Classics
Welcome to the Classics Department at Bexley Grammar School!
We are proud to be able to offer Latin (7-13) and Ancient History (10-11) to all our students. The benefits of studying Classics are as wide-ranging as our curriculum, which focuses primarily on language, literature and history. We are also proud to be able to support any sixth former who wishes to pursue a Classics, Archaeology or Ancient History degree, regardless of whether they have ever studied Latin or Ancient History.
The study of Classics improves students' analytical, critical, creative and linguistic skills, which are key to both academic and professional success. Through the course, students gain a broader understanding of both ancient and modern societies and languages. They gain valuable insights into modern culture and enhance their understanding of English and Modern Foreign Languages and of the concept and patterns of language in general. By studying literature and history, students learn to challenge modern and ancient ideas and concepts as well as their own abilities.
Classics is a growing and forward-thinking department which achieves excellent results, and benefits from excellent facilities and teaching expertise. The department has strong links with other departments in the school, including Modern Foreign Languages, History, English and Drama. Our lively curriculum includes ancient drama, theatre visits, lectures and seminars, and visits to local, national (Fishbourne Palace, Lullingstone Villa, Roman Bath, Hadrian’s Wall, the British Museum) and international classical sites (Pompeii, Herculaneum, Rome, Delphi, Olympia (home of the ancient Olympics), Athens and Epidaurus).
For full curriculum details please see our Curriculum Statement.
Key stage 3
Key Stage 3
Imperium Latin is learnt by all students in Years 7, 8 and 9 and an emphasis is placed on language, history and culture. Language work throughout Key Stage 3 aims to equip pupils to read and understand passages of moderate difficulty and to gain a clear understanding of language structure and its impact on English and other modern languages. Students will build on their vocabulary as regular testing ensures that students are able not only to translate, but also to make connections between the languages they speak and are learning.
Students learn about the history of Roman society by following the childhood of the Emperor Hadrian. Hadrian was a progressive emperor who is famous for his building projects in Rome and most famously the wall he built form Tyneside to the coastal defences at West Cumbria, UK.
The department runs a lively Classics Club and a Latin Clinic for KS3 students who want to improve their language skills. This is led by the Sixth Formers, and seeks to enhance pupils' enjoyment and understanding of the subject. From Year 8 onwards, there may also be the opportunity to study Ancient Greek as an extra-curricular activity.
key stage 4
Latin and Ancient History are now available on the curriculum at GCSE level. In Latin, we offer the subject as an option class and as a second language class. Following the EDUQAS specification, GCSE Latin students learn about a wide variety of topics. Students will study the Latin language, Roman Civilisation and also study the writings of Tacitus, Catullus, Cicero, Ovid, Pliny and others.
GCSE Ancient History (OCR) was established at the school in September 2015. Students will study two longer periods of history (The Persian Empire 559-465 BC and Foundation of Rome: from kingship to republic 753-440 BC). They will also study 2 topics that cover a significantly shorter period of time in-depth: Athens in the Age of Pericles, 462-429 BC and Cleopatra & Rome.
key stage 5
We offer Latin IB (Higher and Standard level). We aim to study a combination of prose and poetry and to encourage a high level of literary response and linguistic understanding. Two authors are studied in-depth, Livy and Virgil, and students practice translating pieces from a wide range of authors.
Classics at IB will be offered at Standard Level, and all the texts students read are in English. This course covers a wide variety of subjects: students begin studying the styles and themes of Greek Vase Painting before moving on to the world of Greek Tragedy, reading Euripides' Hippolytus and Bacche. In the second year of the course students read Ovid's Metamorphoses and then learn more about the aider works of Augustan Rome.
Both Latin and Classics have a coursework element, in which any aspect of the Roman or Greek world may be explored through primary sources. Examples of the past projects the presentation of Cleopatra. Rome's trade with India, the engineering behind aqueducts, and the portrayal of Hercules.