Looking for advice for a younger student doing very well in Latin - continue with MP or switch to Lukeion?

[Jennay]

Posting here because it's regarding high school level work....

 

I am trying to decide whether DS age 11 should continue with MP Form Series or switch over to Lukeion.

 

A little background and random thoughts – DS has always been very verbal and academically accelerated. He started speaking real words at 9 months. He starting reading at age 2 and was fluent by age 3. 

 

 

I do not know Latin very well.  I am on about a Latina Christina I level J

 

He took some Latin classes from a fellow homeschooling friend of mine who was a classics major/teacher from about ages 5-8.  When those classes ended due to scheduling difficulties I started him with the MP Form series.  He has gone through the First Form and Second Form almost 100% independently.  (Some days I have to remind him to get started on his Latin but I never have any complaints once he starts).  He watches the DVD lesson, does each of the workbook pages (sometimes two in one sitting), corrects his own work using the answer key, and then tells me when it’s time for a quiz.   I correct the quizzes and he rarely gets anything wrong.  I ask him if he agrees or disagrees with the teacher’s guide about anything I have marked wrong.  Sometimes he discovers errors in the answer key.  Then he goes onto the next lesson. 

 

 

I don’t think he will major in the classics or Latin – his true love is Mathematics (that’s another thread).  I can see him doing something that combines languages and STEM.   I was also thinking that Latin might be a good SAT 2 test for him to take eventually.  He is a good test taker.

 

Should I just have him continue with Third Form and Fourth form at his own pace or switch him over to Lukeion?  If he took one Lukeion level per year then he could conceivably be taking Latin 4 in 9^th grade.  He would also like to learn another language – possibly Greek or Russian.  Maybe Arabic. 

 

 

The Lukeion classes could be a great way to develop accountability and time management skills with someone other than me.  Would the Lukeion classes get him to a higher level sooner than continuing with MP?  Of course, MP would be less expensive even with the DVDs.

 

Oh, and he took the assessment test on the Lukeion site for Latin 1 and scored a 97%.

 

I’d appreciate any wisdom!

[Corraleno]

I'd pick up a copy of Wheelock's and see what your DS thinks. Lukeion covers chapters 1-19 in Latin 1, and 20-40 in Latin 2; Latin 3 is reading.  If he thinks he'd be OK working at that pace (most kids are putting in 8-10 hrs/wk) then he'll probably be fine. From what I've heard, though, the pace is even more intense in Latin 3 & AP (DS just finished Latin 2).

[Jennay]

I'd pick up a copy of Wheelock's and see what your DS thinks. Lukeion covers chapters 1-19 in Latin 1, and 20-40 in Latin 2; Latin 3 is reading.  If he thinks he'd be OK working at that pace (most kids are putting in 8-10 hrs/wk) then he'll probably be fine. From what I've heard, though, the pace is even more intense in Latin 3 & AP (DS just finished Latin 2).

 

I'll see if I can locate a copy of Wheelock's.  How old is your son that just completed Latin 2?

 

Thanks for the input :)

[Reefgazer]

My kid will be a 7th grader and is in the same boat, and I am wondering the same thing.  She likely won't be a language or classics major (she's all about science).  So I am all ears on this thread.

[LNC]

Lukeion/Wheelocks vocabulary is different than Forms, so that is great your son did so well on entrance test. I had my daughter start Lukeion 1 in 9th after First and Second Form. Amy Barr recommended my 7th grader mature before starting Lukeion, so he took Latin Alive 1 this year. He found LA1 much more intense than Forms. HTH.

[mjbucks1]

My son started Lukeion Latin 3 last after completing an online course with Memoria Press.  He is currently enrolled in AP Latin (he is 16 and is a sophomore).  My daughter started Lukeion Latin I this year after studying Latin for Children A & B at home with me (she is 13 and is in 7th grade).

 

One thing to consider about Lukeion is the amount of time the course takes (I think a minimum of 12 hours/week). 

 

Another thing to consider are the writing requirements for Latin 3 and 4.  Each course requires the student to write 6 papers/year.  The Latin 3 papers are word studies, where the student anaylzes the multiple meanings of a Latin word, citing passages the student has been translating.  The student must also draw a connection to English derivatives.  The student is also responsible for reading all of the other papers in the class and making thoughtful comments.

 

Latin 4 (which is AP Latin) also requires 6 papers, but these require more literary anaysis type skills.  This skill is important to prepare the student for the AP exam.

 

So, when deciding when to start Lukeion, I would consider the skills required for the upper levels and try to estimate when your child will be ready for the writing component of those courses.     

[Elise]

My son started Lukeion Latin 3 last after completing an online course with Memoria Press.  He is currently enrolled in AP Latin (he is 16 and is a sophomore).  My daughter started Lukeion Latin I this year after studying Latin for Children A & B at home with me (she is 13 and is in 7th grade).

 

One thing to consider about Lukeion is the amount of time the course takes (I think a minimum of 12 hours/week). 

 

Another thing to consider are the writing requirements for Latin 3 and 4.  Each course requires the student to write 6 papers/year.  The Latin 3 papers are word studies, where the student anaylzes the multiple meanings of a Latin word, citing passages the student has been translating.  The student must also draw a connection to English derivatives.  The student is also responsible for reading all of the other papers in the class and making thoughtful comments.

 

Latin 4 (which is AP Latin) also requires 6 papers, but these require more literary anaysis type skills.  This skill is important to prepare the student for the AP exam.

 

So, when deciding when to start Lukeion, I would consider the skills required for the upper levels and try to estimate when your child will be ready for the writing component of those courses.     

 

:iagree: My daughter is finishing up AP Latin with Lukeion too (she is 15 and a freshman.)  She has done very well, and we can't say enough good things about the instruction.  Latin 3 & 4 are tough, though!  I'm so glad that she stuck with it, and I'm super proud of her for all of her hard work, but if I had known what a challenge the upper levels would be, I might not have been in such a rush to begin the sequence.  I agree that it's a good idea to begin with the end (and the time commitment) in mind. 

[lauracolumbus]

My two daughters are similarly situated, except that my 14 year old is almost on the other side of it.  She's in Latin 3 this year as an 8th grader and will take Latin 4 next year as a 9th grader.  She has done extremely well in the program and earned a gold medal on the NLE Latin 3 exam.  Interestingly, she is also looking at adding on Greek next year as a 9th grader and once she finished Latin 4 will focus on either Arabic or Russian.  I'm not sure what her area of study will be.  Right now she's interested in forensics.  She started Lukeion second semester of her 6th grade year after spending first semester with a Latin tutor.  Prior to that she had had LC I and parts of FFL.  She didn't really care for FFL, so we didn't finish it.  Lukeion does take a significant amount of time, but so far she has been able to juggle it--one advantage of taking it younger--she can shuffle around her schedule easier and with fewer consequences.

 

My younger daughter sounds very similar to your son.  Very early talker/reader.  She is taking FFL 1 in 4th grade.  I considered having her enroll in Lukeion in 5th grade, but realized that might not work out so well down the road.  So, she will follow her sister with Lukeion in 6th grade.  Not sure how the rest of her studies will go.  She's advanced in math as well, so I'm not sure how much she will want to delve into languages.  She's also not as diligent as her older sister.

 

Laura

[Jennay]

Thank you everyone for responding.  For some reason I wasn't getting notifications that there were replies.  

Anyway, I'll be back to respond and follow-up.