scrapbookbuzz Posted August 11, 2015 Share Posted August 11, 2015 Has anyone used this curriculum? What was your experience with it? Thinking of possibly using it for my daughter, who's a junior. TIA! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Posted August 11, 2015 Share Posted August 11, 2015 I did not like it all as a spine. We used it for extra reading practice. But that was just me. I like my classical language spines to be oldschool dry chant the declendions type stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ikslo Posted August 11, 2015 Share Posted August 11, 2015 I used it in high school. I still have my books, volume I and II. I have lugged them around with me for over 20 years! So I guess I had a fairly positive experience. I was an Art History major in college, concentrating on late Roman/early Christian art, and I remember it helping me quite a bit that I could read Greek. I'm going to have to reteach myself in order to teach it to DS, but I'm looking forward to it. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hunter Posted August 11, 2015 Share Posted August 11, 2015 I think a more experienced teacher would be able to teach Athenaze better than I could. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ikslo Posted August 11, 2015 Share Posted August 11, 2015 Yeah, I did have really great teachers. I think if your dd took it slow, scrapbookbuzz, and took the time to really master the grammar and declensions, then it is a really rewarding curriculum. Don't sweat it if she doesn't finish the whole book, that sort of thing. Have you taught languages before? Knowing what's important and what's not will help. I took 4 years of German in high school, and 3 years of Greek, and went on to do more language in college. If you weren't a language person and are jumping into Athenaze, it may be that at some point your dd will hit a wall. But if she seems the type to really dig languages, go for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corraleno Posted August 12, 2015 Share Posted August 12, 2015 DS used Athenaze I & II in his Lukeion classes, and really enjoyed them. There's lots of translation from day 1, so it can be time consuming, but also rewarding because students can feel like they're actually reading Greek, not just translating a few random sentences. In the beginning of the book the reading is kind of "Dick & Jane," but becomes progressively more difficult (and authentic) as the book progresses, until students are reading unadapted (albeit highly glossed) Greek by the end of Volume II. I know some people prefer the style of a text like Wheelock's, which is heavy grammar plus translating a few sentences of authentic Latin in each chapter, but DS felt like he retained a lot more from Athenaze because he was seeing the vocabulary and grammar in the context of long passages every week. And the story in Athenaze is often quite funny, especially the episodes involving the slave, Xanthias. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluegoat Posted August 12, 2015 Share Posted August 12, 2015 I used it in university. IIRC we also had a grammar. Our prof was a serious Greek scholar. I really liked the book - I enjoyed the stories and I do think it is ideal for students in ancient languages to have something more to do than just memorize paradigms - for a lot of people the practice using them is what really makes the memories form hard connections. Plus, it's quite a fun story. I don't remember any of my Greek but I still find myself thinking about Dikaiopolis when I am having a bad day. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corraleno Posted August 12, 2015 Share Posted August 12, 2015 I used it in university. IIRC we also had a grammar. Our prof was a serious Greek scholar. I really liked the book - I enjoyed the stories and I do think it is ideal for students in ancient languages to have something more to do than just memorize paradigms - for a lot of people the practice using them is what really makes the memories form hard connections. Plus, it's quite a fun story. I don't remember any of my Greek but I still find myself thinking about Dikaiopolis when I am having a bad day. When I'm trying to get DS to help me with some odious task, like moving heavy boxes, he'll often "reply" using the dialog where Xanthias tries to dissuade Dikaiopolis from making him move a heavy stone, and then "accidentally" drops it on his master's foot when he's forced to help. :laugh: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scrapbookbuzz Posted August 12, 2015 Author Share Posted August 12, 2015 Sounds like Athenaze may be a good fit for us, then. Little background: personally, I am a trained linguist. Having studied two languages already and picking up bits and pieces of others as I go, I'm pretty confident in my ability to teach a language as long as I'm well guided. DD is not so in tune with languages (Spanish was a disaster for her) but she seems to like the small bit of Latin we're doing and is definitely interested in Greek. I tried Wheelock Latin to start and I didn't get it so I ditched it. May just bite the bullet and order Athenaze, starting in the Spring. Also, dd has a friend who would be a year ahead of her in the same curriculum so that would be another thing she and he could talk about. B-) Thanks, all! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamee Posted August 13, 2015 Share Posted August 13, 2015 I would really recommend the Lukeion classes if they fit your timezone. DS tried last year but classes at midnight were not conducive to learning. If you're going to go for it, make sure you get all the materials. He's willing to try again in another year. (That said, he was able to read the passage they had in his Odyssey text in school, and even pick out a few words he knew.) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scrapbookbuzz Posted August 13, 2015 Author Share Posted August 13, 2015 I would really recommend the Lukeion classes if they fit your timezone. DS tried last year but classes at midnight were not conducive to learning. If you're going to go for it, make sure you get all the materials. He's willing to try again in another year. (That said, he was able to read the passage they had in his Odyssey text in school, and even pick out a few words he knew.) It's a lovely idea but paying additional money out of an already tight budget is just not a wise choice for us. If I didn't feel confident in my ability to teach a language with the proper material, I might truly consider it, so thank you for the suggestion. B-) However, I think I'll just invest in the texts and a TM and go from there! B-) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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