Today my Latin 1 class didn’t go very well. It wasn’t a bad class, nothing dramatic happened. But nothing really clicked either.
This year our school has switched to a rotating schedule with 7 classes that drops one class each day. So today my Latin 1 class met for the first time since last Thursday, a 3 day break. Since the beginning of the second marking period, this class has met for 5 straight days only one week; between holidays, a parent conference day, and the rotation of the schedule this class has very little consistency. We also enjoyed our annual Saturnalia celebration two weeks ago, which is one of my favorite days of the year, but certainly turns our focus away from Latin grammar for more than a few days.
So now I find myself trying to review case endings and reviewing prepositional phrases that take either the ablative or accusative case in the last few days before vacation. I have a fun activity planned for tomorrow, kind of a cross between Simon Says and Dodge Ball using a Nerf football to keep everyone on their toes. But today was all about reviewing nouns, prepositions, case endings and vocabulary.
I’m finding that the biggest challenge (drawback?) to this schedule is the absolute lack of consistency. So often when I used to be able to find a groove with my class and logically end a unit with a quiz or activity, I’m now scrambling to fit the quiz in a day early because I won’t see them for a day or two or three. When students are out for a field trip, illness, or college visit – and then their class doesn’t meet the next day – they easily can be away from Latin learning for nearly a week. No matter how many resources a teacher provides (on-line notes, posting homework on Edline, offering on-line “office hours”) the lack of routine makes language learning a real challenge. Gifted language learners seem to be getting along okay, since they can basically teach themselves. But the majority of my students have to work hard to master the vocabulary and grammar. Not hearing the language, not reading the words, not reviewing the grammar five days each week means that each day in class requires more time reviewing and less time moving forward.
So class didn’t go very well. And the study hall that met in our room the period before left the window open on a cold December day. And 5 students came to class late. And 4 more students needed to use the bathroom.
Today was not a great day for learning Latin. I did the best I could. I hope that my students learned a little. Tomorrow will be a better day. I’ve got my Nerf football ready to go!
Magistra's Musings 