Aut Viam Inveniam Aut Faciam ~ Which is Latin For…..
The above phrase is Latin and means, “I will either find a way or make one,” which is a good mantra to have. It is the keep-on-keeping-on of Latin phrases and one I might be able to pronounce correctly in the near future! Why? Let me tell you.
In December I wrote a post called Homeschooling High School – Shouldn’t I Be More Nervous?. In January I wrote a post called Possible Courses for Fulfilling High School Electives. Do you sense a theme? Homeschooling High School is knocking on my door, and I am answering (after tons of research and worry)!
While researching electives for high school, I have noticed many sources say that most colleges want to see at least 2 years of a foreign language on your transcript. We live in New York state, and a foreign language is not required for homeschoolers even though it is for those in public school. We tried Spanish over the span of a couple of years using different programs but with little to no success. For these reasons, a foreign language was not even in my thought process for our high school years. So what changed? Why are we considering Latin for high school?
Here are my 4 major reasons for choosing Latin for high school:
1. Electives are a requirement for high school, and foreign language can be considered an elective.
2. Colleges like to see at least 2 years of a foreign language on your transcript. Yes, these first two reasons could be any language, but my following reasons will explain why we chose Latin specifically.
3. Learning Latin (even more specifically Latin roots) can greatly improve your knowledge of vocabulary in the English Language because more than 60% of the English Language comes from Latin roots.
According to Samuel C. Brownstein, “Learning fifty key word parts can help you unlock the meaning of over 1000,000 words.”
This is important to me because we have discussed beginning some sort of SAT vocabulary preparation in 9th grade. It seems to me that a study in Latin roots would cover the foreign language piece as well as good SAT preparation.
4. My daughter is considering a career in the medical field, and so much of the medical terminology comes from Latin and Greek roots.
“Although medical terms have been drawn from many languages, a large majority are from Greek and Latin. Some familiarity with the meaning of the most frequently used roots, prefixes, and suffixes will clarify the whole field. With a little study, it will be found that the long and formidable sounding medical terms are a combination of words which describe parts of the body, a function, or a condition. The basic terms occur over and over again in various combinations. A knowledge of the meaning of the roots, prefixes, and suffixes enables the student to analyze the medical terms into component parts.” – George L. Banay, Ph.D., from his book, An Introduction to Medical Terminology
When putting all of the above reasons together, it just seems to make sense to choose Latin for our upcoming high school journey. Choosing Latin (instead of other foreign languages or elective options) fulfills multiple goals all in the one subject. If you are interested in reading more about “Why Latin” and the specific resources we are looking to choose, then you can read more on my personal blog, StartsAtEight.
I tried to take Latin in High School – when they did not get a big enough turn out for the class, they stuck me in typing. Seriously? Typing. So anyway, I never learned Latin. But I have used several Critical Thinking products and even purchased The Phonics Road to Reading which leads to Latin. Funny that I have always been drawn to it and now I can clearly see the benefits. Good luck in homeschooling high school. It seems kind of scary to me – we are almost there. But I am hoping it is like homeschooling itself and isn’t so scary once you dive in!
Mindy, as a young mother with my first child I remember talking with a dear friend whose children I used to watch when I was a teenager. I expressed my concerns over raising teenagers. She told me not too worry, that as my children grew, so would I. She tried to impress upon me that with each stage, phase, challenge and joy I would learn and change with them, and thus be better equipped to handle them. So far she has been right. As scary as homeschooling high school seems, the closer we get the calmer I get. I know my child, and myself, and I can see our goals set out before us. Even with the bumps, we will find our way. I believe you will find the same to be true for you. 🙂