salve!

I am often asked questions like "Why is Latin still being taught?" or "What is Latin for?" This is no wonder. In the past, plenty of people were taught Latin as if it were a game of Sudoku: here is a puzzle, here are some rules and off you go: figure it out. Indeed, why would one want to engage in that?!

Languages are tools for communication, and people communicate through conversation and storytelling. Although some may love the challenge of solving puzzles, solving puzzles is often not enough for young brains to tune in to a new language.

This is why I teach with Suburani and give my A-Level students a good dose of Legentibus. And this is also why I write my own stories for the live sessions of my Latin to GCSE Revision course. As an example, below is one of the prompts we will be using in our surgery tomorrow: there is a fascinating story to be read, and it is worth working on the vocabulary to find out what is happening! Some students might be familiar with it, others probably not, and the conversation itself will make the exploration and final reading in Latin much more exciting.

If you want your student to join the lesson tomorrow, you still have time to sign them up for the course. All students can attend surgeries as they are included in the support package.

And talking about stories, I would like to hear your thoughts on this: What stories in accessible Latin would you like to see?

Wider reading transformed my fluency in the language, and it is now time for me to contribute to the pool of modern Latin reads. Tell me: Do you have a specific wish? You can hit reply and let me know.