Spring Bulletin 2012 - The Park School

tional crafts in Ecuador, sports in the Dominican
Republic, travel in Argentina, and rural life in
Costa Rica. A highlight for every eighth grade
language student is a class lunch in the spring.
French students and teachers enjoy lunch at Petit
Robert Bistro, Latin students dine at Pomodoro,
Spanish students learn about the tradition of
eating tapas at Taberna de Haro in Brookline,
and beginning next year, Mandarin students will
enjoy Chinese cuisine.
Cultural studies are equally essential to
the Mandarin curriculum. Students read about
Chinese art and history and report on modern
Chinese cities as well as current events. To gain
more appreciation for Chinese holidays and celebrations,
Mulian invites Mandarin-speaking
children from the Lower and Middle Divisions
to share their experiences with her students.
Park’s Mandarin students have also been
exchanging letters with pen pals at our partner
school in Hangzhou.
In Latin, in lieu of speaking, students study
Roman civilization extensively as a component of
their language instruction. In Grade VI, students
encounter vocabulary, syntax, and grammar in
the context of Latin readings set in the town of
Pompeii during the first century A.D. Students
learn about Roman theater, slavery, and the
destruction and excavation of Pompeii. In Latin
II, they continue their study of the ancient language
within the setting of Roman Britain and
Alexandria. “A highlight for each seventh grade
Latin student,” Greg notes, “is researching and
creating a model of one of the Seven Wonders of
the Ancient World.” The completed “Wonders”
are placed on display in the library for all to
admire. Eighth graders focus on Roman religion,
the Roman army, the Jewish Rebellion and
Masada, the topography of Rome, and the social
classes of Roman society. In Grade IX, students
complete the series of connected stories focusing
on life in the Roman world in the first century
A.D. and end the four-year program reading
selections of authentic Latin poetry and prose.
Greg Grote
Latin
When Greg came to Park in
1987, he taught a joint Grade VI
English/Social Studies class and
two Latin classes. The following
year, he assumed his current role
of Latin Department head, and
began crafting Park’s current
Latin curriculum. First, he consolidated
the “regular” and
“honors” sections into one
heterogeneous level per grade,
simultaneously streamlining
the assorted materials into the
Cambridge Latin course for all
four years. Then, he developed a
trip for Latin students to visit the
ancient Roman sites in England,
moving the trip to Italy in 1994.
Greg studied Latin and English at
the University of North Carolina,
where he earned an AB, and a
MA in classics from the University
of Washington. Today, he teaches
four sections of Latin and serves
as a sixth grade advisor.
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