Classics
Classics is the study of the languages, literature, history and culture of ancient Greece and Rome. At The Tiffin Girls’ School, students have the opportunity to explore this world primarily via the study of Latin. This subject is taught from Year 7 and is offered as a subject option for GCSE and A-Level. Ancient Greek is also offered as an extra curricular club from Year 10 which may lead to a GCSE in Year 12. Our lessons go beyond language skills to explore many wonderful and complex aspects of the classical world, building students’ cultural capital and enabling them to appreciate the wide-ranging impact of these civilisations through to the present day.
In Years 7 and 8 students learn the foundations of Latin vocabulary and grammar to translate short Latin stories. We look closely at connections between Latin words and words in English and other modern foreign languages, supporting students’ progress and understanding in each of these subjects. We explore Roman cultural topics such as food, gladiators and the eruption of Vesuvius, as well as learning about the Greek gods and goddesses and the Trojan War.
In Year 9 students may choose either to continue studying Latin, with the possibility of continuing to GCSE, or instead to take an in-house course called Classical Themes, which explores the classical world via English sources.
– In Latin, students build on their previous studies to meet more complex grammar and syntax while exploring the Trojan War in more depth and following the adventures of the hero Aeneas, who survives the war and goes on to become the mythical founder of the Roman people, with many exploits and entanglements along the way.
– In Classical Themes students study the early history of Rome and then move on to read Circe by Madeline Miller, analysing some passages in detail and writing their own creative responses.
In Years 10 and 11 students follow the Latin GCSE course. Students continue to develop their understanding of the Latin language while following the story of the history of Rome, beginning with the myth of Romulus and Remus. As the sophistication of students’ language skills increases, the final exciting element of Latin GCSE is introduced: the study of excerpts from some of the most famous prose and verse texts of the classical world. This gives students a fantastic opportunity to learn more about ancient myth and history as told by some of its best writers, such as Virgil, Catullus, Ovid, Pliny and Tacitus. We take plenty of time to enjoy exploring the cultural and historical context of these texts, as well as diving into the language. The skills of literary appreciation involved make Latin an excellent accompaniment to English in KS4.
At A-Level we continue the study of Latin syntax and grammar as well as studying a total of four set texts from a variety of genres and authors. Texts change regularly and past students have studied legal speeches by Cicero, Tacitus’ scathing history of the Julio-Claudian emperors, the love poetry of Catullus, the epic poetry of Virgil, the myths of Ovid and more. At this level there is plenty of opportunity to appreciate and discuss the sophistication of these authors’ writing, alongside which we explore the social and political context of the time ranging from the assassination of Julius Caesar and political unrest in Rome to the mythological background of Ovid’s letters from his heroines.
We believe that trips can play an important part in enabling students to encounter the classical world and seek to organise these on a regular basis, with past destinations including Naples, Rome and Greece. The department also offers a residential trip to Bath for GCSE students and regularly takes trips to London to see classical theatre and attend lectures.
Some of our students continue on to study Classics at university. Many go on to a range of courses such as Medicine, Law, PPE and Modern Languages. Latin is an unusual subject which is only offered at a small number of schools. It is therefore an excellent addition to any university application.