Mr. Matthew D. Webb (301) 249-5000 ext. 454 mwebb@queenanne.org Courses Taught: Latin I-A (6th Grade) Latin I-B (7th & 8th Grade) World Mythology (8th Grade) Exploring the Roman World (3rd - 5th Grade; Summer Camp) Public Speaking (8th Grade) Math 7 (7th Grade)

Background
 

I, Mr. Matthew Webb, am a Prince George's County native who began my study of Latin in middle school. Thanks to inspiring teachers, I decided then that I would be a teacher. I continued with my Latin studies under the legendary Linda Squier at Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt. Thanks to Ms. Squier's passion for her subject, I knew it was Latin that I would teach.

As I learned more about the Greco-Roman world at the University of Maryland, this interest was solidified. While at Maryland (GO TERPS! - ITE TESTUDINES!), I also studied Italian, ancient Greek, Egyptian and Near-Eastern mythology, and environmental science (achieving a minor in the latter).

Some of my most memorable experiences spurred from a five-month residence abroad at the American University of Rome. With my small apartment in the Monteverde section of Rome as a base, I traveled extensively throughout Italy, and was able to study Classical history, art, architecture, archaeology, and literature, on-site.

I also serve as Director of the Augusta County Institute for Classical Studies, an organization dedicated to promoting Latin & the Classics among elementary school children, and I chair the Excellence Through Classics Committee, the national board overseeing and encouraging Classics at the elementary and middle school levels. I am active professionally, frequently attending and presenting at educational conferences. In addition, I consider being named Outstanding Maryland Classicist in 2000 my highest professional honor.

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Interests
 

 I. New directions in the teaching of Latin at the elementary and middle school levels.

• Create lessons and activities for elementary and middle school Classics/Latin study.
• Develop annotated Latin readings of various time periods and topics that can be integrated into the lower level Latin class. Click for a sample of Mr. Webb's work in this field.
• Explore tactile and kinesthetic methods for teaching and reviewing Latin grammar and vocabulary.

II. Interdisciplinary studies.

• How do Latin and Classics relate to science, math, geography, music, drama, literature, word power?
• Develop curriculum materials investigating this topic.

III. Environmental and agricultural problems of the ancient Greeks and Romans.

• Develop interdisciplinary curriculum materials that explore this topic. Click for a sample of Mr. Webb's work in this field.

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Professional Activities
 

American Classical League, Member

American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages, Member

Augusta County Institute for Classical Studies, Director & Workshop for Teachers Coordinator

Classical Association of the Atlantic States, Member

Classical Association of Virginia, Member

Excellence Through Classics for Elementary and Middle Levels, Chair

Exploratory Latin Exam Committee, Member

Medusa Mythology Exam Committee, Founder and Member

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Why Study Latin and the Classics?
 

Part I: Story

"Latin is a dead language, dead as it can be. First it killed the Romans, now it's killing me!" This song used to describe many students' beliefs and fears about the Latin language. However, today we are seeing a great revival in the teaching of Latin (and, by necessity, the teaching of Classics, the study of all aspects of the world in which the ancient Romans lived).

More and more parents, teachers, and students recognize the benefits of learning about the ancient world. Aside from the often-heard argument that knowledge of the Latin language raises SAT scores, studies have illuminated the positive effects that Latin has on reading, vocabulary, and math skills, as well as critical thinking and grade point averages. In fact, Latin has also been shown to advance students in such wide and varying fields as world knowledge, spelling, science, and social studies.

Part of the Classics' far reaching impact is its unique position as a truly interdisciplinary field. Not only do students learn the language, which by itself can vastly improve their English grammar and vocabulary skills, but they also become immersed in ancient culture, history, technology, philosophy, and mythology. All are areas that have profoundly shaped the development of the Western world. Latin and the Classics can easily be viewed as the bedrock of a true education - students develop a better understanding and appreciation of their modern world through investigations into the world of the past.
 
 

Part II: The Coolness Factor

You too can jump on the bandwagon and be cool like these people who majored in Latin or Classics in college.
 
 

Part III: The Latin Advantage

Check out this hard data if you're still not convinced!
 
 

Part IV: The College Admissions Process

Examine the American Classical League Survey of more than 1,500 colleges and universities. Yes, they accept Latin, and yes, many of them prefer it!
 
 

Part V: The Dissenters

The philosopher Benjamin Rush, however, would like to share some amusing and certainly misguided words of disagreement.

 "Many sprightly young boys of excellent capacities for useful knowledge, have been so disgusted with the dead languages as to retreat from the drudgery of schools, to low company, whereby they have become bad members of society, and entailed misery upon all who have been connected to them." - 1789

 "Were every Greek and Latin book (the New Testament excepted) consumed in a bonfire, the world would be the wiser and better for it ... delenda, delenda est lingua Romana ... should be the voice of reason and liberty and humanity in every part of the world." - 1810