Classics

The Classics department teaches Ancient History, Classical Civilisation and Latin in two specialist classrooms, both equipped to make use of electronic media when appropriate.

In Y7 everyone studies Ancient History and Civilisation under the title ‘Classics’: we begin with human evolution, study the beginnings of civilisation and look in some depth at ancient Egypt and Greece, before introducing Rome. This leads into the start of the Cambridge Latin Course, which everyone studies in Y8. This course is mainly covered using textbooks, but we also use the latest electronic version of the course. In Y9 some continue with Latin, while others study classical civilisation, with, among other topics, in-depth study of the ancient Greece of Odysseus and Alexander the Great. There are usually two classes at GCSE, one each of Latin and Classical Civilisation, though demand can lead to an extra class for the latter. To save unnecessary detail here, you can click on the links below to see some very detailed information about the awarding body and specifications that we use.

Latin continues to use the Cambridge Course and is examined by OCR, as too is Classical Civilisation.

We also use an OCR specification for A-level Classical Civilisation. For this we normally concentrate on literary topics, but have also had some success with art and architecture. [The most recent A-level grades for a Classics class were five ‘A’s, three ‘B’s and two ‘C’s]

We organise regular visits to London and Italy, with the occasional visit to Greece. The department enjoys a good relationship with the University of York, where two of our teachers also teach some Latin. York as a major Roman city offers a variety of resources for study.