When pupils study Latin at Runnymede they do not just learn the language of the Romans but study the way they lived too. The Cambridge Latin Course skilfully manages to interweave Latin grammar and Roman life. There are the inevitable exercises to practise the language, but great emphasis is also placed on stories in Latin which depict more or less real Romans; and every few pages there are sections devoted entirely to different aspects of a civilisation sometimes very distant from our own - and sometimes strangely similar.

I am pleased that over the year many pupils have had a chance to develop their experience of the ancient world further. Apart from extra work on topics from Roman history to help pupils to understand better the remarkable development of Rome, and some excellent videos and DVDs mostly produced by the BBC, classical trips and plays have been significant this year.

The Cambridge Latin course has very few references to Roman Hispania, but Year 7 pupils on the three-day visit to Mérida gain first-hand knowledge of what the Romans were like and what they achieved, seeing, for example, not only the famous places of entertainment, but also the more mundane private houses and the different elements of the all-important water supply.

This year there were two Year 9 plays. 9F performed Odysseus’ Return in early February, a shortened version of Homer’s Odyssey, and in May 9G put on Jason and the Argonauts - and Medea, an even more condensed version of the legend of the search for the Golden Fleece. Both involved drama, comedy, and dance. The pupils - and the teachers and friends helping - worked hard to produce two excellent shows.

As in many recent years there was a trip for the Year 10 Latin group to Italy, to visit the sites of the Bay of Naples. A group of 15 visited, principally, Pompeii and Herculaneum, with trips to Capri as well and to the amphitheatre at Pozzuoli and the volcanic Solfatara . They also managed to learn some Italian and eat large quantities of pizza, pasta and ice-cream.

The GCSE involves Roman life work based Pompeii - and this year’s trip will stand them in good stead next year. However, the GCSE and A-level courses are mainly about Latin language and literature. The pupils have coped well with the more difficult language work, the different books of Virgil’s Aeneid, and the dramatic account of the death of Pliny the Elder - as he attempted to rescue people from the eruption of Mount Vesuvius which buried Pompeii.

Translation from English into Latin is now generally regarded as an occasional exercise to improve understanding of grammar, but it is unusual to attempt this harder discipline as an element of the A-level. It was very pleasing therefore that Alex Magub, this year’s only A2 student, decided to take this challenging option - and learnt so much about the language as a result. Her interest in the subject and her technical help with the Year 9 plays over so many years will be much missed!