Song School Latin or Song School Spanish?

[classicmommy]

Please help me decide! I would like to start SSL or SSS with my first grader. How do I decide which route to go? Latin or Spanish? Would both me too much? I would eventually like my children to know both Latin and Spanish. This is my second year homeschooling.

[Rachel]

I chose Latin for my 1st grader. There are different schools of thought but part of why I chose SSL over Spanish is that I don't know any native Spanish speakers for my kids to listen to or speak to. I think SSL will be a gentle approach to Latin and I think my kids will find it fun. Hopefully it will help them learn Spanish later on as well.

[mysticmomma]

Following. We are in a heavy Spanish speaking area, so I'm leaning towards Spanish.

[Slache]

Some people use Spanish as a pre-Latin. Don't do both at the same time. They're too similar.

[AdventuresinHomeschooling]

I am doing spanish first because at their young age, I want them to develop an ear for Spanish, where Latin is a more academic language.  I read an article by a Latin teacher that said she sees no difference in progress of her Middle School students between those who have taken latin younger and those who haven't.  Latin is helpful in vocabulary and understanding language, but I want them to be fluent in Spanish living near the border.

 

[classicmommy]

Thank you all. We don't really have anyone who speaks Spanish that we interact with so I was leaning towards Latin. But I do want my children to be fluent in Spanish.

[SilverMoon]

It's completely personal preference. You have lots of years left to add more languages. Choosing one now doesn't exclude the other.

 

My little ones started with Latin because it's what their older siblings were doing and they could use the vocab while talking to them. DD/rising 4th grader, DC #4, is the only one who started as early as 1st grade. This fall she is adding Spanish, and will continue to progress with Latin.

[Piper]

I was just pondering this question the other day...I decided to go with Spanish for my 2nd and 4th graders next year.  Since conversation is one of the most effective ways to learn a foreign language, SWB advises (in TWTM) that if you have someone with whom your child can converse in a foreign language at least a couple of times a week, go ahead and learn that language, and save the Latin for later.  Well, no problem with that around here, so Spanish it is. :)

[SevenDaisies]

We tried Spanish, but with no native or even non-native speakers around, we decided to make the switch to Latin. The Memoria Press products worked so well for us that we were able to stick with it easily. If I had someone my kids could converse with, I would have loved for them to start with French or Spanish, but with Latin, you don't need that.