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Latin being very old has a lot of history, and is still interconnected with a lot of things today. Above are some fun facts about Latin and how it has affected the present.

One of the many reasons WHHS is so unique is because students who enter in seventh or eighth grade are required to take a minimum of three years of Latin. Students new to the school in ninth grade or above are required to take one year of Latin to fulfill the requirement. Because of this, students have varying opinions on the classical education requirements.

Natalie Smith, ‘29, is in Latin One and really enjoys it.

Smith, because of her teacher, feels she will be prepared to take on Latin Two.

“I like my teacher, and I feel he really engages with the students,” Smith said.

Smith began Latin One with some prior knowledge of noun endings and derivatives because her siblings had already taken Latin classes.

Claudia Zilliox, ‘27, is in Latin Three and thinks Latin is confusing at times and that the teacher you have affects your experience.

“I’ve had okay Latin teachers in the past, and I like the one I have now so it makes it better,” Zilliox said

Zilliox wants to take Spanish at some point because she thinks it would be easier to learn than Latin.

“I know that a lot of colleges have you learn Spanish, so I feel like it’d be easier in college, maybe a little bit more than Latin,” Zilliox said.

Zilliox and Smith both agree with the Latin requirement.

“Latin is confusing but I get why they have it because it is useful to learn a language, especially one that is harder to learn.”

Devlin Kennedy, ‘26, is in Latin Four AA Poetry and thinks Latin is really fun.

“Overall, I feel like it’s a really enjoyable experience,” Kennedy said. “I think it’s really interesting and a great [subject].”

Kennedy feels at home with the classics community, has attended a classics convention and plans to take AP Latin next year.

“Outside of the school, Latin is a great community,” Kennedy said. “The classics people are just so nice. [They] got me into a community when I didn’t really have any friends,” Kennedy said.

Kennedy is looking forward to going on the trip to Italy but hopes it is not underwhelming.

“I don’t really know what to expect, I’m excited to see other cultures because that is something I find interesting,” Kennedy said.

Kennedy also supports the Latin requirement.

“I personally really enjoy it, I couldn’t really think of any other languages that we would really need,” Kennedy said.