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1) Latin helps with mental acuity. Simply put, Latin exercises a person’s brain and trains the brain to be detail-oriented. Students not only must translate a verb in the correct person, number, tense and mood, but they also must translate the word in the correct context. For example, the word peto, petere means “to seek, beg, ask, attack or aim at.”
2) Latin helps students become better spellers. After students learn the roots of words, they then can see the Latin influence in the English words. Likewise, once a student studies the patterns of Latin spelling, he/she gains fortitude in those ninety percent of words with more than two syllables. Two words that come to mind are separate and definite. Separate comes from the Latin word pars meaning “part.” When a student learns the word’s derivation, it is unlikely he/she will misspell the word with “per” in the middle. The same is true for definite. It comes from the root finismeaning “end.” The study of Latin helps students sort and spell words based on their roots rather than memorizing isolated words. In a study of sixth-grade students in Indianapolis, students who took Latin were four months ahead of others in spelling.
3) Latin helps students with their study of English literature. Dante, Milton, Swift, Tolkien, Lewis et alii studied Latin very vigorously and their writings reflect their studies in word choice, sentence structure, and content. Though Shakespeare and Chaucer did not study Latin very assiduously, each had studied English translations of Latin originals. Some of their tales are simply retellings of Greek and Latin myths. Not only does the knowledge of Latin help students with their reading comprehension, but it also acclimates them to vocabulary, sentence structure, and content used by authors of classic works.
5) The study of Latin decreases the effort needed in other subjects by fifty percent. In tutoring Challenge and Essentials, I have found this to be very true. Latin is the key to academic vocabulary and grammar whether it is logic, biology, or English grammar. With a Latin background, students can learn any subject more easily because he/she can access the vocabulary more readily.
My favorite quote from Dorothy Sayers’ “Lost Tools of Learning” essay is this:
I will say at once, quite firmly, that the best grounding for education is the Latin grammar. I say this, not because Latin is traditional and medieval, but simply because even a rudimentary knowledge of Latin cuts down the labor and pains of learning almost any other subject by at least fifty percent. It is the key to vocabulary and structure of all the Romance languages and to the structure of all the Teutonic languages, as well as to the technical vocabulary of all the sciences and to the literature of the Mediterranean civilization, together with all its historical documents.
This is one of the strongest reasons to include Latin in a classical education. It is easy to point out the interrelatedness of knowledge when Latin is so vital to the study of the vocabulary of all subjects. A thorough knowledge of Latin gleans many g
ifts for students.
If you want to read more about the benefits of Latin, here are some resources:
“School spreads the word on Latin class; Schools report Ancient language proves a smash hit. (News).” South Wales Echo (Cardiff, Wales). MGN Ltd. 2008. HighBeam Research. 19 Feb. 2011 <http://www.highbeam.com>.
Olenchek, Christina. “Classical approach.” Central Penn Business Journal. Journal Publications Inc. 2006. HighBeam Research. 19 Feb. 2011 <http://www.highbeam.com>.
JUDITH JUDD, Education Editor. “Latin lessons demanded for all seven-year-olds.” The Independent (London, England). Independent Print Ltd. 1996. HighBeam Research. 19 Feb. 2011 <http://www.highbeam.com>.
Highet, Gilbert. The Classical Tradition:Greek and Roman Influences of Western Literature. New York: Oxford University Press, 1985.
Simmons, Tracy Lee. Climbing Parnassus: A New Apologia for Greek and Latin. Wilmington, DE: ISI Books, 2002.
Wilson, Douglas. Recovering the LostTools of Learning: An Approach to Distinctly Christian Education. Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway Books, 1991.
#5 was very interesting and I had to tell the kids that one. Grace and Aiden have had 2 years of formal Latin study so far and Grace thinking maybe she would take French next year instead, but after I told her that fact she may change her mind. 🙂 Of course if we were teaching 150 years ago they would take Latin, Greek, Hebrew and French. I never thought I would like teaching Latin, but I have enjoyed it immensely and have certainly seen all those points above and many more prove true!
Christy, I am so glad to hear that you like teaching Latin! Right now, we’re still sticking to the Foundations memory work. But, in the next two years I hope to add in more layers to our Latin study and I want to learn alongside my littles. I’ve always loved language arts, but been terrible at learning languages. I can imagine my own study of Latin would be a great asset!
I studied Latin for 6 years in middle school and high school and loved every minute of it. This year I started teaching it to my daughter, and it has been so much fun to work on it with her and see her develop a love for it as well.
What a great experience! I have to think your study of Latin in middle school and high school is a rarity. How exciting that you get to share that now with your daughter. Happy teaching! 🙂
I’m always amazed when I read the benefits of learning Latin. We use Song School Latin right now and it is a great, fun introduction to the language. We’ve probably learned about 75 words and surprisingly (or maybe not!) they come up quite often in our day-to-day life. Thanks for sharing these!
Amy, we’re thinking of incorporating Song School Latin either this next year or the year after. I’ve heard great things about it! When we start will probably depend on how homeschooling with a newborn goes…:)
Thank you for sharing my article! I appreciate it!