About ICL

Who We Are

The Association of Classical Christian Schools commissioned the Institute for Classical Languages in 2020 to help classical Christian schools improve their Latin programs.

Relatively few resources exist for Latin teachers, but we believe that teaching Latin in grade school has innumerable benefits. That’s why we are here to help schools, especially classical Christian schools, teach Latin so that their students reap the full benefits of a classical education. We understand that many schools don’t have the resources to hire expert Latin teachers or the experience to build a strong Latin program from scratch, so we aim to help schools make the best program they can. We hope to add resources for classical and Koine/NT Greek in the near future, with the possibility of other languages including Hebrew and Anglo-Saxon. 

Mixed Methodology

Latin teaching tends to be polarized into two methodologies: the natural method (comprehensible input) and the grammar-translation method (chanting endings systematically and translation). But in the centuries that produced the most successful formal Latin education, students were taught to speak, write, and read Latin as well as analyze it grammatically and translate it into their native tongue (or sometimes even into ancient Greek).

The vision of the ICL is to bring this robust mixed methodology back to the teaching of ancient languages–not merely because we believe it produces better readers of ancient texts, but because we believe it produces better readers in general, better thinkers, better problem-solvers, and better communicators.

 

Litterarum Lumen Accedat

This moto comes from Cicero’s Pro Archia. It means “let the light of literature approach.”

Sed pleni omnes sunt libri, plenae sapientium voces, plena exemplorum vetustas: quae iacerent in tenebris omnia, nisi litterarum lumen accederet. Quam multas nobis imagines–non solum ad intuendum, verum etiam ad imitandum–fortissimorum virorum expressas scriptores et Graeci et Latini reliquerunt? Quas ego mihi semper in administranda re publica proponens animum et mentem meam ipsa cognitatione hominum excellentium conformabam. (Pro Archia 14)

 

What We Do

 

Universal Latin Exam

The ULE is a new kind of Latin test that evaluates student’s knowledge of Latin grammar and syntax. The test is completely independent of curriculum, yet it accurately compares students across the country in their actual knowledge of the Latin language. How is this possible? We produce a unique test for each classroom based on what material the teacher reports covering. Students are then compared objectively to others in their grade across the US by the number of questions they answered correctly or incorrectly. Click here for more information.

 

Video and Blog Resources

Show sample lessons to demonstrate different teaching techniques, explain various grammatical concepts and the best way to handle them, and answer the most common questions from Latin teachers.

Keep in Touch

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