National Classical Etymological Online Exam

There's still time to register for the National Classical Etymology Online Exam, but the October 15th deadline is quickly approaching. The National Claassical Etymology Online Exam is sponsored by the National Junior Classical League.

The exam will be administered in November 2011. To register visit http://quia.com/nceeorder. There is a school registration fee of $15 ($25 outside of the United States) in addition to the $3 per student exam fee. Schools that have an NJCL chapter receive a $10 discount on the school registration fee. The payment deadline is November 1, 2011. For additional details visit the National Junior Classical League.

Phineas and Ferb know Latin!

Tomorrow is the Disney Channel premiere of the full-length movie "Phineas and Ferb Across the Second Dimension." If you already have Friday plans or don't subscribe to cable television, the DVD release is August 23rd.

As it turns out, Phineas and Ferb apparently are Latin students, because one of the songs on the soundtrack (already available on Amazon.com and presumably, iTunes) is entitled "Carpe Diem!"

The Controversial Macron

Should Latin teachers insist that their students memorize macrons?

Professor Richard LaFleur, editor of Wheelock's Latin, emphatically says YES!

Cheryl Lowe, author of First and Second Form Latin, responds with a resounding NO!

Two very interesting articles! Who knew macrons could be so controversial?

Highlights of the American Classical League Institute 2011

Zee Poerio just posted her video of the highlights of the 2011 American Classical League Institute!

Scala Sapientiae

The creative and energetic Laura Gibbs has just established a brilliant new blog, Scala Sapientia. If you are teacher or student of beginning Latin or a fan of Latin proverbs, you will love this site! Laura has organized hundreds of proverbs using a 'stair step' structure. As you progress from proverb to proverb, there is only one new step you need to learn to progress to the next. Each proverb is annotated with helpful vocabulary and interesting grammatical and literary or cultural notes.

May CANENS Newsletter

The latest issue of CANENS, the Classical Association of New England's newsletter, is now available for download. There are some great articles in this one, notably a feature by Brian McCarthy about his adventure running a marathon in Athens. You can also read about a JCL team that hosted a trivia contest as a very successful fundraiser!

Teaching Classical Languages

The latest issue of the journal Teaching Classical Languages, edited by John Gruber-Miller of Cornell College, has now been made available for download.

Articles in this issue include:

• Rebecca Harrison, "Exercises for Developing Prediction Skills in Reading Latin Sentences" (describes more than 20 field tested exercises to help beginning and intermediate students become more efficient readers of Latin)
• Peter Anderson & Mark Beckwith, "Form-Focused Teaching for the Intermediate Latin Student" ( introduces teachers to form-focused instruction, a pedagogy that integrates grammar instruction within a communicative context)
  
• Albert Watanabe, "The 2010 College Greek Exam" (an analysis of students' strengths and weaknesses on the 2010 College Greek Exam)

LET'S LEARN LATIN: A WORKSHOP FOR ES/MS TEACHERS!

LET'S LEARN LATIN: A WORKSHOP FOR ES/MS TEACHERS!
the Latin language - Latin vocabulary - word roots - ancient Roman
culture - Greek & Roman mythology - techniques for incorporating these
topics into your classroom

August 1-3, 2011 / 9:00 am - 3:00 pm
Clara Byrd Baker ES, Williamsburg, VA
co-sponsors: WJCC Schools & Ascanius: The Youth Classics Institute

Let's Learn Latin will introduce elementary and middle school teachers to the world of Latin and the ancient Romans through three days of engaging lessons. Teachers get to play the role of students, learning the material through the same activities and lessons that they will be able to use in their own classrooms. Participants will enjoy learning the basics of Latin, using a colorful, interesting, kid-friendly text called Minimus, richly supplemented by effective and innovative activities to practice the material. Other topics include Latin vocabulary, word roots, and Roman culture and mythology. No previous experience with Latin is needed!

In addition, participants will explore ways of teaching about key vocabulary terms and cultural topics that integrate with the various chapters and language topics of Minimus. Participants will receive myriad classroom-ready materials on all topics studied. CEU's are available; all participants will receive a certificate documenting their 16.5 contact hours. One graduate credit is optional via Ashland University.

Register: by mail or online.
Deadline: 7/1/11. Limited to 15 participants.
Cost: $150 (includes registration, all workshop materials and resources, and light breakfast with coffee). Lunch is available for a separate nominal charge.

Visit the Ascanius Youth Classics Institute (http://www.ascaniusyci.org) website to get additional workshop details, to purchase publications, or to find out about and schedule other professional development opportunities or student programs.

Conventiculum Bostoniense

It's not too late to apply for the Conventiculum Bostoniense, July 30-August 7, 2011, a week-long Latin immersion program sponsored by UMass Boston and held on the campus of UMass Darmouth, near the south coast of Massachusetts.

Participants take one of two courses for two or three graduate credits:

1) Newcomers to spoken Latin take "Active Learning Methodologies for Teachers of Latin," in which they are introduced not only to speaking Latin but also to second language acquisition theory and its application in the Latin classroom.

2) Experienced speakers take "Living Text", which focuses this year on the poems of Catullus, and also includes the development of classroom materials that incorporate active methods (speaking and writing).

Further information and application materials are available at: http://www.conventiculum.org.

Happy Pi Day 2011!

Happy Pi Day 2011! Enjoy it while listening to the Pi Symphony and perhaps having a piece of pie as well!



For more information about the origin of Pi Day, see this previous Latinteach post.

It's National Latin Teacher Recruitment Week!

This week (March 7-11, 2011) marks the 9th Annual National Latin Teacher Recruitment Week.

Sponsored by the American Classical League and the American Philological Association, along with numerous other state and regional organizations, the motto for this year's NLTRW is "Your Future is Our Future."