Latin

Latin figures strongly in the academic life of the boys. The Latin department aims to provide pupils with an environment in which they feel motivated to learn the language and study Roman culture. Learning Latin should be stimulating, enjoyable but personally challenging. Every pupil should feel comfortable with the level at which they are working, confident that they can succeed at that level. All children study Latin from Form V (Year 4), building their knowledge and skills gradually in preparation for presentation at Common Entrance. Differentiated materials mean that nearly all the school’s pupils achieve a pass in this subject at one of the three levels offered at Common Entrance or at Scholarship level.

The Latin course has been developed with the age and experience of the pupils at its centre. Work in Form V (year 4) is a gentle introduction to some of the basics. The course work is a balance between areas of Roman culture studied as free-standing topics accompanied by simple language exercises based on Latin vocabulary associated with the topics.

In Form IV (year 5) the course is based on the ‘Minimus’ text. This colourful book is popular with the pupils and contains Latin sentences for translation, grammatical exercises and information about the life of soldiers on Hadrian’s Wall.

In Forms III – I (years 6-8), the approach to the work is more structured and the Common Entrance syllabus is studied. A series of books, ‘Latin Prep’ by Galore Park, form the basis of linguistic studies, supplemented with additional material from a variety of sources. Myths and Roman culture are introduced on a regular basis for study, discussion and essay writing.

Although success at Common Entrance is our main focus, pupils who can see the relevance of what they are  studying are better motivated to learn. Latin offers many important incentives: a better understanding of the terminology used in all linguistic studies, a connection between Latin roots and other languages (particularly English) and an opportunity to study an interesting culture and compare it with modern day life.