Classical Conversations Spruce Grove

Join us for Practicum 2026! Practicum is a day-long live event for parents, containing richness of content and conversation.

The classical model of education is for everyone, for learning every subject. At Practicum 2026, you’ll discover how the fifteen tools from the classical model can help you engage your student with the Latin conversation that transcends the ages, walking away with the confidence to make your family’s home-centered education more satisfying and effective.

Guided by a trained Classical Conversations leader, you’ll have the chance to practice these classical tools in group discussions with local homeschool parents. Throughout the full-day event, you’ll gain valuable insights and practical tips that can lead you as your child’s best teacher throughout the upcoming academic year and beyond.

Ready to join other homeschool families, discover the classical model of education, and enter the Latin conversation at Practicum 2026? Register at www.canada-cc.ca/events

Saturday, May 23 in Spruce Grove
Other dates & locations are also available

Invention (Inventio)

Guiding Question: What should I say?

Action: Discover ideas, research, and plan.

The first of the Five Canons of Rhetoric is invention. This is the stage when a student decides what to say before sitting down to write their speech or essay. Put simply, invention is the brainstorming, research, and planning stage of rhetoric.

To brainstorm ideas and narrow in on a specific topic, a student might use a technique like mind mapping, freewriting, or having conversations with others to generate ideas. After selecting a topic, they might conduct research online or in a library to understand what others have said about that topic. The canon of invention may also include planning as a student creates a rough outline, although the bulk of organizing thoughts, ideas, and research comes in the next stage, arrangement.

In each of the Five Canons of Rhetoric, audience matters. In invention, a student must not only select a topic appropriate for their audience, but also research sources that will appeal to that audience.

Read more about the 5 Canons of Rhetoric: https://classicalconversations.com/blog/five-canons-of-rhetoric/

In her book The Conversation, Leigh Bortins defines rhetoric as “the use of knowledge and understanding to perceive wisdom, pursue virtue, and proclaim truth.” In other words, true rhetoric involves the expression of truth, goodness, and beauty through speech or writing.

The skill of rhetoric is just as important today as it was when ancient orators like Cicero, Demosthenes, and Quintilian gave their great speeches. It’s a skill necessary to practice to become a great communicator, which is why our Classical Conversations Challenge programs have students practice these tools consistently in community with others.

The skill of rhetoric is best practiced by understanding what are commonly known as the Five Canons of Rhetoric. These canons, or stages, give students of rhetoric clear direction in crafting their speech, essay, lecture, presentation, or other work of rhetoric so that it appeals to their intended audience and persuades them toward truth, goodness, and beauty.

Read more about the 5 Cannons of Rhetoric here: https://classicalconversations.com/blog/five-canons-of-rhetoric/