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Should my 9th &10th grader take an introductory Latin before Wheelock's?


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Wheelocks though is a fast paced, college textbook.  It throws a ton at you right away.  It is very well done and thorough but it can be very daunting if you have no background in language.  Lots of memorization of both vocabulary and grammar.  Just a warning!  

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Wheelocks though is a fast paced, college textbook.  It throws a ton at you right away.  It is very well done and thorough but it can be very daunting if you have no background in language.  Lots of memorization of both vocabulary and grammar.  Just a warning!  

Do you happened to have any recommendations before we begin Wheelock's?  I will be doing Latina Christiana with my younger children.  Would it help the olders as a primer?  Thanks!

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Well, Latina Christiana certainly won't hurt.  But it is just a teeny, weeny bit of what they'll be charging into. Still, it will help to get them acclimated for sure.  The other thing I'd recommend is to watch these very excellent tutorials, which will give them a great intro to the different terms and topics they'll be learning.  If they have some foreknowledge about how nouns decline and what that means and all the various tenses and moods and voices, they'll at least be able to see some of the big picture while they are studying the mechanics.  The nice thing about Wheelocks is it keeps the translations interesting and based on real Latin/Roman writings.  It is very cleverly done, which makes it enjoyable even if challenging.

 

Latin Tutorials

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If you really want to do an intro program prior to starting Wheelock's, the most efficient would be GSWL.  If you spend a decent chunk of time per day, as you would with Wheelock's, you'd be through GSWL in no time, e.g. at 40 min per day, I'd estimate 2 months.

 

You may want to consider how much you'd need to get through of Wheelock's (or anything else, for that matter) in order to award a credit.

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As stated above, Wheelock's is designed to take someone with no background in Latin, and teach them almost all of the grammar needed to read real Latin.  Many high school and college students use it every year.  The whole book is 40 chapters.  Completing the book is good for 2 semesters of college Latin credit, or 2 years of high school credit.  Completing about the first 20 chapters is sufficient for one high school credit.

 

Is there a lot of memorization?  Yes, but any Latin program (or any foreign language, really), is going to require a lot of memorization in the first two years.  No amount of easing into it, will lessen that truth.  If you wanted to go slowly, you could do the whole book over four years, granting 2 credits total, I suppose.

 

My recommendation is to just go for it, and dive right it.  Learning languages is hard work if you aren't a toddler.

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Forty chapters may seem daunting, but the instruction for each chapter's concept is really concise. There just happens to be a load of exercises per chapter, but the reading material is clear and surprisingly brief. It's actually easy reading. But if you don't memorize, it's going to be painful after chapter 20.

 

DD had a Latin background before using Wheelock (via Henle) so for the first half of the book, which is year 1 at Lukeion, she didn't have to work too hard at all. She just had to learn new vocabulary, but she already knew almost every grammar concept. Year 2 is a bit different now. The student really has to have memorized everything or it starts avalanching; I can see someone just giving up because after a while those conjugations kind of look the same if you don't recognize them immediately.

 

At a high school level, I would just start with Wheelock's. The key is to have good, consistent study skills and memorize. Make sure that each chapter is already memorized before moving on to chapter 2 and so on.

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Forty chapters may seem daunting, but the instruction for each chapter's concept is really concise. There just happens to be a load of exercises per chapter, but the reading material is clear and surprisingly brief. It's actually easy reading. But if you don't memorize, it's going to be painful after chapter 20.

 

DD had a Latin background before using Wheelock (via Henle) so for the first half of the book, which is year 1 at Lukeion, she didn't have to work too hard at all. She just had to learn new vocabulary, but she already knew almost every grammar concept. Year 2 is a bit different now. The student really has to have memorized everything or it starts avalanching; I can see someone just giving up because after a while those conjugations kind of look the same if you don't recognize them immediately.

 

At a high school level, I would just start with Wheelock's. The key is to have good, consistent study skills and memorize. Make sure that each chapter is already memorized before moving on to chapter 2 and so on.

How are did dd go into Henle before she went to Lukeion Latin? We are almost done with Unit 5 of Henle 1. I am considering Lukeion Latin 1 for ds13.8.
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In-depth grammar knowledge is also important.

 

When I was teaching Latin 2 locally with Helne, the #1 barrier to them was that. They were always tripping up in indirect versus direct objects and adjectives versus adverbs, among other things. They REALLY struggled with grammar and none of them were ready for Latin 3 at the end IMHO. The vocabulary wasn't the issue.

 

Lukeion requires a grammar test before taking their Latin 1.

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In-depth grammar knowledge is also important.

 

When I was teaching Latin 2 locally with Helne, the #1 barrier to them was that. They were always tripping up in indirect versus direct objects and adjectives versus adverbs, among other things. They REALLY struggled with grammar and none of them were ready for Latin 3 at the end IMHO. The vocabulary wasn't the issue.

 

Lukeion requires a grammar test before taking their Latin 1.

We have been doing Rod and Staff English up to 7 and 8. Dc have a good grasp of adj, adv, DO and ID, especially ds11. I might have ds13 sign up for Lukeion Latin 1a for a semester. Otherwise we will just plug along with Henle Unit 6 on. I do want outside expert teacher for their Latin, though I really enjoy learning and teaching them myself very much!
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How are did dd go into Henle before she went to Lukeion Latin? We are almost done with Unit 5 of Henle 1. I am considering Lukeion Latin 1 for ds13.8.

 

DD has a knack for languages, so we started Latin at a younger age than most people. She was enrolled in Lukeion at 9 but she was well ready for Wheelock's because she had already completed 2/3 of Henle. It's not so much the age but whether the child has the grammar foundation and the maturity to handle the workload. I don't completely understand it, but DD works much harder for the Barrs than for any other teacher. You really need to have a motivated kid for Latin 2 and beyond. I would never let DD continue at Lukeion if she didn't practically beg me to enroll and pay before the seats were all taken. 

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We have been doing Rod and Staff English up to 7 and 8. Dc have a good grasp of adj, adv, DO and ID, especially ds11. I might have ds13 sign up for Lukeion Latin 1a for a semester. Otherwise we will just plug along with Henle Unit 6 on. I do want outside expert teacher for their Latin, though I really enjoy learning and teaching them myself very much!

 

That's good. Grammar is key.

 

Both of mine did Henle Book 1 in 7th-8th, then Wheelock's. My oldest went through AP Latin with Amy Barr and scored a "5." My younger one transferred over to Classic Academic Press and went through Latin 4 with them.  

 

Even having done the Henle part with them and teaching with a group through Helne Book 2, I felt better about outsourcing beyond that. I was having to look up too much!

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DD has a knack for languages, so we started Latin at a younger age than most people. She was enrolled in Lukeion at 9 but she was well ready for Wheelock's because she had already completed 2/3 of Henle. It's not so much the age but whether the child has the grammar foundation and the maturity to handle the workload. I don't completely understand it, but DD works much harder for the Barrs than for any other teacher. You really need to have a motivated kid for Latin 2 and beyond. I would never let DD continue at Lukeion if she didn't practically beg me to enroll and pay before the seats were all taken.

Did dd go on to Lukeion Latin 2? How did she do with it? Is she still with Lukeion or is she doing another Latin? I am curious that several people say that their dc work hard willingly for Mrs. Barr. That is some quality in teachers that I want for my dc. :-)
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Did dd go on to Lukeion Latin 2? How did she do with it? Is she still with Lukeion or is she doing another Latin? I am curious that several people say that their dc work hard willingly for Mrs. Barr. That is some quality in teachers that I want for my dc. :-)

Dd did finish Latin 2. It was harder for sure in that Dd did have to work for an A because the latter half of Wheelock's is harder. Latin 1 is relatively easy for her because of Henle. She made me enroll her for Latin 3 with Mrs. Barr.

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