The classical model of education is based on the traditional “liberal arts”, i.e., the learning arts proper to a free person since the time of the ancient Greeks and enjoying a rich Catholic heritage. It is not subject matter but rather the bestowing of the tools of learning and clear thinking that help pupils to apply this knowledge to their lives and the problems and issues they will face in the world.

This classical model of education closely follows the natural intellectual development of the child. In the classical method, these stages of development are represented by the “Trivium” of Grammar, Logic and Rhetoric. 
 

• “Grammar” means learning the structure of a subject—grammar and spelling rules, math facts, the catechism—and corresponds roughly to levels 1-4.
• The “Logic” stage involves a deeper analysis of subjects—learning how all the parts come together in a cohesive whole. This is especially true in subjects such as history and literature, where pupils start delving deeper and asking “why” and “how” questions; it corresponds to levels 5-8.
• Finally, the “Rhetoric” stage takes these how and why questions and focuses on what St. Ignatius of Loyola called eloquentia perfecta—perfect eloquence—in the communication of these thoughts.