Middle School Latin

Philosophy

The goal of Latin instruction at Sage is threefold:
1. To explore the language and culture of Ancient Rome, which has greatly influenced the western tradition
2. To challenge students to use Latin as a means of communication
3. To facilitate the acquisition and proper usage of modern languages, especially Spanish, and English

Latin is an extremely challenging language in a grammatical sense. Its mastery requires the ability to understand and apply sophisticated grammatical concepts accurately, quickly, and consistently.  Concepts that form a significant part of the Humanities grammar curriculum are reinforced through extensive exercise in Latin class requiring the application of these concepts in a language that is not one's own.  Students also are called upon to apply Latin concepts to their modern foreign languages, use their Latin vocabulary to decipher scientific terms, and use their knowledge of Roman culture and mythology to better understand literature.  Latin at Sage is thus designed to help students appreciate Latin as a language of its own and to use Latin to strengthen their understanding in other subject areas.
Classes meet twice a week for 45 minutes each.  Latin is a required course for all middle school students.

In The Classroom: The Sage Way

A typical class may involve a review of students’ homework on a given topic, such as the 1st declension. Such an assignment may require identification of, and distinction between, direct and indirect objects, genitives, prepositional phrases and subjects.   The class may then turn to an oral exercise in which students both listen and respond to questions posed in Latin.  Once their Latin abilities have developed beyond the most elementary level, students are also asked to keep a journal in which they use Latin to discuss events in their daily lives.

Throughout the year students are also asked to undertake Latin projects, which may include creating dolls of mythological characters, building models of Roman architecture, cooking food eaten in Ancient Rome, or creating authentic costumes from antiquity.

Goals

• Ability to mimic simple words or phrases
• Ability apply learned pronunciation rules of the target language to new words
• Ability to retain, recognize, and verbalize vocabulary words that are readily utilized or studied in class
• Ability to recognize, understand, and apply linguistic patters (ex. gender rules, subject verb agreement)
• Ability to comprehend information in the target language in written and simple verbal formats
• Ability to keep track of and manage classroom materials and homework
• Ability to express independent thoughts in the written target language
• Ability to merge and apply new content with previously learned structures, grammar, and vocabulary, therefore continuously growing their knowledge base
• Ability to recognize the impact of the Roman language and culture on their daily lives
• Ability to take structured notes
• Ability to take unstructured notes on additional information presented in class (taking ownership of learning new content); including the ability to decipher what to take note of
• Ability to attend in a focused manner for a longer period of time, showing persistence if faced with language barrier difficulties
• Ability to manage numerous verb tenses and noun cases
• Ability to demonstrate knowledge in lengthier verbal and written formats
• Ability to do more intense analysis and comparison of rules between languages

Content

The study of Latin at Sage in grades 6-8 involves comprehension and proper application of the following concepts:

I. The Latin Language
A. Verbs
B. Nouns, Pronouns, and Adjectives
C. Adverbs, Conjunctions, and Prepositions

II. Roman Culture
A. History
B. Mythology
C. Daily Life