Latin
'Non scholae sed vitae discimus'
We learn not for school but for life
Enhancing children's vocabulary and promoting a love of reading and language is at heart of our curriculum at Maybury. This has been a major influence when choosing which language our children should study.
Historically, our children have studied Spanish. However, on transition to secondary school our children attend several different schools where different languages are taught. When deciding to change our approach to language teaching, we carried out extensive research. By choosing Latin, which is an ancient language, the focus will be to provide a linguistic foundation for reading comprehension and an appreciation of classical civilisation. We believe that a linguistic foundation in ancient languages may support the study of whichever modern language our children go on to study at Key Stage 3.
We strongly believe that teaching Latin supports the work we are already doing in school to develop vocabulary and strengthen English Literacy Skills. Latin develops children to become 'word conscious'. For example, a single Latin root word can generate over 100 words, so 10 root words can give a child more than 1000 words they can decrypt on their own. Learning these word patterns improves children’s abilities to gain meaning from unfamiliar words and helps them with their reading comprehension.
We are now working with an organisation called ‘Classics for All’. Founded in 2010, Classics for All is a charity which encourages the teaching of classical subjects in state schools. Their aim is to enrich the lives and raise the aspirations of all young people, through introducing them to the ancient world. ‘Classics for All’ is supported by 17 UK-wide regional classics networks, largely based at Russell Group universities. All our staff have received training, with ongoing training and support being part of the package of work provided.
Our children in Key Stage 2 will follow the programme Maximum Classics. This was initially rolled out into Year 4, 5 and 6 in the Spring Term 2022 and then from September 2022 was taught to all children in Key Stage 2.
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