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Hi! I'm a Classics specialist

If you work on one skill this half term

Published 3 months ago • 1 min read

salve Reader!

I am currently reassessing students' progress and individual plans while putting the finishing touches to the Latin GCSE Revision Course, and time is a bit tight at the moment.

However, last Friday I attended such a powerful and motivating conference that I had to share a few ideas with you, including revision tips.

If you know anything about me, you will have noticed that I am very big on making Latin accessible by using it actively. Receiving an invitation to speak at the University of Cambridge on comprehensible input was a dream come true.

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Believe me when I say that the energy in the room was truly momentous: the evidence, the enthusiasm, the endless possibilities! I will be sharing more about this soon, but for the moment, here are some reminders that the day reinforced:

  1. Latin is a language. Treat it as such! Listening and speaking are as important as reading and writing.
  2. If you want to remember a word, just a flashcard will not do: use it, see it often and experience it with all your senses.
  3. Help is available. Never has there been such unfettered access to high-quality resources. Ask if you do not know where to start!

So, where do you start? Listening. Below are some tips by level:

KS3: Did you know that the online version of Suburani has audio versions of the texts? Make sure you listen to them to bring them to life!

GCSE: There are audio versions of the set texts. Listen to them and immerse yourself in them. Listening to the words will help you become familiar and make your understanding much more likely.

For example, listen to Pliny here. By the way, this is called semantic priming, and I spoke about it at the conference, so I am not making it up!

A Level: The same goes for A-Level students. If you are not set up with Legentibus yet, look into it! If you are not sure where to start, reply to this email and I will recommend high-quality podcasts.

Tell me how it goes. I would love to hear how it worked for you!

Ana

PS: Live surgeries for the Latin GCSE Revision Course are restarting on Thursday. For those enrolled, make sure to follow the instructions in the email to secure your spot. We will be doing a fun story!

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Hi! I'm a Classics specialist

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