Atrium Latin
Formatting Assignments
Welcome to our Wheelock Study Groups provided under the auspices of the LatinStudy list. These courses are aimed at anyone who wants to study Latin on their own, but still have some support available for when the going gets tough. The coordinator of these Atrium Latin groups is David Meadows, who has taught Latin at various universities in the past as well as in another on line situation, and currently teaches in an elementary school in southern Ontario (not Latin, alas).
If you are interested in 'signing up' and participating, please work your way through the menu on the right. It's probably best to begin the on Frequently Asked Questions page.
Because of the potentially large number of participants, it is necessary for some standards to be imposed on how assignments are sent to me for processing. Please ensure you follow these instructions 'to the letter'. First, the basic email stuff:
1. Assignments will be due according to the group's schedule (see link on the
right for details). On the day after they're due, I'll collate them and send
them out, along with a link to the template for the next assignment. You can
send your assignments in before the due date.
2. Send your assignment directly to me at atriumlatin@gmail.com ... do not send assignments to the list.
3. Please ensure that your email bears the appropriate subject line (e.g. Atrium
Latin Themis) or it might get caught in my spam filter. The schedule page for
your group will clarify what your subject line should be (I also remind you in
the
template).
Collation of everyone's assignments involves a lot of cutting and pasting on my part, so it is necessary (for my sanity!) for the assignments themselves to be formatted in a certain way:
1. First, choose a set of initials which will identify you; if your name was John Q. Republic, JQR would be an appropriate triad. Since I'll also be providing a translation for you to compare yours with, but want mine to be at the end of everyone else's, I'm reserving ZZZ to designate myself (no, I'm not snoozing!).
2. There are a number of kinds of exercises in Wheelock which we'll be doing, each of which will have its own abbreviation, i.e.:
* SA = "Sententiae Antiquae". Sentences from ancient Latin authors (usually
adapted ... in the first chapter, they're only called 'Sententiae' for some
reason)
* PR = "Practice and Review". Latin sentences designed to further reinforce concepts learned in the lesson (these begin in Chapter 3)
* TR = "Translation". At the end of each section of exercises in Wheelock there is usually a longer section of Latin (again, adapted from an ancient author) which will regularly be part of the assignment.
The SA and PR are numbered in the text; the TR are not, but the template will give you an idea how to format those. In any event, suppose my answer to the first SA question in a weekly assignment is:
Libertas inaestimabilis res est.
I would format the answer as follows:
SA 01 ZZZ Libertas inaestimabilis res est.
The SA refers to the type of exercise, the 01 the question number, the ZZZ are
my initials, and finally my answer. Yes, every answer has to be prefixed accordingly
-- when I send out my weekly assignment, I'll include a template which will make
this a bit easier for you.
Please avoid adding colons (:) or extra spacing; it often messes up the 'sorting'.
Please do not send your assignment as an attachment;
include it in the body of your email without any formatting (if you do your work
in Word, e.g., save it as a text file, then cut and paste it into your email
program). The 'without formatting' part is important as well; again, please try
to
ensure that you don't put in extraneous tab stops or carriage returns.
There is no need to include titles or (as other Latin Study groups might)
an END command. Here is a 'longer' example of the formatting of an atypical
assignment
which
includes all three categories of question. The fictional student has the initials
XY
Here is an edited example of a Wheelock assignment from someone whose initials have been changed to XY (this example was taken from one of the other LatinStudy Wheelock groups and adjusted to the formatting I prefer):
PR 01 XY I never know something before having heard it.
PR 02 XY You did hot help that speaker seeking an end of wars and evil deeds.
PR 03 XY The sure fruits of peace were desired by the terrified common people
and even by the senate.
PR 04 XY Which great-hearted man will free other peoples from the heavy hand
of servitude?
SA 01 XY You will live suppressed by my guards.
SA 02 XY Those men, however, extending their right hands, were pleading for life.
SA 03 XY Tantalus, thirsty, was desiring to touch the rivers fleeing from his
lips.
SA 04 XY Signs of things about to be are displayed to the world by the gods.
TR 01 XY Overwhelmed by a long war and turned away by the gods, the leaders of
the Greeks, now after ten years, made a great horse of wood by the art of Minerva.
TR 02 XY They fill it up with many soldiers, leave the horse on the shore, and
sail to a nearby island.
TR 03 XY All Troy rejoices; the gates are opened.
If all that sounds complicated, it isn't ... the template makes it an easy task. Indeed, if you want to work ahead (or if I haven't sent out the link to the next template yet) you can download whichever one you're due to do next from the templates page or from the page with the schedule of your group.