categories, the five predicables, and the four causes. The publisher's product page frames it around the ten ways in which something can be said to exist, the five ways in which something can be said of something else, and the four questions that must be answered to know what something is.

The publisher's product page says Material Logic can be used as either a one-semester or a one-year course, and the academy's course page estimates 30-45 minutes per day for its class, which is worth half a high school credit in philosophy or as an elective. The same product page describes the course as either a follow-on to Memoria Press's Traditional Logic program or an introductory thinking-skills course for high school grades.

Signature mechanics: (1) Aristotelian categories and predicables, the academy page emphasizes Aristotle's ten categories, five predicables, and four causes, and the product page lists analyses of essays by St. Thomas Aquinas, Hillaire Belloc, and Sir Francis Bacon among the course's features. (2) Cothran's video instruction, the instructional videos are described by the publisher as Cothran covering every important aspect of the book, explaining difficult concepts and illustrating important ideas, which in our assessment matters for parents who have not studied logic themselves. (3) Workbook-plus-tests structure, the complete set pairs a student text of 15 chapters with a workbook of daily exercises, a quizzes and test book with 14 chapter quizzes and a final exam, and a teacher key. (4) Follow-on positioning, the publisher presents the course as either a follow-on to its Traditional Logic program or an introductory thinking-skills course.

A day in the life

The academy's course page says students need to devote 30-45 minutes per day to its class and that the grade rests on participation, weekly quizzes, and a final exam. The publisher does not describe a daily routine for home use, so this review does not estimate one. Per the publisher's product page, the components are a Student Text with an introduction, 15 chapters, and appendices of study tips; a Student Workbook with daily exercises; a Quizzes & Test book with 14 chapter quizzes, a final exam, an answer key, and a downloadable version; and a Teacher Key with the answers to the workbook exercises and the quizzes and test.

The instructional videos are used along with the Material Logic text. Families who want live instruction can enroll the student in Memoria Academy's Material Logic course; its 2026-27 class list gives $340 for the one-semester class (Grade 9+), and the registration table on the course page showed no sections in October 2026.

What they do exceptionally well

A stated focus. The academy's course page says the emphasis is on Aristotle's ten categories, the five predicables, and the four causes. The publisher's product page says the principles of material logic are now almost forgotten, and presents the course as a way to teach them.

Instruction from the author. In our assessment, having the text's author teach the videos is a strength. The publisher's description of the videos says Cothran covers every important aspect of the book, explaining difficult concepts and illustrating important ideas along the way.

Sequencing. The academy's course page lists no prerequisite and notes that most students have taken Traditional Logic I and II, and the publisher's product page positions the course as a follow-on to Traditional Logic or as an introductory thinking-skills course.

What they do poorly

Prior logic study is common among academy students. The academy's course page lists no prerequisite but notes that most students have taken Traditional Logic I and II, so a family starting from no logic background may want to confirm the fit with the publisher.

Abstract demand. In our assessment, the subject matter (categories, predicables, and causes) is abstract, and students who find abstract reasoning difficult may find it demanding. Families should consider the student's readiness for sustained abstract work; the publisher's product page lists the course for grades 9 and up.

Self-study versus a live class. Families who want a live teacher and classmates rather than self-study can enroll in the academy's class, which lists its section, teacher, day, time, term, seats, and cost at registration; families should confirm tuition there.

Who it fits / who it doesn't

• Pick Material Logic if: your high-schooler has completed Traditional Logic I and II, as most students in the academy class have, or you want the publisher's introductory thinking-skills option; you want a logic course the publisher describes as classical Christian; you plan to use Cothran's videos or the Memoria Academy class; your student enjoys abstract work.

• Skip Material Logic if: you want a course focused on the structure of arguments, which the publisher assigns to formal logic and its Traditional Logic courses; your student has struggled with abstraction in math or grammar; you want a secular logic course, since the publisher describes its whole curriculum as Christian; you want a video teacher who is not Cothran (the publisher's videos are taught by Cothran).

Cost honest assessment

As of October 2026, the Material Logic Complete Set is listed at $108.30 with a current price of $97.48, and includes the student text, workbook, quizzes and test book, teacher key, and streaming instructional videos. The set's components are also listed separately: Student Workbook $19.00, Student Text $16.25, Quizzes & Test $6.20, Teacher Key $11.85, and the streaming Instructional Videos at $55.00 (current price $49.50); the component prices above are list prices. The DVD version of the instructional videos is listed at $55.00. Memoria Academy's 2026-27 class list gives $340 for the live Material Logic class, a one-semester class for Grade 9+, and the registration table on the academy's Material Logic page showed no sections in October 2026, so families should confirm current sections and tuition at registration.

For comparison, Memoria's Traditional Logic I Complete Set is listed at $108.30 with a current price of $81.23, and Classical Academic Press's The Discovery of Deduction program at $169.95, both as listed in October 2026.

The Basic Set (Student Text, Student Workbook, Quizzes & Test, and Teacher Key, without the videos) is $47.98 (list price $53.30), and the Complete Set, which adds the instructional videos, is $97.48. Families already using Memoria Press across several subjects should check the publisher's site for current set pricing.

ESA eligibility notes

Whether any state ESA marketplace lists Memoria Press products or Memoria Academy tuition was not confirmed for this review. The publisher's pages that we read do not state which ESA programs accept its products. Families should confirm with their program administrator that the specific items they plan to buy, including streaming videos and any live-class tuition, are eligible and whether the program applies restrictions to religious curriculum.

Alternatives

• Classical Academic Press's The Argument Builder and The Discovery of Deduction, a family would compare CAP's logic sequence if they want a different publisher's logic program; the publisher states its own scope, prerequisites, and prices on its site.
• Canon Press Introductory Logic, a family would compare Canon Press for a program the publisher describes as 40 lessons covering formal and informal logic, with a video course taught by Brian Kohl per the publisher's product page.