Blog
Opus?
I received this question: Hi, I am working through Visual Latin. We love the program. We are on Lesson 10. I'm confused on the Reading and Translation. We learned that Predicate Adjectives have to match with the subject nouns that they are describing. This is not...
Buy a bigger pizza.
Quick tip this week. First, some background. I love pizza. I have not figured out how to provide for my family as a pizza blogger. I would if I could. (It's true, Latin. I would leave you for pizza. I am sorry. Gosh... it feels good to admit that publicly.)...
I tried.
Sequence of tenses in Latin is a bewildering concept. Here, I attempted to explain it clearly (Sorry about the poor lighting): https://vimeo.com/259921708
First Year Latin by Robert Henle, or Lingua Latina by Hans Ørberg?
I received this question: Hi Dwane. I am a student in your First Year Latin by Robert Henle. When I started the year I was more than overwhelmed, but I have really liked your class and teaching style. This year I am for the most part understanding the class and...
Be thankful you are not in one of those buses
I read this article once every few months. It reminds me why I will never allow my children to enroll in a government school. ================================================================================================== Picture this. You’re driving down the...
Alert: Lots of problems in the live classes today.
Guys, I don't know what has happened, but today it seems the audio is not working in any of my live classes. I will continue to work on the problem and will re-schedule any classes that are interrupted. I am sorry, everyone. This is pretty rare, but it does...
Ha!
If you grew up in the 90's... you will get it. https://youtu.be/6GVJpOmaDyU
Class from this morning…
Word Up: Live! is back. Here is the class from this morning. We are going to be working our way through the Lingua Latina vocabulary. The class, which meets a 5 AM central time zone, is free to all. However, the old classes are only available to subscribers....
Word Up: Live! is back…
Years ago, my students and I created a master vocabulary document for Lingua Latina. My old site wouldn't allow me to give it away for free. My new site does. Sooo... here you are: https://dwanethomas.com/vocab-for-lingua-latina/ You may also like to know that I will...
Live Q&A Tonight!
Visual Latin? Online classes? Henle Latin? Lingua Latina? Confused? From now until May, I will be hosting live Q&A webinars on Monday nights... starting tonight. No charge. Here is the link: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/rt/5466341193824022017
Yes
I haven't sent an email out on a Saturday in quite some time. The truth is, January and February were pretty dark days. I sank rather low and just didn't feel like I had much to offer. So, I didn't offer much. But, things are improving. And, I am ready to start...
My son is 12. Can he join the Lingua Latina class?
I received this email. I tried to respond, but it bounced back. So... I am responding here: Hello -- My son will be 12 1/2 at the start of the next school year. He (in fifth grade) took a class which covered the first six capitulums of your book, Lingua Latina...
Yikes.
As I have said many times, I am not anti-college. And, I am by no means anti-education. I believe you should get as educated as you possibly can. I believe you should never stop learning. But... I am anti-debt. I subscribe to multiple online newsletters. This...
Live Q&A coming up!
Visual Latin? Online classes? Henle Latin? Lingua Latina? Confused? From now until May, I will be hosting live Q&A webinars on Monday nights. No charge. Here is the link: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/rt/5466341193824022017
Latin and Harry Potter
Some of you know that I am a big Harry Potter fan. Yes, yes. I know the objections. Put your hands down. I taught a short series of classes on the books. The classes explain why I like the books so much. The series is available to subscribers on my site. Most...
Hmmm…
Someone just alerted me. Another problem on my site. That's okay. There are many. We will be working to repair them all over the next few weeks. Anyway, when you try to join my list (maybe you wanted my book) you may end up on an old page that says, "file not...
Schedule 2018 – 2019 (RED)
Now that the new site is up and running, I can get back to work. So, back to work. People have started asking about next year's schedule. So, here goes. First, a short story. I once worked for a school that released upcoming schedules in three stages. Red. Yellow. ...
Go.
Okay.... thanks for being patient. Better brains than mine figured it all out. Everything seems to be working now. If you have any trouble getting into previous classes, let me know. And, if you don't encounter problems... happy learning! - Dwane Not a member...
Now we’ve got problems…
In one of her songs, Taylor Swift points out that she and a boyfriend don't get along anymore. "Baby, now we've got problems. And, I don't think we can solve them." I launched a new site yesterday. And, now I've got problems. I hope we can solve them. Some of you...
Soooo…
Well... the new site is up and I love the way it looks! I hope you do as well. Unfortunately, there are some problems. Some of the old classes will not play. We are trying to figure this out. If you are in a rush to learn Latin, hang in there. ...
New website tomorrow… I hope.
You can tell I built my website alone. You can also tell that I am a Latin teacher, not a website designer. Fortunately, I have a friend who knows how to design websites... and who also understands design. For the past few weeks, he has been re-designing my site. If...
New website tomorrow… I hope.
You can tell I built my website alone. You can also tell that I am a Latin teacher, not a website designer. Fortunately, I have a friend who knows how to design websites... and who also understands design. For the past few weeks, he has been re-designing my site. If...
The silence
My site is about to change drastically. Hopefully... Thursday. In the meantime, the designer is doing all he can to make the transition a smooth transition. During this time, we are doing our best to keep up with correspondence. As always, it may be some time before...
The silence
My site is about to change drastically. Hopefully... Thursday. In the meantime, the designer is doing all he can to make the transition a smooth transition. During this time, we are doing our best to keep up with correspondence. As always, it may be some time before...
I have to cancel some classes.
I hate canceling classes. Hate. Hate. Hate. Double hate. Loathe entirely. That said, I have to cancel two classes this Thursday. Appointment. So... Italian and Greek. Both classes are canceled. Unless... you want to get up early. If enough of you are...
I have to cancel some classes.
I hate canceling classes. Hate. Hate. Hate. Double hate. Loathe entirely. That said, I have to cancel two classes this Thursday. Appointment. So... Italian and Greek. Both classes are canceled. Unless... you want to get up early. If enough of you are...
Business Math?
I received this email: This is not a latin question. We respect your points of view about college and being debt free. My son is very smart and is college material. However, wants to build a business and not go to college. This past summer he began a car wash...
Good luck learning English.
My mom recently sent this to me. Good luck learning English. I love our language... but, what a linguistic train wreck it is. Dearest creature in creation Studying English pronunciation, I will teach you in my verse Sounds like corpse, corps, horse and worse....
Rise and shine.
I received this note from someone in the (now defunct) Word Up Live class. I have been out of town on a business trip this week on Pacific time. I can get up at 4 am, but 3 am was asking too much with a full day’s work following….so I did not join this week. I will...
Two new “classes”.
Sometimes there just isn't enough time in class to cover it all. This has been a major problem with Second Year Latin by Robert Henle. There just isn't always enough time for the readings he assigns. So, on Monday's (until May) we are going to gather to read Caesar's...
Those who can’t, teach….
From age 5 to about age 22, all I wanted to do was fly for the U.S. AirForce. That's it. I was single-mindedly focused on that one goal. Then, I got distracted. I got married. I decided not to yank my kids from country to country every year. I made a decision...
Word Up: Live…. suspended for the week.
Hey, guys! I am shutting "Word Up: Live!" down for the rest of the week. Hopefully, we will be back next week. Thanks for understanding. - Dwane
Ventriloquy
Ventriloquy: The act, art or practice of speaking in such a manner that the voice appears to come not from the person, but from some distant place. Ventriloquy comes from the Latin word ventriloquus which itself comes from two other Latin words. Venter means stomach...
VISUAL LATIN ERRATA: Worksheet 10
A Visual Latin user discovered a spelling mistake in Visual Latin, lesson 10. In the answer section, question 3 should have the following answers: feminam. Here is what you will see: 3. Adam saw the woman __femininam__. (femina) Fortunately, the ending is correct. ...
Pauciloquent
Pauciloquent: Using few words. Brief in speech. Taciturn. Succinct. Laconic. Breviloquent. Pauciloquent comes from the Latin words paucus which means “few” and the Latin verb loquor, meaning “I speak”. “The pauciloquent beggar received few pennies.” “The...
Two words, same meaning
In our series, "Word Up: Live!" this morning, we looked at two English words. Here they are: Loquacious: talkative; garrulous; apt to blab and disclose secrets. Loquacious comes from the Latin verb loquor, meaning “I speak”. Here are a few example sentences: “He...
Help with Henle Latin.
I have finally started working my way through some of the English to Latin exercises in First Year Latin by Robert Henle. This is the beginning of a long project. I hope that it will be helpful to those struggling through this notoriously difficult book....
Interlocutor
Interlocutor: a person who participates in a dialogue or takes part in a conversation; a talker, or a mediator between others. Interlocutor comes from the Latin inter, meaning “between” and the Latin verb loquor, meaning “I speak”. For example: “After our difficult...
YouTube shortcuts
Every Saturday, I send out a tip of the week. I also include announcements, upcoming classes, and so on. If you would like to hear from me every weekend, sign up for my weekly updates here: [yikes-mailchimp form="1"] You subscribe to my "tip of the week" and...
Passing it on.
You subscribe to my "tip of the week" and I appreciate that. I really do. It's a small thing, but it means a lot to me. In person, I am generally taciturn. After twenty years in the classroom, and after twenty years of thinking on my feet, I find it relaxing to...
Greek Numbers
Just found this a few days ago. If you are in my Greek class, and if you are working on pronunciation, this is a great way to practice... and learn the Greek numbers at the same time: https://www.loecsen.com/en/learn-greek/91-2-57-numbers
Link for Word Up: Live!
I foolishly allowed the registration link to die. If you like rising very early to find out where English words came from, join me here: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/regist…/5460760071755583747 The "class" is free. (It's not really a class. No tests. No quizzes....
Colloquy
Good morning, everyone. Today in Word Up: Live! we looked at the word colloquy. Colloquy: a conversation, a conference; a dialogue; especially a formal conversation. Colloquy comes from the Latin word for conversation, colloquium. And, colloquium comes from the Latin...
Can I join the Greek class late?
I received this question: I am a homeschool Mom looking to teach my children Greek. I found your website and see you have an amazing Latin program and we have completed Year 1 of Latina Christiana through Memoria Press. We have enjoyed it, but with Bible study we are...
Keep it breviloquent.
Breviloquence: A brief, laconic, terse way of speaking. Brevity of speech. When Alexander's father, King Philip, threatened to attack the Spartans, he said: “If I invade Laconia (homeland of the Spartans), I will raze it to the ground.” The Spartans responded with...
My favorite email this week.
Last week, I jokingly threatened to shut my site down. Or, maybe I was serious. Can't remember. 🙂 Anyway, I then received this message: “I want to encourage you to please keep up the wonderful work you do to help us all with Latin (and some of us Greek) daily. ...
Word Up: Live!
Here is the most recent episode of Word Up: Live! https://vimeo.com/250436434 Though the class is still experimental, I have decided to extend it for one more week. I am closer to extending it indefinitely. But, I am a guy. Commitment makes me nervous. Anyway, if...
Circumlocution
Circumlocution: an indirect way of speaking when you would rather avoid speaking clearly, speaking directly, or getting to the point. An evasive way of speaking. Try to get a straight answer out of a politician. Good luck. Politicians are known for their...
A new series I am testing…
I am testing a new series. In this series, I will take students through some of the English to Latin sentences in First Year Latin by Robert Henle. Due to technical incompetencies, this video ends abruptly after sentence four. Nonetheless, I'd like to hear what you...
Colloquialism
My girls and I were reading Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis when the word colloquialism popped up. Here is the sentence: “In my talks, I used all the contractions and colloquialisms I ordinarily use in conversation.” - C.S. Lewis in Mere Christianity. I asked my...