Please help with Latin!!

[Mommy22alyns]

I need a good breakdown. Rebecca is doing LFC B this year. It's okay. She mostly manages it herself with the DVDs and gets good scores on her tests. She doesn't love it though. I'm torn on whether to continue with LFC, go to another program, or drop Latin altogether. If we continue with LFC, that will feed us into Latin Alive, but I've heard that the programs get redundant in there somewhere. I'm tempted by Latin for the New Millennium based on a recommendation from this board. It's expensive, but we can swing it with the tax refund. Will she be over her head? Or I could drop Latin altogether. She doesn't know what she wants to be, but she's aiming for college gymnastics. Part of me thinks a gymnast who also knows Latin would be pretty cool. Part of me thinks, does she REALLY need it? Part of me feels like it would be admitting defeat to let her drop it entirely.

 

We have limited hours every day. She goes to the gym 4 days a week for a total of 11.5 hours during the school year. I don't want to sacrifice academics to her gymnastics, but some allowances will need to be made.

 

If we drop Latin, it's a no-brainer to do roots. It's already in the plan for MFW CTG next year.

 

Rebecca will be entering 5th grade and turns 10 in March. (10! How did that happen???)

I'm as big of a proponent of Latin as you will find. It is an important part of our educational plan.

 

However, unlike many (most?) people here, I don't see much value in starting before late middle school (7-8th grade). Again and again, I read moms here singing the praising of early Latin. But what does it accomplish? With something like 6 years (!) of preparation, students who have started Latin in 3rd grade don't even get to skip one year of high school Latin. Yes, they are "ahead" a bit, and yes, first year Latin is a bit easier in high school, but at what cost? I say, wait until they are ready to go full steam into it, and then do it. LNM is a beautiful text, and will only get cheaper in the future, as more used copies become available (assuming you want to go that route). Wait until 7th grade and try again with LNM at a 7th grader's pace.

[Narrow Gate Academy]

I need a good breakdown. Rebecca is doing LFC B this year. It's okay. She mostly manages it herself with the DVDs and gets good scores on her tests. She doesn't love it though. I'm torn on whether to continue with LFC, go to another program, or drop Latin altogether. If we continue with LFC, that will feed us into Latin Alive, but I've heard that the programs get redundant in there somewhere. I'm tempted by Latin for the New Millennium based on a recommendation from this board. It's expensive, but we can swing it with the tax refund. Will she be over her head? Or I could drop Latin altogether. She doesn't know what she wants to be, but she's aiming for college gymnastics. Part of me thinks a gymnast who also knows Latin would be pretty cool. Part of me thinks, does she REALLY need it? Part of me feels like it would be admitting defeat to let her drop it entirely.

 

We have limited hours every day. She goes to the gym 4 days a week for a total of 11.5 hours during the school year. I don't want to sacrifice academics to her gymnastics, but some allowances will need to be made.

 

If we drop Latin, it's a no-brainer to do roots. It's already in the plan for MFW CTG next year.

 

Rebecca will be entering 5th grade and turns 10 in March. (10! How did that happen???)

 

 

I haven't looked at Latin for the New Millennium, so I can't comment on that. My oldest went through all three LfC levels and is currently in Latin Alive 2. Yes, there is some overlap in the first Latin Alive book, but that will be true of any program you switch into. They are all going to review the 5 declensions and different conjugations. My DD still found Latin Alive plenty challenging in 7th grade. There is more vocabulary, more depth to different grammar concepts, and the translations ramp up fairly quickly. HTH

[Ailey]

I'm not too familiar with LFC or Latin Alive, but I thought I'd post that I am using LNM successfully with a younger student, in case you have any questions or were wondering if it can be done. :)

 

LNM does definitely take a bigger commitment from both parent and child than the elementary-level programs we've used. I've found it nearly impossible to schedule ahead of time how much work we'll complete each day, and even my Mr. Independent is dependent on me to break it down into smaller chunks for him. If you're planning to have your daughter work through LNM independently, then yes, I do think a 5th grader would be in a bit over her head.