Latin for the New Millennium

[Beth in Mint Hill]

Has anyone used this? I've owned the book for a few years, but haven't taught with it, not yet! But I do believe that I'm about to put my Wheelock's on the shelf.

Latin for the New Millennium

 

I've been browsing over my copy and wish that my school would switch to this, but its so expensive! I love the progression of the grammar, and the beauty of the pages, and the fact that each chapter includes conversational Latin. Oh, My! Love it.

[crazyforlatin]

Here's the sample text of each level.

 

http://www.lnm.bolchazy.com/samples.html

 

I'm using it now as a supplement with DD, but we started out with Henle and will continue with it, at least through the end of book 1.

 

I do like that LNM incorporates history and original readings, but having gone through a few chapters of book 1, I don't find the exercises as difficult as Henle's (or maybe this is a review for us). I didn't buy the TM (not for $100), but did buy the workbook, which we haven't used yet since most of the exercises are review of what we learned in Henle.

 

 

ETA: There is a local, prestigious Jesuit high school which uses this book. I can see why teachers and students would choose LNM over Wheelock's or Henle. It's an attractive and engaging book that uses both grammar and immersion methods. What I like most are the chapter readings with a long list of vocabulary words so that a student can translate long passages without learning the grammar of Latin for months.

I haven't used it, but it is beautiful. In addition to all the above, I like the fact that it does present some medieval Latin, and doesn't pretend that Latin "died" about 100 A.D.

[justamouse]

I've always had them in my Latin links. That is a beautiful book.

[Beth in Mint Hill]

I haven't used it, but it is beautiful. In addition to all the above, I like the fact that it does present some medieval Latin, and doesn't pretend that Latin "died" about 100 A.D.

 

Those that are interested in this curriculum might be interested to know that I have decided to make the move! After 15 years of teaching with Wheelock's I am switching to Latin for the New Millenium. I feel so guilty--like I'm announcing a divorce and remarriage. :'( Because I do love Wheelock's; it is the book that I learned so much through, and there are so many wonderful resources out there for it, including Dale Grote's Comprehensive Guide and my workbook, Studium Latinae. I will be continuing to teach with it in the local school, but we will switch in our online classes....

 

I love beauty in a textbook--aesthetically pleasing layout and font, nice paper, etc. And I love the way it includes medieval Latin, as GGardner says above. The only thing that holds many back--and held me back for so long is the cost. It is a little expensive, but the good thing about that for the student is that it will have a high resale value; and it will hold up to use, since it is a quality hardback.

 

A summary of the features that stand out to me:

• Includes conversational Latin lessons in each chapter
• Covers Roman history and culture
• Includes medieval Latin
• Easy practice sentences
• Beautiful photos and layout--aesthetically pleasing
• Many helpful resources at the Bolchazy website
• Passive voice in level 1 (this enables the student to more quickly read stories in Latin, which are full of the passive voice)
• And of course, its main feature: it attempts to balance a reading (inductive) approach to the grammar (deductive) approach of study

 

I really think it is time for more people to give this curriculum a try! 

[Latinmom]

Last summer I pored over all the posts on this topic I could find, trying to decide whether to switch curricula. I've been teaching homeschool Latin for eighteen years--to my own six children plus many others who joined us along the way. I had always used the Latin for Americans series and was quite happy with it, but the textbooks were a bit expensive. LNM had textbook rental options online and the posts I read here and elsewhere were primarily positive, so I took the plunge.

 

Ugh.

 

It wasn't until after I (and this year's students) were committed to that course that I discovered some of the drawbacks--primarily in posts on the teacher forums at Bolchazy-Carducci (LNM publisher's website), a resource that obviously wasn't available to me in the decision-making stage.

 

Looking back, it seems to me that one of the chief benefits that was touted was the fact that LNM uses original readings. In actuality, these are edited readings--necessarily so, I am sure, for beginning students, but in my mind that doesn't make them much different from the reading passages in other texts which retell Roman myths or episodes from Roman history. The LNM selections also result in some rather obscure vocabulary words; I can't imagine students will run across "passer" (sparrow) or "gremium" (lap) very often in their Latin studies, and it seems a waste of time for them to memorize such words simply to accommodate a reading passage.  Even with those extraneous additions to vocabulary, the LNM passages are so heavily glossed as to diminish the benefit of the translation exercise. I would much rather my students translate a passage that is primarily composed of Latin vocabulary they already know, so as to decrease reliance on glosses and instead focus on accurately applying the grammatical knowledge they have gained.

 

I find the presentation of grammar to be much clearer in the Latin for Americans texts. Fortunately I have linguistically-gifted students this year, so the effect has not been as detrimental as it could have been with a larger class and more diverse ability levels. I have ended up supplementing LNM to accommodate what I perceive as its deficiencies, especially as we prepare for the National Latin exam at the end of February. 

 

I also made the mistake of purchasing the teacher's book; if you do decide to use this curriculum, spare yourself that expense. It is a 10x15 inch, spiral-bound, floppy volume that is completely unwieldy and impractical for use in the classroom. You would be better off with a hardback copy of the student text. If you need the teacher's book for answers or other resources, buy a digital copy for reference. 

 

It's back to Latin for Americans for me. To address the question of cost (and availability of compatible textbook versions, since I've had mine for a while), I contacted the parents of former students (now in college, grad school, and beyond) and acquired their used textbooks. That way, going forward we can all have the same editions and homeschool families won't necessarily have to make that big investment. 

 

It may be that you love LNM and that is wonderful; but I thought perhaps my two cents might help someone in the decision-making process like I was last summer. 

Edited February 8, 2017 by Latinmom