HilJoy14 Posted June 21, 2016 Share Posted June 21, 2016 My daughter will be attending a private school next year that begins Latin instruction in 3rd grade. She'll be entering either 4th or 5th grade (she's approved for 5th academically, but she's 9, so we're still deciding) - so she'll be either 1 or 2 years behind on Latin. (There's also a chance we might enroll my 6th grade daughter - so she'd be 3 years behind on Latin, if we decide to do that.) They offer a Latin camp - one week, 3 hours per day - in August. But I'd guess we'll need to study all summer. The school uses Lingua Latina per se Illustrata. That looks like a method that would NOT be my first choice. I think I'd prefer something more like First Form Latin (or Latina Christina) - something more parts-to-whole, I think. But I've never taught/learned Latin, so I'm just looking for the best way to make progress quickly. I'd really think learning conjugations/declensions and how to apply them would be most beneficial? I've also looked at Getting Started with Latin as an option, but I'm not sure how in-depth it gets. So I'm looking for advice. Does anyone have a "learn how to function at a basic level in Latin fairly quickly" plan? or some advice on which curriculum might be best to use this summer? We have 11 weeks as of today, and I'm sure it will take a week to get something ordered (at least - ugh). So 10 weeks at most to make progress... Thanks!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Tick Posted June 21, 2016 Share Posted June 21, 2016 I am not familiar with Lingua Latina, but for such a short time, I would combine GSWL with the free flashcard program Anki. GSWL has 134 lessons, some of the early ones can be compressed, but some of the later ones may need to be extended. It is a cheap, basic introduction to the language. It lays the base for understanding noun declentions and verb conjugations. I would put each lesson into Anki as they go. Anki will take care of timing their vocabulary review, and it is quick. Once you have a routine down with those two, I would try to borrow the first two levels of the Latin program the school uses. Then you could look through those and see what additional vocabulary you can find in to their memory work. If they start that young perhaps there will be enough repetition and review that with some persistent study your dd(s) well find themselves able to catch up easily. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EKS Posted June 21, 2016 Share Posted June 21, 2016 The school must have a plan for dealing with this, beyond the camp I mean. What do they say? Do they have vocabulary lists you could study. When my son took French 1B without first having taken 1A, the vocabulary was the biggest problem. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wapiti Posted June 21, 2016 Share Posted June 21, 2016 Another vote for GSWL. It is the most efficient intro. However, I'd also look into what is covered in the earlier grades at the school. I've seen Lingua Latina, the first one about the family (can't remember what it's called) but not a per se Illustrata edition. I'd want to know what vocabulary and what grammar is covered. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HilJoy14 Posted June 21, 2016 Author Share Posted June 21, 2016 However, I'd also look into what is covered in the earlier grades at the school. I've seen Lingua Latina, the first one about the family (can't remember what it's called) but not a per se Illustrata edition. I'd want to know what vocabulary and what grammar is covered. The full name is "Lingua Latina per se Illustrata", but most people just call it "Lingua Latina". The first book is Pars I: Familia Romana. The school must have a plan for dealing with this, beyond the camp I mean. What do they say? Do they have vocabulary lists you could study. When my son took French 1B without first having taken 1A, the vocabulary was the biggest problem. The school wasn't very helpful when I asked today (speaking to headmaster and principal), but it did sound like I should be able to be connected with the Latin teacher to talk to her directly. So hopefully she'll have more advice. I do think I'll order GSWL right away and at least get going while we're waiting for more info or possibly another program. Even just reading through a chunk myself to help understand the basics would be a good start for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnMyOwn Posted June 24, 2016 Share Posted June 24, 2016 I'd jump in with Lingua Latina. It is pretty enjoyable and easy to use. Buy the exercitia book that goes with it. Read the chapter, do the exercises in the exercitia. Memorize the vocab and work on the memory charts. Here is a link to the memory period of a school that uses Lingua Latina. .http://www.classicalcottageschool.org/memory-period--prayers.html. They have a link so that you can print out the charts as well. If I was going to do one thing this summer, it would be working on memorizing as much of the charts as I could. It would be great if you could find out what chapter they reach by the end of 4th or 5th grade. The charts line up with the chapters and if you knew which chapter they were up to, you could figure out how many of them you should memorize this summer. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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