That's a big help Ester and thanks! I should have mentioned that she's had a year of grammar and a second one of reader, but I hear you on the Xenophon (how I learned) and Herodotus, who I hadn't considered. Since your mention of Alcestis chimes with a reply I got from HG on a different WTM thread, I'm gonna give that a shot first and keep the other two close by for fallbacks. Thank you so much for your thoughtful reply!

Ach, that's •exactly• what I was hoping for! Thank you so much HG!!!

Hello good boardfolks! I've always had incredible luck with you guys and thanks... I have a young classical Greek student who's ready for some literature, and I very much want to get her into a play as opposed to, say, Xenophon (she's a lot more excited when she's reading a part or parts aloud -- that goes for English too). I'd be very grateful for any help or the suggestion of a title. For us at this point the ease of reading is most important -- comedy or tragedy is fine and we're not squeamish about subject matter. The kid is pretty well steeped in the mythology & heroic stories of the period (through d'Aulaire and the Greek reader Thrasymachus), but she probably wouldn't pick up the more obscure references of Aristophanes for instance (nor would her father). Aeschylus I've always heard is supremely difficult, and Euripides easier?? Help!!! (and thanks!) Tim

Hello good boardfolks! I've always had incredible luck with you guys and thanks... I have a young classical Greek student who's ready for some literature, and I very much want to get her into a play as opposed to, say, Xenophon (she's a lot more excited when she's reading a part or parts aloud -- that goes for English too). I'd be very grateful for any help or the suggestion of a title. For us at this point the ease of reading is most important -- comedy or tragedy is fine and we're not squeamish about subject matter. The kid is pretty well steeped in the mythology & heroic stories of the period (through d'Aulaire and the Greek reader Thrasymachus), but she probably wouldn't pick up the more obscure references of Aristophanes for instance (nor would her father). Aeschylus I've always heard is supremely difficult, and Euripides easier?? Help!!! (and thanks!) Tim

Hello good boardfolks! I've always had incredible luck with you guys and thanks... I have a young classical Greek student who's ready for some literature, and I very much want to get her into a play as opposed to, say, Xenophon (she's a lot more excited when she's reading a part or parts aloud -- that goes for English too). I'd be very grateful for any help or the suggestion of a title. For us at this point the ease of reading is most important -- comedy or tragedy is fine and we're not squeamish about subject matter. The kid is pretty well steeped in the mythology & heroic stories of the period (through d'Aulaire and the Greek reader Thrasymachus), but she probably wouldn't pick up the more obscure references of Aristophanes for instance (nor would her father). Aeschylus I've always heard is supremely difficult, and Euripides easier?? Help!!! (and thanks!) Tim

About three years (since she was three) just basically lumped the time in with English. I'm only ok with the language, lots of mistakes, but father & daughter sure do love it so far. I've gotta credit Thrasymachus for moving her at a pace faster than I could ever have hoped for. It's a Greek reader in dialogue format with a great story, a boy's trip through Hades Dante-style. The interest never wanes.

You're absolutely right, I totally spaced Athenaze! Great for older kids imho and a better choice for the teaching parent than my recc of Mastronarde. Thanks Laura!

You're right that virtually all Greek instruction published today for kids is Koine. Almost all the Attic books I listed above are ~50-100 years old, when Attic Greek took pride of place even over Latin for college-bound kids. They're all quite good & maybe geared for beginners a little older, say 8-10. I also agree with a previous poster that knowledge of Attic makes Koine a breeze, no additional study necessary.

Assuming Attic Greek since allearia said secular... We're going that route too and I highly recommend "Thrasymachus" by Peckett & Munday, long out of print. There's an online study guide to the book that's really great & comprehensive. For you as a parent teacher I'd add "Introduction to Attic Greek" by Mastronarde (who teaches at Berkeley btw). Is Cody's Books still there on Telegraph? They have a wonderful Attic Greek section. Also "A Greek Boy at Home," available for download from Google Books. A guy in Australia teaches from that text in a great series of podcasts. Also on Google Books is "A Greek Ollendorff," geared for kids. Finally the Yahoo boards, which often proceed through old intro textbooks like Rouse and classics like Plato etc in weekly manageable bites. I find that Latinists read for their edification and Hellenists for love of the language. The momentum that builds while learning Greek is unlike any other subject imho. Finally "Homeric Greek: A Book for Beginners" by Pharr, which in its intro makes a powerful case for starting kids off with Homer (& *not* Xenophon) after their first Attic grammar. My kid and I start the Iliad in a month, her sixth birthday. :-)

Thank you all so much for your help! It's greatly appreciated!

Because after three years of study Latin helps you *every* day in *every* subject.

I've always hit the jackpot on WTM and thanks for any help on this! I'm looking for the perfect English dictionary for an eight-year-old. Old school and trying to avoid pictures & illustrations, but definitions geared to the young would be a big plus. Cloth bound but small enough for little hands, and ideally the book falls wide open for easy reference. My hunch is that someone has a favorite volume published ~60 years ago to recommend that I can pick up on Abebooks. Thank you so much for any suggestions! Tim

Thank you *so* much Joan for the new information, which I've only just seen this morning. The titles sound like exactly what I was hoping for, and I'll keep an eye out for J'aime lire, Hirondelles and Papillons on Abebooks. For now Mon second livre sounds like just the ticket for my five-year-old, who's almost done with book 1 of Daniel et valerie. There's no budget for travel anytime soon -- I'm sure I'd never leave the used bookstores -- so Mon second livre on Abebooks might be a great start. Will purchase today! (As a newbie I'm not sure how PM works, but my email is the username you'd expect at yahoo dot com.) Thanks so much for taking the trouble to let me know, and very sorry for the delay getting back to you! Tim

I'll also follow up je lis... and joies de lecture, and thanks! Joan the Suisse Romande series sounds intriguing too. Can I ask if the title headings you listed would be specific enough to narrow them down on Abebooks-type searches w/o an ISBN? (I'm worried about getting a similar but unrelated title.) Thanks so much again! Tim G.

Thanks for some wonderful leads CleoQc! Both sites look like just the ticket, and I'm intrigued by 'la comtesse de Ségur' and Alphonse Daudet. Will follow up all and thanks!