Academics: Foreign Language

At New Hope Academy, we believe that the study of foreign language trains the brain in a powerful way!

Beginning in pre-school students are immediately exposed to foreign language study using Spanish.  Students learn much of the basic vocabulary of the language.  This includes numbers, greetings, colors, the names of animals, the names of family members, and objects around the home and classroom.  Students learn basic phrases they can use with friends and family.  By second grade, they begin to learn basic Spanish grammar and are able to construct their own small sentences.  With these skills they can develop beginning conversations with their friends. 

In third grade, students begin studying Latin.  The Latin course of study at New Hope Academy seeks to provide students with an historical, syntactical, inflectional, and purposeful understanding of the language arts. Because Latin significantly improves verbal skills, mathematical reasoning powers, and strengths in other academic areas, we view Latin as a foundational aspect of our classical program. Since Spanish is, by some estimates, 90% Latin, the vocabulary learned in the early years transfers easily to Latin study.  Each year, the students will learn five to six hundred words in Latin as well as the grammar necessary to master this ancient language.

By the time students leave New Hope, they should be able to read on an intermediate level in Latin, parse and diagram complex English sentences, and draw the meaning out of hundreds of difficult English words based on their knowledge of Latin.
 
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