LatinSummer Charleston: Family Discussion

Read the Welcome Memo (.pdf) - A letter from the instructors of LatinSummer Charleston. Find all the details of the program here!

Each day, we will send home with your child a sheet of questions designed to stimulate family discussion about the topics learned in LatinSummer. We suggest using these questions on a nightly basis not only to review but also to gain insight into your child's experiences at LatinSummer. You may download your Family Discussion Questions by clicking here (.pdf).

1. How would you greet someone in Latin?
2. Explain to your parents how long ago the Ancient Romans lived.
3. What is different about how you say the letter "v" in Latin?
4. How are Roman names similar to our modern names? How are they different?
5. Can you list the different members of your family, using Latin words?

1. Tell your family two foods or colors you learned in Latin, and explain two English words that come from these Latin words.
2. If you have a pet, what is the Latin word for your pet?
3. What did the Romans usually eat? How did they usually eat?
4. Name three foods the Romans did not have.
5. Based on what you learned today, do you think you would enjoy living in Ancient Rome? Why or why not? Ask your family what they think, too.

1. How many oculi do you have? How many dentes?
2. Can you think of any English words that come from the Latin words for the parts of the body?
3. Explain to your family what knucklebones are, and what they were used for in Ancient Rome.
4. How did the Romans use games to bring people together? Do you play any games that make you feel closer as a family?

1. Why do you think the Romans built so many roads?
2. How are the Romans' roads similar to our modern roads?
3. Describe the geography of Italy to your family. What would you find there? Hint: Think candy!
4. What do you think the people living in the Roman provinces thought of Rome? Do you think they had ever been there? Why or why not?

1. Explain to your family what a military standard was. Why were standards important, and what did they represent?
2. Pretend you're a Roman general. What would you do to try to be a good leader? What do you think makes a good leader?
3. Today we cleaned Roman coins. What kind of person do you think first owned your coin? What might that have used it for?
4. Ancient Roman coins and military standards had symbols on them. What kind of symbols do we have today? What do they represent?

1. Explain to your parents who Odysseus was and what he was well-known for.
2. How did the Romans bathe? How was their way of bathing different from most modern people's?
3. If you were a student in Ancient Rome, what would you write on? Would you like to use the Ancient Romans' writing materials? Why or why not?
4. Can you and your family think of some places where you have seen modern inscriptions?

1. Explain to your family the differences between frescoes and mosiacs: how are they made and what do they look like?
2. Can you think of places where you have seen mosaics in your everyday life?
3. Today we saw a lot of pictures of real Roman art. What types of things or people did the Romans put in their art?
4. How is Roman art similar to art today? How is it different?

1. If you lived in Ancient Rome, what would you wear?
2. If you saw someone wearing a toga, what information could you figure out about him? Can you think of any modern clothes that might say something about the person wearing them?
3. See if your family can you figure out this math problem: II + VI + IX = ____
   Help them out if they have trouble! What would be the Latin numbers for these Roman numerals?

1. Explain to your family what the Romans thought the gods ate and drank.
2. If you saw a picture of a god or goddess, what in the picture might tell you which god or goddess it was?
3. Why do you think they Romans prayed to so many different gods and goddesses? Do you think Roman religion is very different from religion today?
4. What was one interesting thing that you learned about the Ancient Romans in LatinSummer? Tell you family what it was, and why you found it so interesting.