Latin

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All students in Year 7 will follow a beginners’ course in Latin. The aims of the course are to enable them to read and understand written Latin, and to develop their knowledge of life in Roman times.

We will be working from the Cambridge Latin Course Book 1, and will aim to reach approximately Stage 9 by the end of the year.

Each Stage introduces new vocabulary and a new grammar point, such as the Perfect Tense. There is also a history section in English which gives lots of interesting information about the aspect of Roman life that is featured in each Stage such as the role of women, the Roman theatre or the public baths. Nearly all of the passages in Latin are set in the town of Pompeii and follow the life of Caecilius, a wealthy banker, and his family.

Homework will be given each week. Mostly, this will involve learning the vocabulary from the Stage of the course being studied. Students will be given specially designed sheets containing all the words that they will be expected to know and spaces for notes.

At times, students will be asked to carry out research into an aspect of Roman life, so access to the internet or relevant books will be very important. They may also be asked to use the Cambridge Schools Classics Project website, where they can gain free access to a range of online activities. This is also a very valuable resource for revision and consolidation.

During the year, your child will take an Attainment Test at the end of Stage 4, and also at the end of Stage 8. These tests are short stories in Latin that have to be translated into English. Provided that he / she scores at least 60%, a certificate from the University of Cambridge will be awarded. At the end of the year, all students will also take an internal school examination based on all of the work covered.

Over the summer holidays, before starting Year 8, students will be expected to ensure that they maintain their knowledge of the work covered, and will be given appropriate documentation to help them.

If you are able to do so during the forthcoming summer holiday, taking your child to visit the Life and Death in Pompeii and Herculaneum exhibition at the British Museum in London would be very beneficial. Many of the objects and artefacts that are featured in the course book are on display. There is also a very interesting video presentation about the eruption of Vesuvius.

Independent Learning

All students will be expected to:

maintain their knowledge of work already covered.
find our more for themselves about Roman history.
use the CSCP website online activities, and other relevant websites such as Languages Online.
keep a record of new words and phrases that they have learnt.

Latin is a useful subject because it:

enables students to understand and use more sophisticated English words.
gives them a better understanding of other European languages, such as Italian, Spanish or French.
provides important language learning skills in general
helps to develop students’ analytical powers and ability to reason
contributes to improved overall academic progress.
is increasingly seen as an asset by many universities and professions.