Latin's Not So Tough, Anyone with Good or Bad Reviews?

[SonshineLearner]

Hey Everyone,

 

I'm wondering if anyone has had good or bad experience with this series? Also, did you do it with just your family or in a group.

 

Thanks!

Carrie:-)

[abbeyej]

I really, really, really don't care for this program. It's my least favorite that I've reviewed. I haven't used it because inspecting it was enough to really turn me off. I think it moves mind-numbingly slowly in the first few levels, then just becomes very confusing at the higher levels because the grammar is not explicitly explained (nor does it have enough translation practice to make up for that)...

 

There are so many good elementary Latin programs out there -- why go for one that's poorly laid out, doesn't teach much, doesn't go very far...

 

The one positive I've seen over and over about it is that it's so easy to use at the early levels. You can essentially hand it to a child and they can do it on their own. ... My objection to that is that they may be filling out the pages, but they're not *learning* much.

[coffeegal]

We're using Latin's Not So Tough in my family. My oldest son requested switching from Elementary Greek to Hey Andrew (same writer) because he liked the style. It's a slower program than many others and the flashcards are essential. The full answer key has information for the teacher at the beginning of the book, but the short answer key does not. I now ensure I have the full answer key for all workbooks level 3 and up.

 

Each child starts Latin around 4th grade with LNST 2. It's a gentle introduction, memorizing around 50 words over the year. Level 3 picks up the pace and works with creating sentences using nouns and verbs. The endings are taught one at a time, and no chants are learned until level 4. I've found each level makes a serious jump in its complexity. The program does require some one-on-one time for my children to understand the grammar concepts being taught. I discovered, attempting other programs, that I prefer a program that moves slowly and doesn't intimidate us to a program the moves quickly and overwhelms me. Any program that overwhelms me tend to be avoided.

 

HTH!

[GoodGrief]

It's funny you ask this, because I came to the boards tonight looking for a follow-up to _Latin's Not So Tough_! My 11 yo daughter has just completed the 6th and final level (she started in 1st grade), and I'm concerned we're not going to find another program that I like as much!

 

It's worked well for my daughter's personality, because it allows her to work fairly independently. For the last couple of years, she's done the work in the book, checked her answers from the key, and moved on. She likes working with the flashcards, and those seem to help with vocabulary retention.

 

It's a no fuss, no muss kind of program, and that's just my style, lol!

 

My goal with Latin in the elementary years is to build a foundation of knowledge, so that she can slide into community college courses with "live" teachers in the high school years. I think of Latin translation as puzzle-solving, and appreciate the mental gymnastics involved.

 

Of course, now I need to find something that will keep her going until she can do those community college courses! ;)

[Katrina]

but I think part of the problem was that I didn't know Latin myself so I couldn't explain anything myself when my dd got confused about something. However, I didn't even know there were two different teachers manuals, so maybe if I had gotten the other manual things might have been different.

[BryRon]

I didn't know there were 2 different manuals, either. And do you know what is sad? I have come to a screeching halt at the word "puella" because I am afraid I am going to teach it incorrectly...so, I am off to find the other manuals!

 

 

 

but I think part of the problem was that I didn't know Latin myself so I couldn't explain anything myself when my dd got confused about something. However, I didn't even know there were two different teachers manuals, so maybe if I had gotten the other manual things might have been different.

[Guest No Nonsense]

Last year my son attended a Classical school that tought Latin. He was getting good grades in Latin and was comfortable with learning the language. This year we decided to homeschool and I wanted to continue with his Latin. I found Latin's Not So Tough Level 3 and decided to try it after reading reviews and the description. The course was confusing and frustrating for him. The vocaulary words in the back of the student book were not very well explained in the lessons. Some Latin words have more than one meaning and it was left to the student to assume what the right meaning was to be when translating. Also, thhe sentences set up for translation made no sense at all. For example: "Vias paro et portas et villas", when translated means "I prepare the roads and the gates and the farmhouses" or "Pugno equum agricolae" which means "I fight the farmer's horse." Also, toward the end we found pages missing in the student book! However, to be fair the missing pages could just be a fluke. Needless to say, my son did rather poorly this year in Latin. He was very upset. This soured Latin for him and now he wants to go on to something else.