Do you love to read? Do you like to play Scrabble? Do you enjoy writing, spelling, or solving puzzles? Have you ever wondered where many English words get their meanings? Do you want to know the secret behind unlocking the meaning of many English words--even words that are long or difficult? Are you interested in dazzling your friends and family with your extensive vocabulary? Do you have an interest in being able to figure out the meaning of a word based on its root? Would you like to feel more confident not only in your English vocabulary, but in your ability to make educated guesses at the meanings behind many words in modern Romance languages like French, Spanish, and Italian?

If you answered yes to any or all of the above questions, then this class is for you! It may surprise you to know that well over half of English words--more than 60%--come to us from Latin and Greek. In fact, this class description itself contains numerous words with Greek and Latin heritage. For (just one!) example, take the word "description." This English word is actually a compound of two Latin words: "de," which is a Latin preposition and prefix that can mean "down," and a form of the Latin verb "scribere," which means "to write." Put those two things together, and you get "description"--a word that literally means "written down," but has a common meaning of being a spoken or written account of something. Many scientific and mathematical terms are Greek and Latin words, as well, and the scientific names for species, genera, familiae, etc. are Latin words. 

Knowing Latin and Greek roots and being able to identify them in English words is one way to quickly and substantially broaden your English vocabulary (and gives you a head start in learning vocabulary for modern Romance languages!). In this ongoing class, we'll learn many of the Greek and Latin roots that form the basis for many high-frequency words in English, and we'll trace the meanings of words from their classical origins to their more modern-day definitions. 

As a classicist and a teacher and lover of Latin and Greek language, I have a special interest in revealing to learners the classical heritage behind the English language. In each class session, I will introduce two or more Greek or Latin roots. We'll discuss some of the Latin or Greek words from where the roots came, learn the meanings of the roots, and brainstorm English words that feature those roots. I will then ask learners to define certain high-frequency and/or advanced words (these words will be selected from lists that are appropriate for middle schoolers, with some higher-level words added if learners wish). I'll also provide examples of these words in context, and together we'll do some interactive games and activities that can help learners to retain the meaning of both the roots and the words. This class is designed to be a mixture of lecture, discussion, and interactive activities. Vocal participation is strongly encouraged, and learners should feel comfortable in asking any questions!

This is an ongoing class, which means that learners can join or leave the class on any given week. Learners who attend multiple class sessions will of course have greater exposure to roots and vocabulary words, but learners should also rest assured that there is no prerequisite to join a given class session, and knowledge from a previous class meeting is not required for the next. This class is designed for flexibility, and my preference as a teacher is to be able to adjust the syllabus to account for learner preferences or requests, but the current class schedule for the first four weeks is as follows:

Week of August 22nd:  Roots firm-, fort-, and grav-/griev-
Week of August 29th:  Roots part-, verb-, and ced-/cess-
Week of September 5th: Labor Day--NO CLASS
Week of September 12th: Roots jur-/just- and ven-/vent-
Week of September 19th: Roots duc-/duct- and loqu-/locut-

Please note that this is not a Latin or Greek language learning course. Though we may discuss some Latin or Greek words in this class, if learners wish to participate in a Latin language course, I encourage them to review the listing for my Veni, Vidi, Vici course for middle schoolers to see if that would be more appropriate for them. This class is intended to focus on strengthening and building English vocabulary, though it can also serve as a complement to current, prior, or future Latin language or modern Romance language study. If you have any questions as to whether this class is appropriate for your learner, please do not hesitate to reach out.