Classics as a Cross-Curricular Core in the Middle School
Austin Preparatory School

Stage 5 in Cambridge Latin takes the central characters and all the people of Pompeii to the theater while introducing plural nouns and verb endings. In addition to the theater, the major theme of slavery in Roman times continues throughout this chapter, with slaves as well as free people going to the show. Slavery is also a prominent theme in the story "Death Wears a Mask," where the most popular actor is a slave. In the movie A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, where the star is the incomparable Zero Mostel in a traditional, clever servant role, various plots from Plautus intertwine.

Culture

In addition to the cultural information section given at the end of this chapter in CL, Pompeii has two pages of information, drawings, and diagrams. In various videos there are some good shots of theaters and of wall paintings & mosaics showing actors and/or musicians. The link to Greece can be stressed here, with a discussion of the origins of Roman theater and its highly derivative nature. Students have already been introduced to the Roman reverence for and dependence on Greek culture through the study of Greek and Roman mythology. Additionally, in English at this time they are reading about Aeneas, while in history class they are studying ancient Greece.

Literature

"Death Wears a Mask" by Steven Saylor. This detective story, set in 1st Century BC Rome, involves the murder of an actor during a performance of Aulularia. The author gives information about stagecraft, actors, physical description of the temporary theaters common at that time, and short excerpts from Aulularia along with a synopsis. Students read the story on three successive nights, underlining assigned vocabulary as they go. (See Using a dictionary below.)

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum - After a discussion of Plautus and plots of several of his plays, including Aulularia and Mostellaria, I showed about 2/3 of the movie, fast-forwarding through most of the exposition (and the brothel scenes), after the introduction (first ten minutes), when it is established that Hero's parents are leaving town and that Pseudolus is trying to win his freedom. The second half of the movie is fast-paced and shows the Plautine plots working themselves out. Students identify the different traditional plot lines. They also see that traditional comedy is still funny. Comparisons with current movies and sitcoms can broaden the discussion and sense of connection with the comic tradition.

Language Arts

Using a dictionary and increasing English vocabulary through derivatives - Students are given a list of vocabulary words to underline in the text of "Death Wears a Mask" as they read it. They copy out the sentence in which the word appears onto a running list kept in their Latin notebook. As a small-group activity in class, they look up the definitions of the words, note parts of speech and Latin root words. (I chose vocabulary derived from Latin words they already know or will be encountering soon.)

Expository writing - supporting a statement with a quotation from the text.
Students are assigned a short paper (3 paragraphs) on slavery or theater in "Death Wears a Mask." Each paragraph states one idea or fact and is supported by an appropriate quotation.

Useful CTCWeb Links: Roots of English: an Etymological Dictionary RAM: Reading Acceleration Machine

Latin

While all of the above is going on, students have been reading and translating the stories in CL, making vocabulary cards, learning vocabulary and grammar.

Reinforcement

Assorted practice sheets; review sheets; crossword puzzle for derivatives; students quizzing each other using vocab cards; VINCO for Latin vocabulary; other games like UMBRA, relay races, Grammar in Motion activities.

Additional Assessment

Daily quizzes on vocabulary, grammar, story comprehension, culture. (Sometimes I have students make up quiz questions in small groups. Each group then has to take another group's quiz. Quizzes are graded by the makers.) A culminating chapter test covers the entire theater unit.

Creative Activities

Small groups of students act out short scenes in Latin, memorizing their lines: either "Poppaea" (CL stage 5) or the simplified excerpt from Aulularia (CL workbook)

Students make traditional masks with open mouths for characters from either the playlets or "Death Wears a Mask".