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WHY LATIN?
- The study of Latin offers a unique opportunity to look at
the nature of language itself. A conscious study of Latin grammatical principles and
accompanying traditional terminology (at appropriate maturity levels) will benefit
students in their speaking and writing of English and in any further language study that
they may undertake.
- The study of Latin can result in the broadening and
deepening of students' English vocabulary and can impart an understanding of word
formation, a most useful tool in approaching unfamiliar words.
- Latin is an excellent basis for the study of many modern
languages, especially Romance languages.
- On an elementary level, Latin can be very helpful in
improving the English reading skills of students. Because it is a phonetic language, its
study, especially practice in reading aloud, often brings to students the basic
understanding of the phonetic principles that they may never have mastered when first
learning to read English.
- When students study Latin, they enter the world of an alien
(and for the most part ethnically neutral) culture, in some ways quite different from
ours. Studying the language, customs, and world view of society from a different time and
place is a mind-expanding experience. Conversely, focusing on the similarities between our
culture and that of the Romans offers the opportunity to consider the Graeco-Roman
contribution to American life in the areas of government, architecture, ideals and ideas.
- The classics of Latin literature have had a significant
influence on European, English and American literature and are eminently worth reading for
themselves.
Sally Davis, Wakefield H.S., Arlington, Virginia.
Teaching Latin in American Schools, Scholars Press, 1991, p.61. |
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What do students get out of studying Latin?
- Bigger English vocabularies.
- Higher verbal SAT scores.
- Higher English ACH scores.
- Acceptance into good colleges and universities.
- Sensitivity to language.
- Sensitivity to people and cultures.
- A sense of history.
- Some students also report interest in things they had not
previously considered until they studied Latin.
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IS LATIN
A DEAD LANGUAGE?
- Although it is true
that hardly anyone still speaks Classical Latin today, it is also true that virtually no
one speaks Old English today. Yet both Latin and English are alive and prospering: spoken
Latin became modern Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, and several other
languages; and Old English became modern English, with its varied dialects. |
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| - Actually, Latin
is not so "foreign" a language as modern languages are, since over sixty per
cent of our English vocabulary words are derived from Latin words over two thousand years
old. Also, some ancient Roman laws, institutions, and customs have survived to our days:
for example, we still use the calendar devised by Julius Caesar. Other ancient Roman
traditions, myths, and aspects of daily life are interesting by contrast with those of
today. |
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Latin and the SAT
Does Latin help your SAT scores? The answer
once again is a definitive YES! The scores of students who took the SAT II in various
languages are listed below so that one might see a correlation between language studied
and verbal scores.
The mean Verbal SAT scores for 2004 were:
All students: 508
LATIN: 674
Spanish: 575
French: 642
German: 627
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Curriculum
- Latina Christiana uses
the Christian (ecclesiastical) Latin pronunciations.
- Grammar overview, recitation schedule, tests and background
information on Latin sayings and Roman history. Both Christian and classical content.
- Famous Men of
Rome and other heroic stories of 30 great Romans will make the study of Latin come alive.
- Latin is required in: Grades
2-8
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