Blog
Where we are in the books: December 2 – 7
We are back! Classes resume tomorrow, December 3, 2019. I may cancel the early morning classes only from December 11 - 14. We will see. I will let you know. There will be no classes at all from December 23 - January 4. Classes will resume January 7, 2020....
Monday morning classes cancelled again.
I go back and forth on the early Monday morning First Year Latin class. I know. I know. I am cancelling them again. During the month of December, my wife and I will be serving breakfast at the Nashville rescue mission. Breakfast starts at 5:30 am... so, the First...
Which Latin Bible do you recommend?
I received this question: I want to buy my daughter a Latin Bible. We are not Catholic, so I don't have any experience with the different versions. If you do, would you recommend the Clementine or Jerome translation? What about a French Bible? If we want to use them...
High school credit.
I get high school credit questions all the time. I could reply to the credit question. Or, I could let someone else handle this one for me. This response, by Susan Wise Bauer, is the best response I have seen:...
Why colleges are going down the drain.
I try not to repost too much. After all, I know some of you are reading the same things I am reading. I don't like wasting your time. Though... I really like wasting my own time. But, that's another story. Anyway, this post by James Altucher made me roll my eyes....
Where we are in the books: November 18-23
Reminder: There will be no classes on Tuesday, November 26 and Thursday, November 28. There will be morning classes (First Year Latin by Robert Henle only) that week for anyone who wants to show up. ================================================= First Year...
Just didn’t feel like typing.
I received this question: My daughter is using your Henle Latin I videos to help her through her Classical Conversations Latin class. We have heard that it is super important to memorize the principal parts of each verb. In your videos it sounds like you don’t...
Where we are in Second Year Latin by Robert Henle
https://vimeo.com/372972553
Where we are in the books: November 3 – 9
Reminder: There will be no classes on Tuesday, November 26 and Thursday, November 28. There may be morning classes that week for anyone who wants to show up. Maybe. ================================================= First Year Latin by Robert Henle In the early...
What I teach my own kids If I could start over
I received this question: I have worked through Memoria Press's Prima Latina, First Form Latin, and Second Form Latin with my high school age students, and we are a few lessons into Third Form. Honestly, it's become a bit of a slog and I don't think we are doing a...
Why am I just now learning about this podcast?
A few weeks ago, I recommend a book, Skip College: Launch Your Career Without Debt, Distractions, or a Degree. Naturally, it got me into some trouble. Lost some subscribers. Made some enemies. But, it also encouraged some people. Made some new friends. Opened some...
Modern people can’t read this.
Someone suggested I put something funny on a t-shirt. Something like, "Modern people can't read this"... in Latin. So, I did. I am using teespring to do this. Looking for a lower cost alternative. But, for now, if you want t-shirt, sweatshirt, or pair of leggings...
Visual Latin Errata, Lesson 12
I received this question: A question for Lesson 12: pg 46 #3 and #6 are both Venit to match to a plural and singular imperative. Wouldn't one of them need the -nt plural ending for the indicative to know which one is plural? Here is my reply: Correct. I have fixed...
Where we are in the books: November 3 – 9
Reminder: There will be no classes on Tuesday, November 26 and Thursday, November 28. There may be morning classes that week for anyone who wants to show up. Maybe. ================================================= First Year Latin by Robert Henle In the early...
Will this be on the test?
A few weeks ago, I read an article by Seth Godin. I love reading his work. He is succinct. Blunt. To the point. My kind of writing. The kind of writing that gets you into trouble. Read this. It won't take long. =================================================...
Lingua Latina will meet on Wednesday this week
Guys, I will be out of town again on Thursday. I will not be back until Sunday. Morning classes are cancelled Thursday-Saturday. But, I did not want to cancel the Lingua Latina classes this week. So, just this once, those classes will meet tomorrow, Wednesday,...
Saturday morning classes cancelled.
I can't seem to get a break lately. I HATE cancelling classes, guys. But, a family issue has suddenly come up this morning, and I have to take care of it right now. I am so sorry. We will just expand classes into early May to make up for all we have missed.
School is dehumanising.
“School is dehumanising. It serves a number of purposes, two of which are babysitting and the inculcation of conformity. Few people look back on their schooldays as being the happiest of their lives. Homeschooling, on the other hand, trains a child to associate...
I am adding a “new” class… but, not really.
For those of you in the Lingua Latina classes, you know that we are working our way through the exercise workbook Mr. Ørberg wrote. Here is the book (in case you don't know what I am talking about): Exercitia Latina I. Because the Exerctia exercises are so detailed,...
Tip of the Week #150: Eat your Veggies!
Yesterday, my wife invited some friends and relatives over for lunch. She made a cheesecake. But, here's the thing. She made it from cashews. I suppose she should have called it cashewcake. No one complained. Quite the opposite. Everyone was really enjoying...
Tip #149: Skip College
Time for me to weed out some subscribers. I am going to do this by recommending a book. New York author James Altucher says that if he walked into Times Square and yelled, "I am God, and I am here to save you!" he would get some strange looks, but most people would...
Tip #148: Track your ideas the old-fashioned way
Phones, Ipads, email, computers, and social media... I find it all so distracting. Perhaps you do too. If you are having trouble staying on task, if you are having trouble getting things done, if you find yourself constantly distracted by all the flashing screens,...
Missed class and cancelled classes.
Guys, the last 24 hours have been loads of fun for me. Without going into a bunch of details, let me just say this. Classes are cancelled for the next few days. Problems on my site, and problems with some other sites. All at once. Problems all seem to show up in...
Mmmhmm.
I am a big fan of education. Self-education. I am, however, no fan of school. At all. I am with H.L. Mencken on this one. “School days, I believe, are the unhappiest in the whole span of human existence. They are full of dull, unintelligible tasks, new and...
Errata: Visual Latin, lesson 2
I keep getting this question: I am trying to understand the Lesson 2A worksheet (pg 5). I do not understand why all of the words are circled. Are the nouns adjectives as well? Here is my reply: Looks like I may have made a mistake. I’ll check into it. Meanwhile,...
Game show
I received this question: My son is loving the Latin course! He’s programming a game show to review the concepts and vocabulary learned in each lesson. It’s so fun! And it’s especially helpful for me. 😀 He’s trying to determine the best way to say “game show” in...
Can you guys stop emailing me….
.... so that I can get back to watching more videos like these? https://youtu.be/enTEvon9pbw https://youtu.be/rw7PUrgU3N0
I need to spend more time in the gym.
This letter made me laugh... and, inspired me to work out more. This has become such a regular joke in our house I thought I'd share it with you: Last Spring my (then 7 year old) asked what I was doing on the computer. "Watching my Dwayne Thomas Latin lesson," I...
Could I see an example class?
Classes on my site started last week, but you didn't miss anything. I record every class I teach, and I only take them down if I am updating them. Currently, there are 17 classes with around 1,500 videos all arranged by units. In other words, you could go from...
Could I see an example class?
Classes on my site started last week, but you didn't miss anything. I record every class I teach, and I only take them down if I am updating them. Currently, there are 17 classes with around 1,500 videos all arranged by units. In other words, you could go from...
Why I do what I do.
This week, I received this note: Thank you for teaching Latin the way you do. Latin went from a “want to beat our heads on the table” subject to something that is maybe enjoyable! Laughter and Latin weren’t ever mixed before. - Sara I record every class I teach, and I...
Desperately behind.
All classes started this week. I know you guys have lots of questions. I know because my email inbox is full. I will be working today and tomorrow to catch up on all questions. Dwane
Yep. Even during tests.
I received this question: My son is taking the tests for Henle 1 (watch anytime) and he was wondering if students are allowed to use your Latin charts during the test or if they’re meant to be taken strictly from memory? Here is my reply: I have a different approach...
🙂
"We finally made the switch to Visual Latin after struggling through Henle for two years. My only regret is that we didn’t switch sooner. My kids 14,13 and 11 are LOVING it! They can finally understand what they are doing and my 11 year old is already translating...
Which Latin accent is correct?
I get this question often. Which Latin accent is correct? I have no idea. This is the accent I imitate: https://live.bible.is/bible/LATNV1/MAT/1?audio_type=audio_drama I tell you what. When you can tell me which English accent is correct, I will tell you which Latin...
All we need is a little patience.
A few months ago, my daughter and I were in Ireland. She and I were there exploring for several weeks. Here for work, and for play. Long story short, she has a friend over here who invited her to come for a few weeks. I go to Europe every chance I get. Born and...
Skipping class
I received this question: My son has a class at 11:00 sharp on Tuesdays as well at a local homeschooling families house. He has to bike there so he would need to depart here no later than 10:30…thus having to leave the Tuesday class early. Is that ok? I know he can...
How to find your grades on my site.
I received this question: How can I see my student’s grades for quizzes etc taken in your anytime classes? Here is my reply: Sometimes a video explanation is so much better than a written explanation. https://vimeo.com/355410011
High school credit.
I received this question: My son is transferring schools this academic year ('18-'19) and his new school does not offer Latin. He used Lingua Latina for Latin I during his freshman year at his old school and I have been searching online for a suitable course. Your...
Spanish?
I received this question: For Spanish, will the class have a native speaker to listen to or is this mainly textbook teaching? Here is my reply: Textbook. We will be reading through this book: https://archive.org/details/pocopocoelementa00hallrich/page/n4 I will be...
Email of the week
I received this email. Made my day. "We tried online high school classes for one year, and it was a miserable failure, and our sons now have an immediate aversion for any type of online class that requires videos. When I checked in with our son after he...
Morning classes cancelled today.
Guys, I am sorry. The webinar software I use simply will not work this morning. First, I couldn't record... now, I can't get the system to even turn on. Off to contact tech support. We will try this again tomorrow. Again, I am very sorry. Dwane
Spanish?
I received this question: For Spanish, will the class have a native speaker to listen to or is this mainly textbook teaching? Here is my reply: Textbook. We will be reading through this book: https://archive.org/details/pocopocoelementa00hallrich/page/n4 I will be...
I am teaching two First Year Latin Henle classes this year.
I received this question: I've subscribed to your classes for my son, who will be in Classical Conversations Challenge 1. I'm not certain which placement is appropriate based on your description. (I assume "Latin 1" is right, but don't know what "We will be picking up...
Henle Latin. How it’s going to work this year.
I received this question: I'm a Classical Conversations parent and am excited to see that you'll offer Henle 1 live this year. I read somewhere on your site that it will "pick up where we left off". Will the class not start at the beginning of the Henle 1 book this...
Cops in Athens, Cops in Franklin, Cops in the classroom.
This is going to get weird. Hang in there with me. Hopefully, it will all make sense. I have been studying Latin for 20 years. I still get the endings wrong. It's ridiculous. Here is part of the problem... and, I think it's a big part of the problem. Latin has...
How will we get a grade in the French course?
I received this question: My son is excited to be joining you for French this year, although probably for the recorded lectures. I do have a question on whether you will be going through the exercises that are in the book? There does not appear to be a workbook like...
You may find these questions helpful…
I received a series of questions. You may find them helpful. Her questions are followed by my bold answers. 1) The Henle I class will begin from the beginning in September. Yes. 2) You teach the Henle classes every morning. Correct. That is happening now. These...
Visual Latin and High school credit
I received this question: My son (9th grade) will be doing Visual Latin this year. I am hearing conflicting info on whether VL meets high school requirements, some are saying it is used for college. I homeschool, so I wish to ensure that my son has the high school...
What I teach my own kids If I could start over
I received this question: I have worked through Memoria Press's Prima Latina, First Form Latin, and Second Form Latin with my high school age students, and we are a few lessons into Third Form. Honestly, it's become a bit of a slog and I don't think we are doing a...