The department consists of 8 full-time members of staff, all of whom may teach Latin, Greek and Classical Civilisation, covering an extensive range of subject specialisms.
The names of the department and their responsibilities within the school community are as follows:
- *Mrs D. O'Sullivan (Head of Classics)
- Mr M. Shoults (Deputy Head, Curriculum)
- Mrs M. Fotheringham (Head of Upper School)
- Mrs S. Elliot (CAS co-ordinator)
- Mr F. Hitchcock (Head of Community Service)
- Mr G. Maude
- Mr E. Maunder
What we do:
Latin is studied by all girls in Years 7-9, and is then offered at GCSE, where Greek is also available as a two year ab initio course. In the Sixth Form both languages are offered via International Baccalaureate and A Level routes, and Classical Civilisation is also available at A level.
Middle School - The first three years are based around the Cambridge Latin Course, which develops pupils' linguistic skills through stories set against the backdrop of life in the Roman world, specifically Pompeii, Britain, Alexandria and then Rome. We supplement the course with our own materials, particularly focusing on grammatical accuracy and background knowledge.
Upper School - A large group of girls opts for GCSE Latin. We read two further books of the Cambridge Latin Course, increasingly focused on politics in the imperial period in Rome, practising translation skills and covering the GCSE grammar. We then begin to read the two set texts; Latin and Greek are unique among language GCSEs in allowing the reading authors in the original.
We study selections from Virgil's epic poem, The Aeneid, alongside prose selections, most commonly from Tacitus, Pliny or Cicero. This allows the girls to combine the skills of grammatical, historical and literary analysis, and to reach into the heart of the ancient world through original sources.
In Year 10, a group also begins an accelerated two-year GCSE course in Classical Greek (many in combination with Latin). In the first year we work through Taylor's Greek to GCSE course, introducing the language swiftly but carefully, based around passages on Greek myth, history and philosophy. In Year 11 we begin the set texts, reading selections from Homer's Iliad or Odyssey, and the Histories of Herodotus.
Sixth Form - The study of Latin and Greek, whether through A level or Baccalaureate (Higher or Standard level), combines in depth study of authors with further linguistic advancement. For A level, two different authors tend to studied in each year; texts currently being read include the poetry of Homer and Ovid, a Euripidean tragedy and the historical writings of Tacitus and Thucydides. For the Baccalaureate (where Latin and/or Greek can be taken in addition to, or instead of, a modern language), two authors are studied more extensively over two years, currently Livy and Horace/Catullus for Latin. IB Greek students are now studying Iliad Book 6 and Sophocles' Oedipus Rex.
There is some distinction in course components: at A level, a paper is taken in prose composition, while in Higher Level Latin and Greek students complete a research dossier on a topic of their choice (topics this year have ranged from mock sea battles to chariot racing, sedan-chairs to Roman triumphs).
Classical Civilisation combines the study of ancient literature and history. Homer's Odyssey and the Life and Times of Cicero are studied in the first year. In the second year, Virgil's Aeneid and three further tragedies are studied, covering some of the masterpieces of 5th century Athens.
Each year a number of girls apply to read Classics at university, either as a straight Classics course or as part of dual honours e.g. Classics and English or Classics and Modern Foreign Languages.
Extra curricular activities:
A full programme of extra-curricular events is organised for students to complement their academic programmes and encourage further exploration of the Classical World.
Classics trip to Italy...
Every year an overseas visit is organised, available to girls in the top three years; recent trips have included Sicily, Rome and the Bay of Naples, Greece.
In Year 8 students visit the Colchester Castle Museum for a day to explore Roman Britain, whilst Year 9 students visit the British Museum, making the most of 'local' resources. Girls studying Greek in Year 10 visit the British Museum and National Gallery for a day's enrichment beyond the syllabus, whilst Year 10 Latin students visit Cambridge for a tour of the Cast Gallery in the Classics Faculty and a lecture on their set-text by a university Classicist.
The Sixth Form is particularly rich in opportunities, including lecture days, trips to see productions of Classical plays, visits to NLCS by academics, and involvement in symposia with students from Eton and Whitgift School. Each year, several students attend the Joint Oxbridge Classics Open Day, and Year 12 Latinists have a day's visit to either Oxford or Cambridge to hears talks on their set-texts by academics.
The annual Classics Symposium, combining two guest speakers with a grand Greek dinner for Classics students in Years 11-13 is a firm favourite amongst staff and pupils alike. The Classical Society, run by Sixth Form girls, invites outside speakers to the school and also runs the Middle School Classics Club. The Society has also launched a newsletter/journal for other students, now entitled nuntius.
Year 12 students put on a small-scale production of an Aristophanic comedy each year, under the direction of staff from the department, using a specially-adapted English translation.
Students are encouraged to enter national competitions such as the Jowett Sendelar Essay Competition (Years 7-9), the St John's College Oxford Classics Essay Competition and the International CICERO Latin translation competition, where they have enjoyed considerable success.
Members of the department are also involved in outreach programmes within the wider community, including a very successful and popular Minimus club at a local primary school, run by NLCS sixth-former Classicists, and a GCSE-Latin link with a local comprehensive.