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I'd like to teach my children Latin. However, I've never taken a Latin class, so I'll need to learn it as well. It would probably work well if I stay one or two lessons ahead of the children, so I can answer their questions as they learn, etc.
Have any of you taken Latin? What books/software/whatever would you reccommend?
A lot of the time, a variety of different foreign language texts are published in the same style by the same publisher. If you've taken a different language, which text did you use? Was it effective? Did you enjoy it?
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Wheelock Latin - fabulous Latin textbook. I retaught Latin to myself after a year and a half break caused me to forget everything.
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I loved Latin. I never got to use it, but check out Minimus! I hear it's a really successful way to get started with elementary school kids (not sure how old yours are). It can introduce the basics, and from there, you can go on to a more conventional Latin text and possibly workbook.
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OK, Boon, I have an idea. I will have to run it by my dad, though. He is retiring after 45 years of teaching this year. He has already started to worry about his next job. I am quite sure he will end up teaching somewhere else, either as a sub or tutor.
Anyway, I think he would think it was really fun to tutor you and your kids over the Internet. (free) He has taught Latin off and on over all those years, also English and US History.
Let me know what you think about this idea before ask him. I think it would be the cutest thing ever.
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I think it would be really good for kids to learn latin, I took it in high school and had issues that probably would have helped had we been explained teeny bits in elementary school (this is not to turn into a "well school funding" thing)
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The Minimus program is designed for non-specialist teachers and for kids 7-10. Minimus Secundus picks up after that from 10-13. I think I will look into it for my kids when they're that age.
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Free tutoring? I'd be an idiot not to take you up on that. If he doesn't want to do it, that's okay...but it sounds AWESOME!
Thanks all for your input so far...I guess I just need to shop for some books. I'm going to the book depository later this week to see what they have (for free!).
If I can't find anything there, I'll probably be looking at buying some textbooks, workbooks, and maybe some audiobooks or something in Latin.
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I am really likign the Minimus site! I had pretty much decided I needed to find a Latin tutor becuas the idea of learning and teaching it is so intimidating...this looks easy and even fairly affordable!!
But, it looks like it has to be ordered from the UK.
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You can use this as an incentive. I got it for my cousin who is taking Latin (in high school).
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Hey! eBay has Minimus Pupil's Book and Minimus Secundus at "buy it now" for $11.97 each. Be sure to check on shipping & handling prices as well, though.
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I was always a fan of Winnie Ille Pu. That's how I kept my Latin up over the summer each year. Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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Side note: who knew there were so many Latin freaks on Hatrack? Were any of you in the JCL? Those are my favorite HS memories-- in fact, some of the only really good ones I have.
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But in the interest of being on-topic... I'm learning out of Wheelock right now. I'm not terribly fond of its organization, but it's far from the worst foreign language text I've ever used (and yes, there have been a lot). I think I've heard worse things about Oxford, though.
Ah, well. After this semester, I start reading "real" Latin. But Greek is still better.
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Oh, Matthew would love Harrius Potter! As long as some one besides me gives it to him; he won't read books I suggest or give to him. I buy him cool books, give them to the neighbor boy, and have him hand them down to Matthew. Then he loves them.
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We were all about the conventions. We went to SCRAM every year, as well as the Western conference (living in the LA area, we didn't have to do fundraisers or anything to attend, just get parents to drive and pay about $10 each. I made costumes for us each year for toga day, so we wouldn't be going around in sheets, and we had t-shirts made. (Other people made fun of our authentic Roman dress, but the organizers saw it and gave us a special recognition award. So there.) We were a small enough branch that we each had a customized t-shirt with our name on it, and one of the girls had a dad who was a graphic artist, and he designed the shirts for us. It so rocked. And my brother still has the "fresco" I made him with a "Roman-style" alien on it. Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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And then there was the year that two of the boys did an English/Latin rap about being in Latin Club and the JCL for the "gong show". You should have seen the look on the teacher's face when she asked what they were arguing about, and found out it was what the best translation of "mofo" was... She was from Germany, and used to swear at the class in German when she got really mad. Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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I think a good grounding in both Latin and Greek roots, if nothing else, is essential. I'm planning to do English from the Roots Up next year, and I have been told from teenagers who used that course that it makes the verbal portion of SAT much easier.
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For Latin, I'd have to say Wheelock as well, mostly because it's the only one I've used. I found it easy to follow though. There's a good website from U of Victoria with quizzes etc. based on the Wheelock scheme that we used along with the book in my class. I found it really helpful for studying.
(However, I must add that I agree with Carrie in that Greek is most definitely where it's at. Nice to have company, Carrie! I believe I'm still the only person in my entire University that prefers Greek over Latin. It's so much more fun and interesting. And I also really dislike the sound of Classical Latin.)
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Not to distract from latin, but I've been looking to learn Japanese, anybody know a good book or maybe some website I could learn from? everything i've found is just basic 2 page introductions for you to pay outrageous sums of money to buy some course.
(Figured I could save some space and throw this in here)
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If it were me, I think I'd take six weeks to get myself ramped up on Latin before starting the kids. I took four years of Latin in High School. The thing is, adults are actually better at picking up language (apart from pronunciation) than children. Don't limit yourself to the same lesson pace they are going at.
Also, if you are determined to teach them Latin and Spanish, maybe you should do a year of Spanish first and then do the Latin. Depends, how well do you know Spanish?
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Without even asking what Kama means to suck, I'll just say that the only meaning for "Kamui" I know of is "god" or "gods" in the Ainu language.
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It's sort of a dream of mine to learn to speak Latin fluently, then marry a woman who can also speak it fluently, and raise our children to be bilingual so that English and Latin are both their native languages.
I wonder how you say "major dork" in Latin. . . .
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There's a Living Latin program in Rome or somewhere thereabouts. It's taught by a monk. You have to pass entrance tests to get in, but once you do, it's free, you just pay for your airfare and such. It's every summer, I believe, very intensive, for several weeks. You have to have something like the equivalent of 2 years of college Latin or about 4 of HS to pass the tests, I've heard, but it's awesome, absolutely awesome.
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There's also a Classics department here that only speaks Latin. I think it's Kentucky, but I'm not positive on that.
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The University of Kentucky Classical Department holds a week-long summer convention where only Latin is spoken. As far as learning it, the Minimus series looks great for kids. I wish I had used it. You can also get Dr. Seuss in Latin, which is a little strange because he makes up half of his English words to begin with. I have Virent Ova Viret Perna (Green Eggs and Ham), which is fun even if I've never seen any of the words from it in my more classical Latin.
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Boon, My dad is in! He loved the idea of online tutoring, and even wants to start a website. (keep in mind that he has only recently figured out how to generate his own email.) So, email me(edob63@yahoo.com) and I will hook you guys up.
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Liz, let me know if he actually gets a website started. As soon as I get the money together, I am going to get the Minimus curriculum.
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I love Latin. Ahh.. language of the Eternal City! My friend Joey and I got our college to open up a Latin course when we found out they didn't offer it. They said "just find 6 students who want it and we'll get a professor". I think 100 signed up in the end. Posts: 4953 | Registered: Jan 2004
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I used Wheelock's Latin. You can buy the workbook to go along with it, and it has a companion book of short Latin stories. Also, you can find oodles of drill and quiz sites out there.
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We used the workbook in my HS class. It's pretty well done for a standard workbook. It's about what dittoes would be if we'd used them instead, but in workbook form.
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Just had to chime in: another Wheelock's fan here. There were something like three years between when I took my first semester of Latin and the second semester, and I actually did better in the second semester. It also helped that I had a great teacher the second semester.
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Free tutoring? I'd be an idiot not to take you up on that. If he doesn't want to do it, that's okay...but it sounds AWESOME!![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
Go to Amazon and search "Minimus", and you'll come up with several matches.![[Smile]](smile.gif)
I got it for my cousin who is taking Latin (in high school).
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I buy him cool books, give them to the neighbor boy, and have him hand them down to Matthew. Then he loves them.
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I suck.
