Summer Fun... Week Four!

A VIDEO:

A QUOTE:

This week's quote comes from the entryway of a house in Pompeii. The quote is:

cave canem

Can you guess what that means by this mosaic?

If you guessed "Beware of the Dog," you are right!! It was common for Romans to keep guard dogs on hand and to warn their visitors (and potential unwanted "guests") to watch out for the dog!

A STORY:

And now, we will continue our story from last week. Some of the words in this story are words from the last two stories. You may need to look back if you do not remember them. There are other words, however, that are at the bottom of the story to help you.

          regnum Elissae in Africa est. regnum est latum et oppidum est magnum altumque. feri Africani reginam non amant. bellum parant, sed reginae oppidum non occupant. 
          Aeneas cum amicis a Sicilia ad Africam navigat. Elissa Aenean amat et vocat: "meum regnum est tuum. Africani meum regnum non amant; in magno periculo sumus. Troianis meam patriam do."
          sed dei Troianos in Italiam vocant. Aeneas: "tuum regnum est magnum et bonum et pulchrum, et Africani sunt mali. te et tuum regnum laudo, et te amo. sed dei Troianos ad Italiam vocant."

Words to Help:
regnum - kingdom
latum - wide
altum - noble
ferus - wild
Sicilia - Sicily
malus - bad
laudo - I praise

As always, the translation key is in the comments below. Have a great week!

Summer Fun... Week Three!

A HELPFUL WEBSITE:

If you want to look up a Latin word, I highly recommend the following website. It is very helpful, especially if students are finding that they do not remember their vocabulary as thoroughly as they thought they would after a couple weeks away from school.

http://www.latin-dictionary.net/

VIDEOS:

This week we are going to begin with a couple grammar videos from Latin Tutorial. I like these videos, because he explains the parts of speech in English, which is important if you want to understand what is going on in Latin. Enjoy!

QUOTES:

Did you catch the Latin quote our Latin tutor used in the first video? In case you missed it, I'll give it to you again:

sine qua non

Do you remember what it means? It is the "not without which." Now, if you gave me that answer in class, I'd look at you and say, "Does that sound good in English?" The answer, of course, is, "No." In English, this basically means "the essentials" of something. This is one of the times where we see that translating from Latin into English is not a matter of word-for-word, but one of idea-for-idea. In order to correctly use sine qua non, we need to know what the IDEA of it is, not the word-for-word translation. 

There are other Latin quotes that can be taken at face value, i.e. their word-for-word translation. One of these is our second quote this week:

per se

This literally means "by itself" and that is exactly what it means. Here is an example:

The movie wasn't bad per se, but the man behind me kept kicking my seat so I couldn't enjoy it.

The movie wasn't bad by itself, but... 

A STORY:

I encourage you to read the story aloud all the way through before you begin translating. Reading it through once, out loud, in Latin, will help you understand the whole story before you begin translating. There are some words to help below the story, however some of the words you haven't learned yet look close enough like their English derivatives that I think you can figure those out on your own. This is a continuation of the story of Aeneas from last week. There are lots of prepositional phrases in this story. Enjoy!

post longum bellum in Asia, Aeneas cum amicis ab Asia ad Europam navigat. sed periculum est in Europa. ab Europa ad Africam navigat. est magnum oppidum in Africa. Elissa* est regina oppidi. Elissa frumentum et dona Aeneae amicis dat. Elissa Aenean amat. dei Aenean reginamque de caelo spectant. nautae Aeneae et viri feminaeque in oppido sunt amici. sed periculum est in Africa. 

Words to Help:

post (+acc.) - after

bellum - war

cum (+abl.) - with

periculum - danger

oppidum - town

frumentum - grain

-que - and 

de caelo - from heaven

*Elissa of Tyre, usually known by her nickname Dido, was the foundress of Carthage in North Africa.

As usual, the translation can be found in the comments below. This story is to be continued next time! Have a great week!

  

Summer Fun... Week Two!

This week we're going to review the specifics of Latin pronunciation. Chances are, you're not reading aloud to yourself while you're practicing Latin at home, so I want to encourage you to keep your Latin reading skills fresh by practicing them.

A VIDEO (or two or three...):

These videos will walk you through the pronunciation of consonants, vowels, and how to trill your r's when speaking Latin. You'll have a chance a little later on to practice this yourself. For now, though, grab some popcorn, sit back, and review.

A QUOTE:

VENI, VIDI, VICI

This famous quote was by Julius Caesar, in a letter detailing a recent victory in battle. Can you guess what it means?

If you need help guessing what it means, here are some hints:

1. All three words are perfect tense verbs using the i, isti, it endings.
2. The first word is the verb venio, venire, veni, ventus - to come
3. The second word is the verb video, videre, vidi, visus - to see
4. The third word is the verb vinco, vincere, vici, victus - to conquer

Have you figured it out yet?

The quote by Julius Caesar means, "I came, I saw, I conquered." He used this phrase to sum up his battle victory; it was a swift one! People today use this quote to show that something was not difficult for them. The next time someone asks you how your Latin test went, you can tell them "veni, vidi, vici" instead of "It was easy!" 

Using the pronunciation rules you learned above, how would you pronounce veni, vidi, vici?

A STORY:

Read the following story aloud to practice your Latin pronunciation. Then listen to the video below to see how you did! After you read the story aloud to practice your pronunciation, practice translating the story. Like last week's lesson, I will give you a couple words to help (below the reading) and include the translation in the comments so you can check your work. 

          In Asia est vir clarus. vir est Anchises. dea Anchisen amat. Aeneas est filius deae et Anchisae. Aeneae uxor est Creusa. Creusa Aeneasque filium vocant Ascanium. 

          Aeneae patria est Troia. Troia non est in Europa, sed in Asia. Graeci et viri Troiae pugnant. Graeci Troiam occupant. Aeneas Anchisen portat. Creusam filiumque vocat. 

Aeneas: "non iam est Troia. sed dei deaeque viros Troiae amant. etiam feminas et pueros puellasque amant. hodie ad Europam navigamus."

Words to help:

clarus, a, um - famous

Anchisen - accusative form of Anchises

Summer Fun... Week One!

I have had several students and parents ask me about Latin practice over the summer, so I am going to provide some content here on the blog for that purpose. My target audience is those students going into 6th or 7th grade Latin, but the information could also be helpful for students going into 5th or 8th as well, and for parents who just want to learn a little along with their students!

A VIDEO:

To begin, I'd like to share a video from Latin Tutorial explaining what happened to Latin after it "died" and why so many English words come from Latin even though English itself doesn't come from Latin. Enjoy!

As you go about your work and play this summer, pay attention to the words around you. Do you hear or read derivatives that remind you of the Latin words you learned this year? As you find them, keep a list - or better yet, share them with me in the comments on this blog! I'd love to hear what words you're finding! I will try to share some of my favorite words as well.

A QUOTE:

Speaking of favorite words, did you know that we have quite a few Latin phrases and quotes that we still use today? Here is one of my favorites, and one of the most famous quotes....

"carpe diem"

Can you guess what it means?

Foxtrot by Bill Amend

carpe diem is usually translated "Seize the day." It means to make the most of the day ahead of you, to take advantage of the opportunities presented, and to put all of your energy into living this day to its fullest. In the comic above, Peter doesn't really want Paige to make the most of her day, he really just wants her to get up off the couch so that he can sit there instead. What are you doing to seize the day today?

A STORY:

One of the ways you can keep your Latin skills fresh over the summer is to practice translating Latin. Here's a story to read and translate. You haven't had all these words yet, but you have had many of them. Many of the words you don't know are very similar to their English meanings, so I want you to see if you can figure out what they mean. I will give you two words to help, though:

nauta - a sailor
patria - country, homeland

In via sunt nautae. Agricolae nautas spectant. Agricola nautam vocat:
Agricola : O nauta, ubi est tua patria?
Nauta: mea patria est Germania; sumus nautae.
Agricola: ubi est Germania?
Nauta: Germania est in Europa.
Agricola: estne Hispania in Europa?
Nauta: Hispania etiam est in Europa, sed non est prope Germaniam. Hodie ad Hispaniam navigamus, et postea ad Germaniam. patriam nostram amamus. vale.

I will put the correct translation in the comments so you can check your work and see how you did!

Minimus Mosaic

Before the holidays the Latin 3 class learned about mosaics and made a mosaic of Minimus, our favorite Latin mouse! The students helped with the design of the mosaic and then laid all the tiles. I think they did a great job!

Back in session!

I returned to teaching Latin this year after a 7 year hiatus to stay home after my daughter's birth. I am thoroughly enjoying being back in the classroom, though I had forgotten what it was like to be a first year teacher again. Thankfully, the Latin language hasn't changed on me, but I am teaching from a different curriculum and approach than I was before. I am teaching grades 3-7 and teaching from the Cambridge Latin Course. My breakdown of classes is as follows:

Latin 3 - Minimus
Latin 4 - Minimus Secundus
Latin 5 - Cambridge Latin Course Stages 1-8
Latin 6 - Cambridge Latin Course Stages 9-14
Latin 7 - Cambridge Latin Course Stages 15-20

Previously, my instruction was largely paradigm based, with an aim for students to have a firm grasp on the grammar and vocabulary of the language, going even so far as giving Latin composition assignments. Cambridge, instead, takes a reading approach, with little emphasis on grammatical paradigms and vocabulary memorization, and instead a focus on reading comprehension and glossed vocabulary. While I think this works very well for boosting the confidence of 3rd and 4th graders, I am somewhat skeptical as to how well the upper grades are actually learning Latin as opposed to learning to "guesstimate" Latin for a general idea of the reading.

Still, this is the curriculum we are using and I am bound and determined to give these students the best Latin education I can using the resources at my disposal. I am excited for all that I am learning this year (mostly through trial and error) and look forward to a better understanding of the curriculum and flow of the material so that I can improve my instruction next year and the years to come.

It's good to be back in the classroom!

Translating Practice

from Wheelocks

If you wish to devote yourself to philosophy and the soul, this pursuit cannot have power without frugality. This frugality is voluntary poverty. Take away, therefore, those excuses of yours: "I do not yet have enough money. If ever I have that 'enough', then I will give the entire me to philosophy." Begin now to study philosophy, not money.


If you want to devote yourself to philosophy (the love of wisdom) and the soul, (you must realize that) this pursuit is impotent without frugality. (The love of wisdom and the love of money cannot coexist.) Stop making excuses, then: "I do not have enough money yet (to devote myself to the study of philosophy. But if I ever do have enough, then I will devote myself completely to the study of wisdom!" Begin now to study philosophy and do not focus on how much money you have. (For as long as your focus is on the money, you will never know wisdom, and as long as you seek wisdom, you must let go of the money as your source of satisfaction. Begin now to live the life you want to have in the future. If you want to devote your future life to the search for wisdom, you must begin searching for wisdom and devoting yourself now.)

Susan Beth's Growing Wordlist...

Nouns:

(1st declension - feminine unless marked (m.) for masculine.)
femina, ae - woman, wife
casa, ae - house
filia, ae - daughter
ursa, ae - bear
aqua, ae - water
mensa, ae - table
insula, ae - island
nauta, ae - (m.) sailor
poeta, ae - (m.) poet
incola, ae - (m.) settler
agricola, ae - (m.) farmer
luna, ae - moon
stella, ae - star
terra, ae - land, earth
magistra, ae - female teacher
discipula, ae - female student
puella, ae - girl

(2nd declension - masculine)
discipulus, i - male student
magister, magistri - male teacher
Deus, i - God
amīcus, i - friend
puer, pueri - boy
vir, viri - man


Verbs:

voco, vocare - to call
sto, stare - to stand
navigo, navigare - to sail
iuvo, iuvare - to help
do, dare - I give
clamo, clamare - I shout
creo, creare - I create
porto, portare - I carry
laboro, laborare - I work
laudō, laudare - I praise
cogitō, cogitare - I think
sum - I am

Prepositions:

n (+abl.) - in, on
ab (+abl.) - from, away from
cum (+abl.) - with (accompaniment)
sine (+abl.) - without
e/ex (+abl.) - out of

Conjunctions and Adverbs:

et - and
non - not

SBB - Week 5 Wordlist (Prepositions)

in (+abl.) - in, on
ab (+abl.) - from, away from
cum (+abl.) - with (accompaniment)
sine (+abl.) - without
e/ex (+abl.) - out of

All of these prepositions must be followed by a noun in the ablative case.

SBB - Week 4 Wordlist

femina, ae - woman, wife
casa, ae - house
filia, ae - daughter
ursa, ae - bear
aqua, ae - water
mensa, ae - table
insula, ae - island
nauta, ae - (m.) sailor
poeta, ae - (m.) poet
incola, ae - (m.) settler
agricola, ae - (m.) farmer
voco, vocare - to call
sto, stare - to stand
navigo, navigare - to sail
iuvo, iuvare - to help

SBB - Week 3 Exercises

A. Decline the following nouns:
luna, ae
stella, ae
terra, ae

B. Identify the following nouns as nominative or accusative and tell whether they would be used as the direct object or a predicate nominative.
magistras
puellam
luna
stellae
terram
magistrae
stellam
lunae
terras
puella
*aqua
*portas
*sententiam
*casae
*latebras

*these are words you haven't learned yet, but they are all 1st declension so you should be able to figure out if they are nominative or accusative.

C. Translate the following sentences:

1. Lunae non sunt stellae.

2. Puella est discipula.

3. Deus terram et lunam et stellas creat.

4. Mater et pater puellam amant.

5. Magistra et discipulae stellas creant.

6. The boy is working.

7. The teacher is carrying a moon.

8. You love the earth.

9. We are carrying the girls.

10. The students are thinking.

SBB - Week 3 Wordlist

1. do, dare - I give
2. clamo, clamare - I shout
3. creo, creare - I create
   
4. porto, portare - I carry
5. laboro, laborare - I work
6. luna, ae - moon
7. stella, ae - star
8. terra, ae - land, earth
9. magistra, ae - female teacher
10. magister, magistri - male teacher
11. discipula, ae - female student
12. discipulus, i - male student
13. Deus, i - God
14. et - and
15. non - not

1st declension noun endings (with pronunciation):

(ah)	a	ae	(eye)
(eye)	ae	ārum	(ahrum)
(eye)	ae	īs	(ees)
(ahm)	am	ās	(ahs)
(ah)	ā	īs	(ees)

SBB Latin: Week 2 exercises

Translate these verbs:

1. laudamus
2. amant
3. sum
4. cogitat
5. laudas
6. es
7. sumus
8. amatis
9. cogitamus
10. laudat
11. est
12. laudatis
13. sunt
14. amas
15. estis

Conjugate these verbs in the present tense:

1. amo, amare
2. sum
3. cogito, cogitare
4. laudo, laudare

(answers are in the comments)

SBB Latin: Week 2 Wordlist

Word list:

1. *laudō, laudare - I praise

2. sum - I am

3. *cogitō, cogitare - I think

4. vīvō, vivere - I live

5. audiō, audire - I hear

6. amīcus - friend

7. puer - boy

8. puella - girl

9. salvē - Good day! (Be well)

10. valē - Good bye! (Be well)

11. vir - man

12. canis - dog

13. mater - mother

14. pater - father

15. domus - house or home

* 1st conjugation (-are) verbs

Chant:

I am	sum	sumus	we are
you are	es	estis	you all are
he, she, it is	est	sunt	they are

Quote:

"Cave canem" – beware of the dog

(pronounced Cah-way cah-nem)

Answer to Translation 5

Marcus, whose father was a farmer, used to work in the fields from day break until sunset. He gathered the grain which was carried to the city of Rome in carts. He often wanted to make this trip because he had not seen Rome.

Once his father said, "My son, because you have given me help for many days, I will take you with me to the city." When the grain was collected, they left the farmhouse. After five hours the father and his son were walking in the streets of the city. There they saw men who had come together from all the provinces.

On that day a famous general was coming in triumph with his soldiers through the Sacred Way. Great shouts of the citizens were heard because of his arrival. Marcus saw a slave who was holding a sword behind his back, and running toward the general. In a loud voice Marcus shouted, "Look, Romans! Catch that bad slave. He will kill our leader. I saw...!" But the slave was no longer there. He had fled!

Marcus was praised by everyone because he had saved the life of the general, and he received a large reward because of his courage.

Practice Translation 5

Marcus, cuius pater agricola erat, in agris a prima luce ad solis occasum laborabat. Frumentum cogebat quod ad urbem Romam carris portabatur. Hoc iter facere saepe cupiebat quod Romam non viderat.

Olim pater, "Quod, mi fili, " inquit, "mihi auxilium multos dies dedisti, te mecum ad urbem ducam." Ubi frumentum coactum est, a villa discesserunt. Post quinque horas pater filiusque eius in viis urbis ambulabant. Ibi homines qui ab omnibus provinciis convenerant viderunt.

Eo die per Viam Sacram cum militibus veniebat in triumpho imperator clarus. Propter eius adventum magni clamores civium audiebantur. Marcus servum vidit qui gladium post tergum tenebat et ad imperatorem currebat. Magna voce Marcus clamavit, "Spectate, Romani! Illum servum malum capite! Ducem nostrum interficiet. Vidi...!" Sed servus non iam aderat. Fugerat!

Marcus, quod vitam ducis servaverat, ab omnibus laudatus est et ob virtutem magnum praemium accepit.

Answer to Translation 4

The slave of an ancient king used to tell his master five stories every night. One night the king was disturbed by a great care; he did not sleep even after eight stories. And so he asked for eight stories again, which did not please the slave. "Master, what you wanted has already been done."

The king answered, "The stories which you told me were many, but short. I want a long story which has many words."

Then the slave began, "Once there was a farmer who had much money. In a town he gave money to a man and receved a hundred sheep. While he is leading these animals back, he comes near to a river, without any bridges, in which there is a great amount of water that day; and so he sees no way by which he can drive the sheep though the water. Finally he saw a boat in which two animals were placed and carried by the farmer."

When he said these words the slave was silent. The king begged him in this way: "Tell me the rest of your story."

The former answered, "The river is wide and deep, the boat is small, and there are many animals. If this farmer leads all his animals across the river, I will bring to an end the story which I began."

Practice Translation 4

Servus regis antiqui omni nocte quinque fabulas domino narrabat. Una nocte rex magna cura motus est; etiam post octo fabulas non requievit (to sleep). Itaque rursus (again) petivit (to ask) octo fabulas, id quod servum non delectavit. "Quod cupivisti, domine, iam factum est."

Respondit rex, "Fabulae quas mihi narravisti erant multae sed breves. Longam cupio fabulam quae multa verba habet."

Servus tum incepit: "Olim erat agricola qui magnam pecuniam habebat. In oppido pecuniamviro dedit et accepitcentum oves (sheep). Dum ea animalia reducit, appropinquat ad flumen sine pontibus in quo est eo die magna aquae copia; itaque modum non videt quo oves per aquam aget. Tandem vidit scapham (boat), in qua ab agricola duo animalia posita et portata sunt.

Ubi haec verba dixit, tacuit (to be silent) servus. Eum rex hoc modo obsecravit (to beg): "Dic mihi reliquam fabulam tuam."

Respondit ille, "Flumen et altum et latum, scapha parva est, atque sunt multa animalia. Si duxerit hic agricola omnia animalia trans flumen, fabulam quam incepi ad finem ducam."

Answer to Translation 3

There was a tree in a field; on it there were many apples. A boy saw the apples. At daybreak he climbed the tree, and was eating two apples from the tree. But a farmer, who had seen the boy, brought a large dog into field.

Then the boy was very frightened and filled the place with a great shout; but there was no help. The farmer approached and warned the boy in this way: "The apples are not yours. Why were you removing other people's apples from the tree? It was not right. You are a theif and the dog will bite theives. Why aren't you a good boy?" Then the boy shouts: "I will never again be a theif. Now lead your dog from the field."

The farmer laughed and led the dog away. The boy was left unharmed, and he no longer ate the apples. He remembered the good advice of the farmer, and never afterwards did he remove apples from his tree.

Practice Translation 3

Erat in agro arbor; in ea poma (apples) multa erant. Puer poma vidit. Prima luce in arborem ascendit et duo poma ab arbore edebat. Sed agricola, qui puerum viderat, magnum canem in agrum duxit.

Tum puer perterritus est et magno clamore locum complevit; sed non erat auxilium. Agricola appropinquavit (to approach) et puerum ita monuit: "Poma non tua sunt. Cur poma aliena ab arbore removebas? Non aequum erat. Fur (theif) es, et canis fures (pl. theives) mordebit (to bite). Cur non es bonus puer?" Tum puer exclamat: "Numquam (never) iterum fur ero. Nunc canem ex agro educ."

Agricola risit et canem abduxit. Puer incolumis (unharmed) relictus est, et poma non iam (no longer) edit. Bonum consilium agricolae memoria tenuit neque postea ab arbore eius poma amovit.