Latin sits within the Languages Department. The Languages Department provides all students with a rich linguistic, creative and cultural language experience in all three languages (Latin, Spanish and French). We demonstrate how, in a globalised world, the linguistic skills students develop in language learning are essential for future employment and, we guide them in an appreciation of cultural pluralism and an understanding of other cultures, past and present. 

The department is made up of an enthusiastic and committed team of modern and ancient linguists who are dedicated to helping their students to enjoy developing their skills through interactive and engaging lessons and experiences. Our classrooms are warm and supportive spaces where students feel able to step out of their comfort zones and take control of their own learning. 

While students have an opportunity to develop their listening and oral skills in French and Spanish, in Latin we focus on reading skills. Learning a fully inflected language like Latin requires students to engage extensively with linguistic theory and terminology, building a stronger foundation for independent language-learning later in life.  

Co-curricular Enrichment 

• Biennial Trip to Italy (Years 11-13)  
• Classical Association Latin Reading Competitions (Years 8-12)  
• Latin Drama Competition (Year 7)  
• British Museum Trip (Years 12-13) 
• Ashmolean Museum Trip (Years 12-13)
• Classics Society
• Greek Club 
• Visiting Speakers
• Classical Association Student Conferences (Years 12-13) 

KS3 (Year 7 – 9) 

Throughout KS3, we follow the Cambridge Latin Course, which gradually introduces both vocabulary and key grammatical concepts through an engaging sequence of connected stories which open a window into the Roman world. Book 1, covered in Year 7 and the first half of Year 8, follows the daily lives of a family in Pompeii, while Books 2 and 3 take the learner on journeys to Roman Britain and the cosmopolitan port city of Alexandria in Egypt. We use these stories, which are lavishly illustrated with photographs of material sources, as a springboard not only for discussion of the linguistic features that they contain, but also for in-depth exploration of Roman history, society, and culture. We supplement the Cambridge Latin Course with a wide range of original resources to ensure that students develop a thorough understanding of Latin grammar. Students’ English literacy is developed through in-depth study of Latin derivations. 

In the summer term, all Year 7 students take part in a Latin Drama Competition, where each tutor group performs a Latin play.  This enables students to appreciate Latin as the Romans would have heard it, as well as developing teamwork skills.  

At the end of Year 9, most students who decide not to take Latin through to GCSE take the WJEC Level 1 Certificate in Latin, enabling them to leave Latin after three years of study with a qualification that recognises and rewards their hard work.  

GCSE (Year 10 – 11) 

All students study at least one language at GCSE. The Latin curriculum provides students with an opportunity to study and appreciate Latin verse and prose literature in the original, as well as gaining a strong grasp of this root language. 

Students build on the knowledge of vocabulary and grammar developed in Key Stage 3. The literature set texts are studied in the summer term of Year 10 and throughout Year 11. For more information on the GCSE course, download our GCSE Options Guide. 

A level (Year 12 – 13) 

The A-Level Latin course consists of the study of the Latin language (both its grammar, and the technique of reading continuous prose and verse), and of Latin literature. All students must study both prose and verse literature but can choose the precise texts they want to study from the shortlist provided by the examining body, which changes every two years. 

For more information on the A-Level Latin course grade requirements, download a copy of the Sixth Form Prospectus and for more information on the course content, download a copy of the A-Level Options Guide.