The Governess Posted November 11, 2009 Share Posted November 11, 2009 Have any of you used a Latin program designed to be started in 3rd grade with a younger student who was advanced in language arts? I am going through Song School Latin with dd5 right now and next I want to use Latin for Children A. I'm trying to figure out when I can start it with her and would love to get some perspective. Thanks! :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lionfamily1999 Posted November 11, 2009 Share Posted November 11, 2009 We used Prima Latina last year, but I'm not sure it was a definite 3rd grade class. I would say, go ahead and try it. If it's frustrating, try slowing the pace. If it's still out of reach, then put it aside and try again later :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patchfire Posted November 11, 2009 Share Posted November 11, 2009 We did try to start LfC A in... late first grade? Early second grade? We'd try it for a while, stop, try again, etc. Now, dd does have Spelling Issues, but she also had trouble with the amount of writing in LfC. It's a very black-and-white, words, words, words layout that I think was overwhelming to her, yk? Now, another child might not find that difficult, but I would be prepared to modify the work required if necessary - do it orally, break it down into smaller chunks, etc. Just in case. :) I think the *substance* of it is absolutely possible to do earlier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommy22alyns Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 Prima Latina is definitely doable, just nowhere near as fun as SSL. We had it and got rid of it. I'm trying to decide when I can start LfC A with Becca. I tried Minimus, but it just didn't have enough guidance for me to do it this year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lionfamily1999 Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 We did stop Prima Latina early (it was monotonous) and moved on to Latina Christiana. Both of us enjoy LC much more than PL. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 Ds did Prima Latina for a few weeks on either side of his 5th birthday. We found that working on it for 10-15 minutes a day, he still finished in a month or two. We then went on to do LC1 and part of 2 over the rest of the year, and started doing a Minimus class (overlapped with finishing LC2) when he was six, and Secundus when he was seven. Then we went on to Latin Prep at 8 and 9 and at 10 he's doing Latin Prep 3 and Lingua Latina. An older child could likely have covered more in that amount of time, but for him Latin has *always* been a major part of school, and I really think it's a deeper part of him than it would be if he had started later (even if he were at the same point now in LP3 and Lingua Latina)... He also has a very strong understanding of "how language works" -- better than many adults -- because of his work with Latin all this time. He's doing Greek now as well and laughs at how "easy" it is, given the quantity of grammar he has studied already. I've been more relaxed about introducing Latin for dd. We just did Song School loosely the year she was 6 (and while it's cute, I don't think it has much educational value) and we're doing Minimus now at 7. I think my plan may be to do a year of Lively Latin after Minimus (I'm not such a fan of Secundus, unfortunately) and then start her in Latin Prep as well. We're doing Latin with a couple of other children, so I'm taking into account the needs of the group... If it were just her, I might not do as much "fun" stuff and be a little more "no frills" -- I think there's a place in the world for Latina Christiana, etc... (We're still memorizing the prayers and such from PL/LC, even though I'm not doing the program with her...) I'm not really enamored of Latin for Children... But anyway, it has worked well for us to start young and just keep at it... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 :lurk5: I've been debating what to do about Latin for my oldest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Governess Posted November 12, 2009 Author Share Posted November 12, 2009 Thanks, everyone! It's nice to know I'm not the only one who has considered this and that some of you have had success with starting programs early. Dd is reading at a high 3rd/low 4th grade level and her writing and grammar are catching up. She has been learning Mandarin for a year already and really enjoys languages (she always asks to do them first if I give her a choice) so it sounds like it's worth a try. I may have to modify the amount of writing required but I have no problem with that. I agree that Song School doesn't have a lot of meat to it, but dd5 is getting better at pronunciation and learning what the language sounds like so I guess that is better than nothing. :001_smile: And she is having a ton of fun with the songs and the (very short) workbook pages. Now I'm wondering if I should follow it up with Prima Latina (it's only 2 months worth of work?) before starting LfC A. Hmmmm. And I guess I should take the time over the next 9 or so months to read up on Latin myself. :D Thanks so much for your input! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnneC Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 We've just started Latina Christiana. We find it really good. My son who is reading at the lowest level is getting the most out of it. I actually was intending to only use it with dd this year but the three other kids are learning it too. Now I'll need to buy them workbooks:001_huh: We have also enjoyed Minimus over the last couple of years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lionfamily1999 Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 Ds did Prima Latina for a few weeks on either side of his 5th birthday. We found that working on it for 10-15 minutes a day, he still finished in a month or two. We then went on to do LC1 and part of 2 over the rest of the year, and started doing a Minimus class (overlapped with finishing LC2) when he was six, and Secundus when he was seven. Then we went on to Latin Prep at 8 and 9 and at 10 he's doing Latin Prep 3 and Lingua Latina. An older child could likely have covered more in that amount of time, but for him Latin has *always* been a major part of school, and I really think it's a deeper part of him than it would be if he had started later (even if he were at the same point now in LP3 and Lingua Latina)... He also has a very strong understanding of "how language works" -- better than many adults -- because of his work with Latin all this time. He's doing Greek now as well and laughs at how "easy" it is, given the quantity of grammar he has studied already. I've been more relaxed about introducing Latin for dd. We just did Song School loosely the year she was 6 (and while it's cute, I don't think it has much educational value) and we're doing Minimus now at 7. I think my plan may be to do a year of Lively Latin after Minimus (I'm not such a fan of Secundus, unfortunately) and then start her in Latin Prep as well. We're doing Latin with a couple of other children, so I'm taking into account the needs of the group... If it were just her, I might not do as much "fun" stuff and be a little more "no frills" -- I think there's a place in the world for Latina Christiana, etc... (We're still memorizing the prayers and such from PL/LC, even though I'm not doing the program with her...) I'm not really enamored of Latin for Children... But anyway, it has worked well for us to start young and just keep at it... So you were able to move towards Minimus from Latina Christiana? I've been looking through Minimus and I love the stories and things, but I wasn't sure we could transition to that from LC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lionfamily1999 Posted November 12, 2009 Share Posted November 12, 2009 Thanks, everyone! It's nice to know I'm not the only one who has considered this and that some of you have had success with starting programs early. Dd is reading at a high 3rd/low 4th grade level and her writing and grammar are catching up. She has been learning Mandarin for a year already and really enjoys languages (she always asks to do them first if I give her a choice) so it sounds like it's worth a try. I may have to modify the amount of writing required but I have no problem with that. I agree that Song School doesn't have a lot of meat to it, but dd5 is getting better at pronunciation and learning what the language sounds like so I guess that is better than nothing. :001_smile: And she is having a ton of fun with the songs and the (very short) workbook pages. Now I'm wondering if I should follow it up with Prima Latina (it's only 2 months worth of work?) before starting LfC A. Hmmmm. And I guess I should take the time over the next 9 or so months to read up on Latin myself. :D Thanks so much for your input! You can make it a year's worth or you can accelerate it. It overlaps with Latina Christiana so much that you can quit early and move on if it suits you. I couldn't imagine going through all of PL in only two months, that is a LOT of vocabulary to cover. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Desert Rat Posted November 13, 2009 Share Posted November 13, 2009 We started LfC A in 2nd grade with my oldest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Governess Posted November 25, 2009 Author Share Posted November 25, 2009 So I read some reviews on Prima Latina and it sounds like it doesn't use classical pronunciation (which is what we are using). All of the DVDs and CDs use Ecclesiastical pronunciation. I'm guessing this is going to be a problem, so now I am re-thinking things. Is there something else I can use in between SSL and LfC A? Or should I just go from one straight to the other? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seeker Posted November 25, 2009 Share Posted November 25, 2009 I started with the first level of Latin's Not So Tough, which is the classical pronunciation, when my daughter was six years old, as she also has a thing for languages. If I was starting with a 3rd grader, I would skip Level 1 as it is repeated in Level 2. Much of Level 2 is also reviewed in Level 3, except for the phonics that was in Level 1. So, if you purchase the single CD for Levels 1 through 3, I think a 3rd grader would have the Level 1 phonics down without purchasing the books, and just start with Level 2. (Really, Level 1 would be like busy work or writing practice and I would assume a 3rd grader is writing well.) We are currently on Level 3 and just begun some plural, dative, and genitive noun cases and verb conjugations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C_l_e_0..Q_c Posted November 27, 2009 Share Posted November 27, 2009 I did Prima Latina with my French speaking son when he was 6yo. It took 2 months. And that included learning the Latin vocabulary *and* the English translations. All accelerated kids are different, but knowing what I know now, I would have skipped Prima Latina. Latin for Children has been a better hit here, but for that one, I needed to wait till DS was better with English. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Governess Posted November 30, 2009 Author Share Posted November 30, 2009 I did Prima Latina with my French speaking son when he was 6yo. It took 2 months. And that included learning the Latin vocabulary *and* the English translations. All accelerated kids are different, but knowing what I know now, I would have skipped Prima Latina. Latin for Children has been a better hit here, but for that one, I needed to wait till DS was better with English. Thanks for the advice. :001_smile: I think I have decided to skip Prima Latina. Where do you think my dd will need to be with her English grammar before I can jump into LFC A? We are almost done with FLL1, I am trying to decide between FLL2 and Rod & Staff 2 (or I might do both) beginning in February. Do you think once we are done with 2nd grade grammar we will be ready? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C_l_e_0..Q_c Posted November 30, 2009 Share Posted November 30, 2009 Where do you think my dd will need to be with her English grammar before I can jump into LFC A? Oh, don't worry! Being an English native is good enough for LFC A. We're not, so I needed my kids to be good enough in ESL, so I wouldn't have to work on every single little word. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Governess Posted December 1, 2009 Author Share Posted December 1, 2009 Oh, don't worry! Being an English native is good enough for LFC A.We're not, so I needed my kids to be good enough in ESL, so I wouldn't have to work on every single little word. Oops! I got mixed up with English grammar vs. English language. :tongue_smilie:Thanks for setting me straight! And I think it's great that you are working on so many languages! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Truscifi Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 Does LFC use classical pronunciation? I am not planning on starting Latin until next year, but I'm a planner. Dh learned classical and he is really set on the same for ds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Governess Posted December 4, 2009 Author Share Posted December 4, 2009 Does LFC use classical pronunciation? I am not planning on starting Latin until next year, but I'm a planner. Dh learned classical and he is really set on the same for ds. Yes, it does. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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