LA100 Beginning Latin through Drama
People naturally absorb language through seeing, doing, listening and speaking, rather than by reading textbooks. All students in this exploratory class will get a dramatic introduction to Latin by taking part, every class day, in creative exercises presenting famous stories from Classical mythology while internalizing the Latin scripts that go with them. Most scripts will be based on Ritchie's 20th-century classic Latin reader Fabulae Faciles ("Easy Stories"). Language exercises will move students toward Novice-level proficiency in Latin according to national standards articulated by ACTFL, the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages. Graded assignments will usually involve group work on scenes for in-class presentation in Latin, or individual journaling about the process in English. This class has no prerequisites; no prior knowledge of Latin, or any experience with foreign languages or drama, is assumed.