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Curriculum & Classical Stages

The Trivium, taught as one continuous journey.

Grammar, Logic, and Rhetoric are not three programs bolted together — they are the natural shape of a child's mind, and the spine of every lesson we teach from kindergarten through graduation.

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  • Est. 2008Chattanooga, TN
  • ACCS AccreditedID 04412
  • K–12Fully accredited
A Theology of Education

Why we teach classically, and Christianly.

The classical tradition has always understood that children are not empty vessels to be filled, nor blank slates to be programmed. They are persons made in the image of God, unfolding in distinct stages — first absorbing the facts of God's world with wonder, then asking why those facts hang together, then learning to speak and write that truth with grace and clarity. We call those stages Grammar, Logic, and Rhetoric — the Trivium — and we shape our entire K–12 curriculum around them.

What makes a classical education Christian is not a Bible verse stapled to a literature anthology. It is the conviction that all truth is God's truth, that every discipline is an act of stewardship, and that the goal of education is not a credential but a disciple — a young person who can read carefully, reason rightly, and speak beautifully in service of their neighbors and their Maker. That conviction runs through every course we offer, from first-grade phonics to senior-year rhetoric.

The Trivium at Agape

Three stages, one continuous journey.

Every Agape student moves through the same three stages, each with its own subjects, rhythms, and mentor relationships. The years overlap deliberately — a fifth grader is still absorbing Grammar while catching her first taste of formal logic; a tenth grader is sharpening her rhetoric while revisiting the great books of the Logic stage.

I Kindergarten – Grade 5

Grammar

The Foundation Stage — wonder, memory, and the building blocks of every subject.

  • Phonics, spelling, and the rules of reading
  • Latin begins in 4th grade — vocabulary, simple syntax, and the delight of a language that shaped the Western church
  • Classical history told as story: creation, Egypt, Greece, Rome, the early church
  • Formal observation in nature study and beginning science
  • Catechism, Scripture memory, and a daily habit of prayer
By the end of 5th grade, a student can:

read capably, recite a substantial body of poetry and Scripture, identify the basic patterns of Latin grammar, and retell the sweep of the Western story from Genesis through the early church.

II Grades 6 – 8

Logic

The Question Stage — why the facts hang together the way they do.

  • Formal logic: definitions, terms, propositions, syllogisms, and the detection of fallacy
  • Latin continues: Caesar, simple prose composition, and the morphology needed to read Church history in the original
  • Algebra I, Pre-algebra, and the mathematical structure of God's order
  • Medieval and Reformation history; the great books in translation
  • Written disputation and the rules of charitable argument
By the end of 8th grade, a student can:

construct and critique a valid syllogism, read an unadapted passage of Latin, and articulate — in writing and speech — the reasons for what he believes and the objections he takes seriously.

III Grades 9 – 12

Rhetoric

The Expression Stage — speaking, writing, and living the truth before others.

  • Classical rhetoric: invention, arrangement, style, memory, delivery
  • Latin culminates in Virgil, Cicero, and the Church Fathers; Greek introduced as an elective
  • Geometry, Algebra II, Pre-calculus or Calculus; laboratory sciences with full lab reports
  • Senior thesis, oral defense before the academy review board, and a senior rhetoric recital
  • AP course options and dual-enrollment partnerships for qualified students
By graduation, a student can:

defend an argument in writing and speech, read a substantial portion of Latin literature in the original, and present a sustained piece of original research to an audience of peers and mentors.

We do not begin Latin in 4th grade to impress anyone. We begin it because a child who is still memorizing the building blocks of her own language is ready — ready to see that language itself has architecture, and that the Church has prayed and thought and written in that architecture for two thousand years.

Mrs. Catherine Wells Director of Classical Languages, Agape Academy
Outcomes, by the Numbers

What our graduates and current families actually achieve.

The data below is drawn from our 2024 academic report — verifiable, ACCS-reviewed, and presented without ornamentation. We believe a classical, Christian education should produce students who can stand before any audience, in any century.

2024 Average ACT 27.4 National homeschool average: 22.6

Composite score across all 2024 Rhetoric-stage graduates.

College Acceptance 98% across 480+ graduates
Average Scholarship $14,200 per graduating senior
Parent Retention 98% year over year
Active Students 2,347 K–12, across 47 states & 19 countries
Total Graduates 487 since the first cohort, 2012
Editor's Pick The Old Schoolhouse Magazine Spring 2024 issue
Top 10 Christian Homeschool HomeSchool.com 2023 and 2024
From Request to First Day

How a family joins Agape.

We have walked more than two thousand families through this arc since 2008. The four steps below are what happens after you request your enrollment packet — no pressure, no deadline, and a 30-day money-back guarantee on every core curriculum bundle.

  1. I

    Request the Packet

    You submit the enrollment packet request — a short form, no commitment. Within two business days, our admissions office sends you the full curriculum catalog, sample lessons from each Trivium stage, and a transcript audit offer (free, no obligation).

  2. II

    Placement Consultation

    You meet — by phone or video — with one of our nine academic advisors. Together you review your child's prior work, discuss your family's goals, and place your child in the correct stage and course level. Catholic, Reformed, and evangelical families all find denominational alignment here.

  3. III

    Mentor Pairing

    Your child is paired with a dedicated classical educator from our roster of 38 — drawn from a candidate pool with a 12% acceptance rate. Your mentor will guide coursework, write quarterly narrative evaluations, and meet with your family for one-on-one coaching calls throughout the year.

  4. IV

    The Classical Year Begins

    You receive your core curriculum bundle, access the academy portal, and begin the first semester. Our 98% parent retention rate is not a marketing number — it is what happens when families feel supported, students feel known, and the work is worthy of the calling.

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