Hoping to get some responses in this forum: am looking for prep materials for next year's National Roman Culture Exam. https://www.njcl.org/Online-Exams/National-Roman-Civilization If any of you have tips, websites, recommended books for prep, I would be extremely grateful. My DS has taken the exam in the past after watching the Great Courses videos on Roman culture. I am wondering if any of your kids have taken this exam and what materials they used to study for it. Thanks.

Hi, Does anyone have experience with the Junior Classical League? We are trying to start up a homeschool JCL in our area. I'm looking for ideas and inspiration! There doesn't seem to be much on their website about how to run a successful JCL. I thought it would be helpful to get some ideas on what others have done. Thanks in advance for your help!

I'm defining Latin success as the ability to read unaltered Latin. So you don't have to have hit AP Latin levels or anything - just that you or your student can now pick up a Latin text and read it with understanding. How have actual people managed to achieve the ability to read Latin?

I have a child that will be entering Challenge A in the fall of 2018. It's new to our campus, so all uncharted territory. I have some questions, but would like to ask them anonymously (hence, why I'm asking here, instead of my CC group). 1- I have read online that some families choose to opt out of Latin. If we choose to do this, how exactly do you opt out? For example, if your Challenge A student is on campus one day a week from 9:00-3:30, how do they omit one subject? I can see how this would be possible if Latin was offered at the very end of the day, then you could just pick your child up early. Which brings me to my next question..... 2- For those who have had a child in Challenge A, or tutored.....what is the 9:00-3:30 on "class day" schedule in your area? I'm hoping someone can give me a break down of how time is spent during that one day a week students spend with their tutor. Thank for your time!!!!

I have a 1990 Prentice Hall textbook of Jenney's First Year Latin. Can I use it by itself? I see I can buy a workbook as well from Pearson, but I would need answer guides, as I don't know Latin well. Should I just get rid of it and try a different Latin? This would be for in a few years. I'm guessing this is a high school textbook? We have MP's Latina Christiana 1 to do first. Would this book repeat much of that, or would it make Jenney's easier to do if we did MP's LC1 first? Bottom line: I'm not sure if I should try to use it or just get rid of it and try something else. Thanks for your help.

Hello hive.... We are starting Latin this year, with my 11 and 15 year olds. I was going to go with Visual Latin because I do like the hands off approach! However, I do prefer classical pronunciation. Is there something I could teach daily in 5-10 minutes at morning time that would be a good intro to Latin for two absolute beginners? (I took Latin in highschool and have a facility for languages, but I'd rather have something that is more open and go....without too much self teaching.) Is this a unicorn or is there anything that would fit? Thanks in advance!

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I have 3 kids, all strong personalities. A 7 year old who is a young 3rd grader this year, a 5 year old who is an old kindergartener this year, and a very active 2.5 year old who is very disruptive during schooltime. My 5 and 7 year olds are only 2 years and a few months apart but are 4 grade levels apart because they're each on the other side of the Sept 1 deadline for school. I am an engineer who didn't plan to homeschool but was not happy with the available school choices and I felt my daughter was too young (just turning 5) to start kindergarten. I wish she was in 2nd grade instead of 1st. Even though she does well with her schoolwork, I feel like she's doing too much for her age and that her peer group is too old for her when in activities. I grew up in private Christian school which was nearly exclusively Abeka with upper level Saxon math, and I had 2 years of correspondence Latin in highschool, and there was a lot of poetry memorization and Scripture verse memorization throughout K-12. I was nearly always bored in school, and I thought history was especial drudgery, but I think it was the presentation from Abeka. My children are part of a public correspondence school so we can get funding to cover some of our expenses if the curriculum is secular. So our curriculum... Both kids do Suzuki music, my daughter in violin for 4 years, and my son on cello for 2 years. Both kids take Spanish lessons weekly, and I review lesson content at home when I have time, and read them Spanish books and try to make at least half of our limited TV time in Spanish. I don't have a Spanish curriculum, and while I don't want them to be writing in Spanish yet, I would like a more structured plan. I began my daughter with Logic of English and did too much in the K year, level A, B, and C for my young kindergartener. Also in K, she did Rightstart Math A, and Bookshark Science. We liked Bookshark Science so much that we did Bookshark Science and History in grade 1, switched to Abeka math, which works well for my daughter, and repeated level C and did D for Logic of English. This past year (grade 2), I used Bookshark for Science, History, and Language Arts. I did this because I felt LOE Essentials was too far beyond my daughter with no graphics in the workbooks and the lessons just looked heavy. I also felt that we would save time on the reading since the LA reading was part of the history curriculum. We did continue to use the LOE flashcards and I had her do spelling with the letter tiles. I also got her a level D book to use through the year, but we actually just began D with her summer school and she was so happy to see it again and is actually asking to work in it. It's only about 50 lessons, so we'll probably finish before the main school year season and I was planning to begin LOE Essentials then. BTW, we hated the Bookshark language arts. My daughter hated the weekly writing assignments and could never think of anything to write. For Pre-K, my son was attentive to most of the history and science when graphics were involved. He only occasionally listened to A Child's History of the World. He was/is usually reluctant working through LOE book A (still not done!) but he's more interested now that he and his sister both have similar looking books as she's working in part D. Bookshark history reading was excellent, and my daughter really loved the reading and asks me to read to her. I also enjoyed the reading content, but my voice was usually hoarse every night with so much reading and talking all day long. I want good literature, but I just feel like I can't do the volume/schedule in Bookshark. I also know that I can't do two grade levels of Bookshark. My son won't be ready for level 3 (ages 8-11) and I don't really want to restart my daughter at level 1, though I've considered it. Bookshark science was good, had science kits with everything for experiements and a DVD to demonstrate. The reading was mostly good, I just didn't like one of the recent sections of the Usborne Book of Knowledge spine which had some pretty detailed machine workings which often were too wordy for my daughter. I really like the 4 day week schedule, which gave me some freedom on our lesson day. Abeka math is working well now that I know how to trim the classroom schedule. I also use some Rightstart manipulatives. We did not like Rightstart in K, but I've thought about trying Rightstart D to use with Abeka. A friend told me the early Rightstart was not as good as the later books. Abeka is good for us because I think my daughter needs to have worksheets to complete. She says she doesn't like math, but she does well with it. I also like to feel that she's doing real work and able to see progress. I'm planning to do year round school. I need to complete the regular year of courses on schedule for ease with our correspondence school's required progress reports. However, my kids need structured days, and I don't want them to forget what they've learned, so we're still doing school through the summer. It is fun school though, with days off for activities and art every day we do our light schoolwork. I'm not an art person but love Artistic Pursuits for the art history, but haven't had time in the past year, so we've restarted it. I would also like to start our regular school subjects earlier (maybe August 1) so that I can have some freedom throughout the year to take time off when needed. I've already ordered Abeka math 3 for my daughter and K for my son (I'll also add some Rightstart projects for him). I'm still debating getting Rightstart D for my daughter. My son may repeat LOE A. I haven't decided yet. He's only starting to read short vowel words and his handwriting could use some extra practice. My daughter will do what's left of D over the summer, and then I think we'll be getting Essentials for our Grammar. I don't like the LOE Essentials add-on Readers and writing program. It looks boring and writing isn't from real literature. I have looked at IEW, Blackbird and am now looking at Cottage Press. IEW looks too time consuming with having to watch DVDs, and may be too much work for my daughter who hates to write. Blackbird looks much simpler, and we can buy one unit at a time to go at our own pace. Cottage Press Fable and Song looks like my daughter would enjoy it. We read through all the Aesop's Fables with Bookshark and always loved to hear them. I'm just worried that it's too much to do with LOE Essentials also. I've tried to keep with secular materials because our homeschool will not pay for faith based materials and I have to purchase them on my own. I would however like to establish more Biblical influence in their daily lives. I really want to try Science in the Beginning. It's structure appeals to me that it's chronological science series, has short lessons, and daily demonstrations. I think it might help to shorten our workload. It is also faith based, but only $40 for the year so not a budget problem. I'm having a problem with the classical writing programs being faith based so they will not be reimbursible. IEW would be reimbursible, but I'm just not convinced that it's right for us. I have been strongly recommended to use Story of the World for history. I like the sound of the program, but am kind of worried about delaying American history for my daughter for 4 more years. However, I guess we could supplement American History in the summer time. I was also thinking of supplementing Story of the World with Mystery of History CD (purchased myself) Someone loaned me a Book 2 to review and I disliked parts of it, although the Level 1 Old Testament history would probably be better for us, so I am still considering it. I'm now reading more about "classical" education and am thinking about including Latin next year. I've had my daughter in Spanish lessons for 3 years, and my son for 2 years. In school, I had Spanish, French, German, and Latin and cannot speak anything. I put my children into Spanish because I want them to speak well in a practical 2nd language. I now am reading all the classical method essays that Latin is better for children to understand grammar and I wonder if I had an advantage that I didn't realize because I had a bit of Latin in my education. Now, I'm thinking of adding it in, but where? Could I do Latin just 2 days a week? I don't really like to schedule that way, but I don't see how I can add another thing to do everything every day. I feel like I cannot stop Spanish before they've mastered it. I was really planning to add in Russian in 3 years so they have a different language type. I just feel that it broadens their minds. I'm also pretty passionate that music broadens the mind in the same way. Anyway, I'm sorry for the lengthy post but I was trying to present a full history. I posted a week ago, but didn't have all the info there and didn't respond because I didn't have a working computer and didn't want to type it up on my phone. I'm an engineer, not a teacher. I'm not even really a kid person, though I like my kids:) I'm a bit of a perfectionist and get stressed if things are not done the right way. I am reading online about Charlotte Mason, WTM, and classical education. I haven't read the books. I really feel lost in what to do. I guess I'm more classically minded. I think structure and memorization are good. I would like to do more poetry and Bible memorization. I feel guilty that we haven't done much at all, even though it was a big part of my childhood. We do memorize math facts and phonics. I like the idea of memorizing a history timeline, but I don't know how to do this or if it's included in Story of the World. I've read a lot about Classical Conversations, and though I like some things about it, other things won't work for us. I also seem kind of Mason minded in that I really want more literature to be used. I am even feeling like I should do bird studies. We do a bit of nature studies based on what we're doing outside. I love what I read on Ambleside that the CM method uses folk music! I love folk music and teach it to my kids, trying to teach them something new every month or so, and sing them at bedtime. With what I know of Waldorf, I am not inclined toward that method as it's not practical enough for me. I feel guilty that I do so much with my daughter and not enough with my K son. I really want to combine their history, science, and read alouds. Spanish is combined, and we could combine Latin if I'm brave enough. My other problem is that I'm really striving for a sense of balance. I realized this with music. It's consuming our life, and I don't want that for our kids. We practice daily, have weekly private lessons, weekly group lessons, monthly performance classes, semester recitals, more special performances, a yearly Suzuki insitute for 1 week, and a separate fiddle class for a week later in the summer. Our teacher is wonderful and so are her students, and my daughter plays beautifully. While I want her to do her best, I don't want to funnel her into being a music major in college. Yes, if that's what she wants, but I don't want her to feel that it's her only option. I'm a pianist, and music is important to me, and I want my kids to be competent musicians to be able to have fun playing with others and in church. I want them to love folk music, not just classical music. I also do not want them to be burned out and dislike music. Anyway, I'm seeking balance because of this awareness from music, but also in other areas. I'm trying to cut back a little on activities. They were in swimming lessons Saturdays until February, when I quit and it's been so nice to have free Saturdays. They ski on Monday nights, and I just hate Mondays, because it's violin lesson, Spanish lesson, and ski lesson. Such a long day. Speaking of balance, where do the mothers make time for themselves? I have no idea. I don't know. I'm trying to figure myself out. I know I can obsess with anything and go extreme on anything. So I'm trying to cut back and do less, but now I'm trying to add more in with Latin. Maybe it will be less if kids are working together with some subjects. I don't feel confident enough to build my own curriculum by collecting books and teaching my own lesson plans, though Ambleside will be a great resource for extras for us. Every new curriculum I hear about seems like the best and the one, until I read about the next one. I feel truly lost and out of my element nearly all the time. I feel like we are doing too much and need to cut back and then sometimes I panic that I'm not doing enough, and that I should have been doing things since K that I hadn't thought of until now, like Latin. So for next school year: Math - Abeka K and 3, and some Rightstart Grammar and Phonics - LOE Foundations and Essentials Grade 3 writing - Blackbird, Cottage Press or something else?? Story of the World Literature Read Alouds ?? Does Story of the World have a good literature reading list? I really wish it was packaged like Bookshark. I hate shopping. And I can't even see the list until buying the curriculum. Science in the Beginning Spanish - want to add more formal oral curriculum ? Latin - Song School 2 days a week? Artistic Pursuits - 1 day a week, also considered Atlier art, but it will probably be beyond our budget since we use all our extracurricular money on music. Suzuki Music I also just got a computer and tablet for my kids do some learning apps / games. We really limit screen time for kids, so this is a big deal for them. I do have Spanish Rosetta Stone from our school library (looking forward to trying this) but would really like any recommendations for any learning games or apps. Well, even if no one reads this very long post, it has at least been a form of therapy for me to type it out. Any suggestions would be wonderful!

In TWTM, Susan Bauer talks about making sure your Latin program is parts to whole. The Latin for Children curriculum from Classical Academic Press has advertised on their website that they are "The Well Trained Mind" recommended, but I don't see Latin for Children as a Latin recommendation in TWTM book. Does anyone know if Latin for Children is parts to whole teaching? Also, Classical Academic Press says Latin for Children Primer A, 4th grade. Do you think this program will be too frustrating for your average 3rd grader? Thanks! Rachael Oren

Registration for Summer, Fall, and Full-Year 2017-18 courses is now open! New courses include: • Summer Reading Club for Logic Stage Students • Counting and Probability & AoPS Pre-Calculus • Latin I, French II, & German II • Physics for the Logic Stage • Kinesiology & Nutrition I • Science of Writing Grammar Series, from Foundational to Advanced Grammar • Socratic Discussion for the Rhetoric Stage Our unmatched refund policy is very simple and aims to benefit our students and families. If a student withdraws from a course before the end of the withdrawal period (listed below), he will receive a full course tuition refund. Fall and Full-year courses - September 30th Spring courses and Full-year transfers only - February 28th Summer courses - June 30th In addition, because our primary goal is the successful education of our students, we do not charge any fees for section or course changes. The Well-Trained Mind Academy Handbook offers guidance on course planning and placement for both logic-stage (middle) and rhetoric-stage (high school) students. And of course, you can contact us for help! See our website for our full course offerings and to register: www.wtmacademy.com We can’t wait to see you in class! Contact us with questions.

We are ready to purchase a dictionary and would like one that has Latin roots for our work in Latin for Children. Suggestions?

Hello, newly learning about and transitioning to classical methods with TWTM4. I have a hardcover small copy (same one I used in school) of Ecce Romani! I and II combined, which is a whole-to-parts method book. I happen to have loved it, but I was also a person who absorbed languages effortlessly, and was able to jump into the latter half of 2nd-year Latin in high school, without any prior Latin, without any trouble...in fact, won some awards in academic competitions. But my DD12 HATES the book, finds it hard to use. After reading TWTM4, and reading about whole-to-parts versus parts-to-whole, I can see that if my daughter is like most people (which she is; we already know that the weirdness in this family is all on my side, and she takes strongly after my husband) she might do far better with parts-to-whole, which I always found too boring, whereas whole-to-parts was fun, challenging, and stimulating, for me. People are different. So: looking at Susan Wise Bauer's suggestions for Latin curriculum, I was shocked at the prices! A quick check of the Minerva search of all interconnected libraries in my area confirmed that I was not going to be able to borrow any Latin curriculum, for free. Therefore I need to find a good introductory parts-to-whole Latin curriculum, affordably, whether used or new, somehow, and I have no idea what to look for out there. Can anyone recommend something sensible, affordable, and classic in approach (rather than 'immersion' or whole-to-parts)? A bonus would be a recommendation for something I can use with younger children. If it's something with an audio component, I would rather avoid ecclesiastical pronunciation if possible.

We are far from there yet, but I was curious about the differences between these two tests. Is one more complex, looked at more favorably, contain different information? With the hassles I hear about trying to schedule an AP Latin Exam currently, I am concerned with how the difficulty may increase in the next 5 to 6 years. I thought the SAT II was supposed to cover high school Latin while the AP was supposed to cover the first year or two of college Latin. When I read the descriptions on the websites about what would be covered, however, I did not see much difference in material. Anyone have experience with either or both?

Just after Y2K, there was a developing Latin Centered movement that predated the book Latin Centered Curriculum; Memoria Press was in its infancy. Some of that movement fizzled after the publication of the book LCC. Those that were not defined by the book were left without the very label they had created. I know I felt like I had no other choice but to drop my signature, that I had been using before the book was even written, never mind published, when it was used so extensively in the book. My youngest graduated. His education was more Greek focused than Latin, anyway. I moved onto tutoring mostly ESL and LD students. I had other things to focus on. But, now, over a decade later, as I'm taking a very serious look at what Latin Centered means, I just thought I would throw it up as a topic of discussion. Talking about LCC and Memoria Press is fine, but they are NOT always what I am talking about at all. I'd like to disregard the boundaries set by MP, both restrictions and permissions. I'd like to look far beyond what they offer for sale. What is a Latin Centered Education? Is it a good model of education in 2017? What are the costs in time, money, etc.? What is Latin centered history? Rose Williams wrote a set of two history books that span ancient history through the reformation. I got each of them for a penny, but they have not come in yet. https://www.amazon.com/Romulus-Augustulus-Roman-History-Millennium/dp/0865166919/ref=pd_bxgy_14_3?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0865166919&pd_rd_r=8RP00YAMNQRQNQD1HZD8&pd_rd_w=K6OhA&pd_rd_wg=kiLzP&psc=1&refRID=8RP00YAMNQRQNQD1HZD8 https://www.amazon.com/Rome-Reformation-European-History-Millennium/dp/0865167184/ref=la_B002HD8NBQ_1_8?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1483296191&sr=1-8 What would work after this set? Who are the Latinists that come next? What is THEIR story? Is Latin centered different than Western centered? How so, in ways narrower, wider, and just plain different? How does math come into this? Are there lesson delivery styles used in Latin instruction, that are going to be similar for math, and attractive to Latin centered teachers and students? Does intensive Latin instruction eat up time, money, and bookshelf space that otherwise might be devoted to math? With a heavy Latin background, does that change science instruction in any way? Composition--is there anything about Latin centered that automatically suggests using a progym style composition curriculum? What are our options for progym beyond some very pricey time consuming leveled curricula?

Hello, I am having trouble opening the Galore Park website, but I watched a few youtube videos by the author, including Book 1, Lesson 1--and really liked it! Truthfully, he hit a few points straight-up that my 3rd grader has been struggling with in Latina Christiana--so...would anyone care to share experience with Galore Park? Also, if there is anyone familiar with GP and MP, I would love your opinion on pros and cons of each. Thanks Edited to Add: this morning I tried again and could open the page; it must have been down for maintenance. It looks like Latin Prep is no longer for sale new? Only the workbook A for Latin Prep is still available.

We completed Prima Latina and part of LC1 a few years ago. Since we moved interstate, Latin studies fell by the wayside, but I wanted to pick them up again this year, planning to move through LC1, 1st and 2nd Form over the next couple of years. However, my 16 year old may now be headed for a Catholic college next year. This now gives me 15 weeks to get back into Latin and fit in as much as we can! I'd like at least to give her a basic understanding of Latin, without pushing too hard. in our 15 weeks, would you do LC1 or First Form? I'm thinking we are more likely to complete LC1, but wonder if it wouldn't be better to jump into First Form and get as much done as we can. Thoughts? Linda in Australia.

Hello all, I have written a study guide to all the lessons (1-32) in Henle Second Year Latin. It has detailed guidance to the syntax of the lessons and exercises; supplementary explanations about various topics (the gerundive, the subjunctive, helps for reading Latin, pronunciation and accent placement, why we study Caesar); extra background information for the short readings and sayings; references to the relevant items in the Henle Grammar; nine exams on the lessons, one exam on pronunciation, and exam answer key. (A companion guide to the readings from the Gallic War -- and the Christian Latin section -- will be ready by December. It will include historical background information.) Please have a look at my website to see excerpts from different lessons and read my essay Why Caesar? You can email me at magistra@secondyearlatin.com. Thank you. Bonnie SecondYearLatin.com

My 9th and 10gh graders have never had Latin and I would like to get them started. Wheelock's is my preferred program, but will it be necessary for my children to take an introductory course before starting Wheelock's? Thanks!

My daughter will be attending a private school next year that begins Latin instruction in 3rd grade. She'll be entering either 4th or 5th grade (she's approved for 5th academically, but she's 9, so we're still deciding) - so she'll be either 1 or 2 years behind on Latin. (There's also a chance we might enroll my 6th grade daughter - so she'd be 3 years behind on Latin, if we decide to do that.) They offer a Latin camp - one week, 3 hours per day - in August. But I'd guess we'll need to study all summer. The school uses Lingua Latina per se Illustrata. That looks like a method that would NOT be my first choice. I think I'd prefer something more like First Form Latin (or Latina Christina) - something more parts-to-whole, I think. But I've never taught/learned Latin, so I'm just looking for the best way to make progress quickly. I'd really think learning conjugations/declensions and how to apply them would be most beneficial? I've also looked at Getting Started with Latin as an option, but I'm not sure how in-depth it gets. So I'm looking for advice. Does anyone have a "learn how to function at a basic level in Latin fairly quickly" plan? or some advice on which curriculum might be best to use this summer? We have 11 weeks as of today, and I'm sure it will take a week to get something ordered (at least - ugh). So 10 weeks at most to make progress... Thanks!!!

I'm hoping for some help choosing between the Big Book of Lively Latin and Latin for Children. If you have used either, what did/didn't you like about them? I'd be starting with a 10 year old -- would that be too old for these programs? She really doesn't want to do Latin, but has a agreed to give it a shot and I don't want to dive into an intense program that is intended for older kids, as that is likely to be a disaster. My main goal in studying Latin is to improve vocabulary by understanding root words. Secondly, I hope to see an improvement in grammar.

I would like to begin latin next year for my DS who will be in 6th grade. I honestly don't know where/how to begin looking into programs. I would like a full beginner program that has a comprehensive teacher's guide. It also needs to be secular or able to be used by a secular family. Thanks for the help! SJ

I recently read about a giveaway on Mystie's blog for a subscription to Headventureland (which I had never heard of before!) and it looks like something my oldest would love when we dive into Latin next school year. But, we're not using CAP for Latin, so I'm wondering if the subscription would be worth it. It looks like fun practice, but if it's tied too much SSL or LFC's specific lessons it could be confusing for the beginning student, right? Any one use Headventureland without using CAP's curriculum?

Question on the National Latin Exam - where do you have a child start? Dd (freshman) is currently in Third Form Latin, but she hasn't taken the NLE before. I actually dropped the ball and entirely forgot about it, after promising her she could take it, and I'm not 100% certain I can still register her for the online test, but the site makes it look like I can, with a late fee; so irritated with myself! Anyway, after taking some practice exams, she feels like either Latin I or Latin II would be the "right" level, but looking at the Memoria Press guidelines it almost seems that you should start with Latin I, then follow it up in future years with increasingly challenging exams. Am I understanding that correctly? Is Latin I even the right level, or should she take the Introductory Latin exam? Or should she take both Latin I and Latin II? Help :confused1: , and thank you so much!!

Anyone know when Fall registration or 2016/2017 class registration begins for Lukeion classes? My attempts to find the information have come up short and we have not done online classes before. Knowing me, if I do not plan ahead, I will completely miss it. Thanks!