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Latin A Level literature

Hey! I'm in year 12 right now. I just wanted to ask about the literature? We've finished Cicero: Pro Milone and have just started the Aeneid. Have you been memorising your set texts as you learnt them? Because I realised that if I were tested right now on translating my set texts, I would get ZERO :eek: slightly worried about having to know it all for the exams :s-smilie:

Thanks! :smile:

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I'm currently working on Pro Milone. I'm trying to remember it as I go, and have written down the Latin together with the translation in a workbook so I can revise it as I go. You will need to know it . . .
Original post by tennysons_maud
I'm currently working on Pro Milone. I'm trying to remember it as I go, and have written down the Latin together with the translation in a workbook so I can revise it as I go. You will need to know it . . .


I've typed up all of my pro Milone translation but struggling to memorise it :/

How are you learning it?
Original post by Crème brûlée
I've typed up all of my pro Milone translation but struggling to memorise it :/

How are you learning it?


Do you mean memorising it?

I'm learning it by translating it myself and then going through it with my tutor. I memorised my GCSE Latin by reading it over and over and over and over and over . . . I have different methods for memorising stuff though that work pretty well for me.
Oh my gosh finally I have found some other Latinists doing the same set texts! Yippeee!

I have been using the Terry Bird booklets which my teacher gave me (but you can get them here I think http://www.tabclassics.uk/news.htm) and writing the translation underneath and numbering the words for word order. Other than that I have had a blank Latin copy of the text on which I write all of my style notes. Other than that i have done nothing and have exams in 4 weeks...

For GCSE, I spent hours learning the texts (I did Ovid Metamorphoses - Daedalus&Icarus and Pygmalion): I split them up into sentences/manageable chunks, tried to get the translation into my head, covered the Latin up and tried to translate it exactly on the page. After that, I wrote on little revisions cards: the latin at the top, then the translation below in a separate chunk, and then key style notes at the bottom. I then basically carried these around and tested myself on the translation and style notes when I needed. I ended up with an A* in Literature so it must've worked ok, but unsure whether this will work again for AS/A level.

I've been doing Pro Milone and the Aeneid since `September and am now over halfway through each of them. I am the only person doing Latin A Level at my school, and thankfully my teacher is great, but it can get a bit lonely! Very excited to have found other people doing it for A level yay
Original post by Crème brûlée
Hey! I'm in year 12 right now. I just wanted to ask about the literature? We've finished Cicero: Pro Milone and have just started the Aeneid. Have you been memorising your set texts as you learnt them? Because I realised that if I were tested right now on translating my set texts, I would get ZERO :eek: slightly worried about having to know it all for the exams :s-smilie:

Thanks! :smile:


Hi,
I study Latin too, and Pro Milone. Yes, we have been learning them as we go along - our teachers have been giving us frequent tests - I REALLY STRUGGLE TO LEARN THEM. I have tried colour coding phrases, and numbering them, and memorising the English, and recording the English and listening to myself. Any other suggestions? x
I do Latin AS level too, and Pro Milone and Aeneid VIII! I memorise the translation by putting them into songs, quite time consuming but it's easier to learn as lyrics than just chunks of text (for me anyway).
How are people practising for the literature exam? I've found no past papers for these set texts and my teacher is awful. He told the people in my class that he didn't revise for his exams when we asked him how to revise :frown: Any advice would be amazing!
Original post by maddieacpope
Oh my gosh finally I have found some other Latinists doing the same set texts! Yippeee!

I have been using the Terry Bird booklets which my teacher gave me (but you can get them here I think http://www.tabclassics.uk/news.htm) and writing the translation underneath and numbering the words for word order. Other than that I have had a blank Latin copy of the text on which I write all of my style notes. Other than that i have done nothing and have exams in 4 weeks...


What are the Terry Bird booklets? I get very little good quality teacher support so would they help? Thanks :smile:
The Terry Bird booklets are good for vocab, but if you have the OCR-endorsed editions of the set text, they are generally quite good at glossing the vocab at the back. They don't, however, help much in terms of style notes.

I'd recommend seeing if your school / parents will invest in ZigZag booklets. You can find these here https://zigzageducation.co.uk/subjects/classics and while they are pretty expensive, they are excellent in terms of both the translation and the style notes.
Howseveryone getting along w Latin??
I would definitely recommend the ZigZag books- they are saving my life for literature! (I am also doing pro Milone, but for verse I am doing a selection of poetry) I wouldn't always go with the exact translation they put as sometimes they can gloss over certain sections, but the style points and notes they give you are invaluable!

As for the memorising certain sections, I find it easier to go over the translation with the original text multiple times so that if you panic and have a blank in the exam (something that happens all the time with me :biggrin:) you can figure out the translation too. That said, Quizlet is a brilliant tool for memorising certain sections :smile: Good luck!!
Original post by AhhhAlevels
Howseveryone getting along w Latin??


currently plodding my way through the as texts... someone send help
Original post by maddieacpope
currently plodding my way through the as texts... someone send help


Same 😂😂
Ugh yuck I feel this. I’ve technically ‘learnt’ all of Pro Milone but the next day it escapes my head entirely
Any Ideas on how to write a 20 marker on Tacitus Annals?
Original post by maddieacpope
Oh my gosh finally I have found some other Latinists doing the same set texts! Yippeee!

I have been using the Terry Bird booklets which my teacher gave me (but you can get them here I think http://www.tabclassics.uk/news.htm) and writing the translation underneath and numbering the words for word order. Other than that I have had a blank Latin copy of the text on which I write all of my style notes. Other than that i have done nothing and have exams in 4 weeks...

For GCSE, I spent hours learning the texts (I did Ovid Metamorphoses - Daedalus&Icarus and Pygmalion): I split them up into sentences/manageable chunks, tried to get the translation into my head, covered the Latin up and tried to translate it exactly on the page. After that, I wrote on little revisions cards: the latin at the top, then the translation below in a separate chunk, and then key style notes at the bottom. I then basically carried these around and tested myself on the translation and style notes when I needed. I ended up with an A* in Literature so it must've worked ok, but unsure whether this will work again for AS/A level.

I've been doing Pro Milone and the Aeneid since `September and am now over halfway through each of them. I am the only person doing Latin A Level at my school, and thankfully my teacher is great, but it can get a bit lonely! Very excited to have found other people doing it for A level yay


SAME!!! People still look at me weirdly whenever I say that I do Latin A Level, I just tell them that I chose it because I have no life, anyone else feel that way? (do not let the gerunds grind you down) I am doing Tacitus Annals Book 1, Poetry selection (Ovid, Propertius, Tibullus), Aeneid X and Cicero Pro Milone. I HATE Cicero with a passion, I do not need to know why Milo emancipated his slaves, and why cannot you tell me in straightforward Latin?!

I have 'finished' learning all of them now, though whether I will be able to remember them is another matter entirely, I find recording someone saying them and playing it ove and over again helps. Personally I struggle more with the vocab and grammar than the literature. I am just hoping for Caecilius to make a surprise appearance in June 'Caecilius est in horto'. Sorry about this ramble, I have only had my teachers to talk about LAtin with for 2 years and I am going slightly crazy!
Omg no I completely get you!
Grammar and vocab are the worst -
I hate gerunds
Also literally don’t know the genders or any nouns which pains me when translating.
That’s amazing that you’ve finished learning - I’ve only gone through pro milone and Aeneid x this Easter so am going to have to really knuckle down the next few weeks😭
Fingers crossed for a Caecilius appearance lol 😂😂
Original post by maddieacpope
Omg no I completely get you!
Grammar and vocab are the worst -
I hate gerunds
Also literally don’t know the genders or any nouns which pains me when translating.
That’s amazing that you’ve finished learning - I’ve only gone through pro milone and Aeneid x this Easter so am going to have to really knuckle down the next few weeks😭
Fingers crossed for a Caecilius appearance lol 😂😂


We still have a month until the exams which is slightly reassuring, I actually like the Aeneid section, although when Laridus and Thymber turn up I always think of the Weasley twins which makes me sad... (severed head for Fred hand instead of ear for George). The Pro Milone just makes me want to sit in a corner and rock backwards and forwards

How are you learning the vocab? I hate the q words and the liber, libro, libertus type words that all sound the same, using quizlet but forget them as soon as I finish
omg finally people who take latin a level lmao how well do you guys know your set texts bc memorising them by reading over and over isn't working for me :/ ocr are crazy for getting rid of as and making us learn 4 set texts at once. any tips?
Reply 19
Original post by lejefadetumadre
omg finally people who take latin a level lmao how well do you guys know your set texts bc memorising them by reading over and over isn't working for me :/ ocr are crazy for getting rid of as and making us learn 4 set texts at once. any tips?


They’ve not got rid of AS but you’re right, AS don’t count towards the full A level any more. I am currently studying for AS ( although I am also a teacher) and it has proved a very challenging task on top of a full time job!

Have learnt all my texts ( doing Pro Milone and the selection of elegiac poetry). There is so much to remember. First exam ( Language) on Monday!