Latin

One of the most frequently questioned aspects of classical education is its use of Latin. Why do students in the Information Age need something so arcane as Latin? Less than a 100 years ago, Latin was widely taught even in American schools. It was considered necessary to the fundamental understanding of English, the history and writings of Western civilization, and the understanding of Romance languages.

Latin is a language that lives on today in almost all major Western languages, including English. Over half of the English vocabulary comes from Latin. Training in Latin not only gives the student a better understanding of the roots of English vocabulary, it also lays the foundation for learning other Latin-based languages. Students who study Latin are equipped to read the foundational literature of our culture and to correctly decipher unfamiliar scientific, legal, and mathematical terms. Research has also demonstrated that the study of Latin leads to higher scores on the SAT and ACT.

At Heritage, Latin training begins in Class 3 and progresses through high school. After completing Latin requirements, students in high school may continue foreign language studies in Spanish, French, German, Italian, Chinese, and Japanese, through a language lab format. Advanced students have the opportunity to study Ancient Greek and Hebrew through independent study or dual enrollment.