Vintage Latin books

[Curlymom]

Is anyone using solely vintage Latin textbooks?  

 

I started my 9 year old on Latina Christiana this year.  I'm learning along with her and started working through Latin for Beginners by D'Ooge and using Linney's Latin Class, which uses First Year Latin.  I've pulled exercises from both of those to give to my daughter to supplement LC, as LC wasn't offering enough practice for her, and I'm thinking about just switching over to one of those.  

 

Does anyone use either of these as a stand alone Latin program?  If so, can you share your experience, and what you used after either of these books?  They seem very thorough, and I have a good enough grasp of Latin now that I feel pretty comfortable moving forward with either one, but I'm not sure what the progression would be after we complete these books.  

 

I have Wheelock's, so we might start that much later down the road, but that's still years away.    

 

Thanks!

[Haiku]

I don't use those books, but I do use Latin, Book 1 and will continue to Latin, Book 2 by Scott and Horn. They are from the 1930's and are available free with answer keys on their respective Yahoo groups (the book are also inexpensive used on Amazon). I have found them to be superior to everything else I looked at (aside from Getting Started with Latin, which we loved). They are also for late middle school/high school, so they are interesting to my daughter. They have simple myths for translation and outstanding essays about various aspects of Roman culture and life. Each lesson begins with a grammar point, goes through a reading with vocabulary, and concludes with lots of practice exercises. Some lessons are grammar only and don't include a reading, but those are not the norm. Every 5-8 lessons there is a review lesson that I use as a test.

 

When she is done with Latin, Book Two, we will either continue with Latin, Book 3, which is mostly readings but for which I have no answer key, or we will use Latin Via Ovid, which is mainly readings from Ovid's Metamorphosis. It was published by Wayne State University and would therefore serve as two credits of high school Latin.

 

ETA: Everyone I know who knows Latin very well, not just took some years of it in high school or college, but really KNOWS Latin, warns me away from Wheelock's. A friend of mine who knows 8 languages, including Latin and Greek, says that the format of Wheelock's is perfect for teaching you how to solve a Latin syntax puzzle but is very bad for teaching reading fluency.

[Zoo Keeper]

Latin Book One is excellent!  My oldest used it when LfC wasn't giving him enough practice in USING all that vocab he was memorizing so well.   I would do two weeks in LfC, then two weeks in Latin Book One.  The variety was good, and *I*  vastly preferred the grammar, oral reading, and exercises in Latin Book One.  The reading and translation in Latin Book One was sooo well done; not just busy work.  I would have kept going in Latin Book One (and on to Book Two), but my boy(s) were too entrenched in their love for LfC.  So we are plugging away in LfC, and I sometimes have them do oral work or translation work that I pull from Latin Book One, just for kicks. 

 

I would have no qualms about using Latin Book One as a stand alone--especially as the Yahoo group has ANSWERS :hurray:, which can be hard to find with many other vintage Latin texts...  I'm in the same boat as Tara, I have Latin Book Three (Using Latin), but no answer key.  I'd love to track one down in decent condition.

[Curlymom]

Thanks!  I'd forgotten about Latin Book One.  It sound like I should definitely take another look at it.  I'll try to join that yahoo group.

 

Zoo Keeper, what you are doing with LfC sounds sort of like what I'm doing with my daughter and LC.  I know the programs are different, but I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one supplementing!  She's been happy to go back and forth between the two, but I make sure the lessons line up somewhat.

 

That's interesting about Wheelock's, thanks for the pointer, Tara.  I didn't take Latin in either high school or college, but used Wheelock's as a brief intro before a graduate class (years before jumping in with my daughter recently).  

[Haiku]

That's interesting about Wheelock's, thanks for the pointer, Tara.  I didn't take Latin in either high school or college, but used Wheelock's as a brief intro before a graduate class (years before jumping in with my daughter recently).  

 

From what I understand, Wheelock's is very good at teaching the grammar forms for people who are just learning, but by the time you get past the "learning grammar" stage and are ready to really use your Latin for reading original works, you can be stuck in this kind of "hunt and search to decode" mode that's hard to break out of. Another friend who is a pastor and teacher at a seminary who teaches Latin says that many people who use Wheelock's for a a year or two of Latin like it because they learn a lot, but if they try to move beyond Wheelock's, they find themselves unable to read with the fluency and speed needed.

 

That said, I have a copy of Wheelock's on my shelf that I picked up a library sale for 25 cents. I figured it would be a useful resource if nothing else. I have skimmed through it but haven't ever pulled it out to look something up because what I need has always been right there in Latin, Book One. I have a copy of Latin Prep from Galore Park in the same place and for the same reason, but I have never needed it, either. And just for good measure, I have a complete set of Latin For Children A, but again ... well, you can guess.

 

As my dd likes to say, Happy Latining! :)

[showelott]

Thanks for the info about Latin Book One. I am loving it for all the extra reading and translation practice. I need to supplement FFL and Book One is perfect for that. 

 

The one drawback is the lack of a workbook and answer key (I know the answers exist - but they aren't in super-useful form) so I made my own.

 

Here's the workbook  and the answer key for the first 6 chapters. I haven't proof-read it yet so it's not quite perfect, but it's pretty darn close.

[Miss Tick]

Thanks for the info about Latin Book One. I am loving it for all the extra reading and translation practice. I need to supplement FFL and Book One is perfect for that. 

 

The one drawback is the lack of a workbook and answer key (I know the answers exist - but they aren't in super-useful form) so I made my own.

 

Here's the workbook  and the answer key for the first 6 chapters. I haven't proof-read it yet so it's not quite perfect, but it's pretty darn close.

 

Wow, as if the Latin Book 1 pot needed more sweetening! Thanks for sharing!!

[showelott]

Let me know if you find it useful. I needed worksheets that I could hand out and quickly see if they were done. I also needed an answer key that made it very easy to check answers.

[PentecostalMom]

Don Potter has some great Latin resources in his site.

[stm4him]

What is the yahoo group for this Latin Book 1?  And how does it compare to Henle?

[Miss Tick]

What is the yahoo group for this Latin Book 1?  And how does it compare to Henle?

 

Here is the Yahoo! group.  I can't compare the book to Henle. Having joined the group today, I can't really offer anything more. Try searching the forum, though. It has been suggested by others in the past.

[stm4him]

Thanks!

[showelott]

I've found that latin Book One is slower and gives more practice for each topic. For example - Latin Book one covers the first and second declension in 21 lessons while Henle does it in 12.

 

I believe LBO is aimed at middle schoolers and Henle for high schoolers.

 

For me, I find the pace and more reading passages in LBO easier to learn. (It's my first time learning Latin) 

[stm4him]

Where does one buy this book?  

 

Is there anything like it for Greek?

[showelott]

At amazon for $10: http://www.amazon.com/Latin-Book-Harry-Fletcher-Scott/dp/B000YBY9BG

 

At Abebooks for $10: http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/SearchResults?kn=scott&tn=latin+book+one