Rhetoric School
Ninth through Twelfth Grade
The Rhetoric School is the culmination of a classical Christian education. Rhetoric is the final component of the Trivium, which includes Grammar, Logic, and Rhetoric. The high school years are exciting years in a student’s development both personally and academically.
The Rhetoric stage capitalizes on the developmental desire of high school students to present themselves winsomely and persuasively. Through an intense study and practice of the art of rhetoric, students will write speeches and debate ideas with the end goal of participating in the “great conversation”–an interaction with faith, philosophy, and worldview that engages the world around them with the redemptive power of God’s truth.
The Great Conversation
The Grammar stage provides a robust foundation of information and knowledge, centering on content that is good, true, and beautiful. As students grow into the middle school years of the Logic stage, they are led to ask good questions. Logic School students are being prepared to articulate and defend their faith through discerning and identifying logical fallacies, as well as arguing rightly and humbly from a perspective that is biblically sound. The Rhetoric stage capitalizes high school students' desire to present themselves whimsically and persuasively. Through an intense study and practice of the art of rhetoric, students will write speeches and debate ideas with the end goal of participating in the “great conversation”–an interaction with faith, philosophy, and worldview that engages the world around them with the redemptive power of God’s truth.
Our Standards
Instead of preparing students to do well on standardized tests, we want to equip them to appreciate truth, goodness, and beauty wherever it can be found. We aren’t just developing students to be future workers. We are working with parents to shape their children into the image of Christ. That’s why our students actively practice expressions of respect for others in an atmosphere of grace. With this in mind, HCA continues to rank among the top classical Christian schools in the U.S. on standardized tests.
Portrait of the Graduate
We approach education with the end in mind. We know that at its heart, education is a formative enterprise–we are cultivating children to embrace, to embody, and to extend a vision of “the good life.” This good life is not high scores on standardized tests, a lucrative career, or college acceptance. Rather, the good life and aim of education is the cultivation of virtue and rightly ordered affections. To that end, Heritage partners with parents to grow students in the following ideals:
What to Expect at the Rhetoric School
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