I received this question:
Hello, I am looking for a continued Latin program for my son. He has completed Latin for Children A and B for Classical Academic Press. Can you guide me as to what class would be appropriate for him?
Here is my reply:
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I’m not entirely familiar with Latin for Children, so I’m going out on a limb here. I hear great things about it. People seem to like it.
That said, I would still recommend Visual Latin. Here’s why:
Most Latin programs take six or seven years to complete. At that point, students begin reading the classics. Unfortunately, also at that point, students find out they can’t really read the classics. They need lots of help.
I think this is because most Latin programs spread the process out over too many years.
Visual Latin takes students from zero to reading the New Testament in Latin by the end of the second year. This is not easy. In fact, this is quite tough. Most people say that Visual Latin has become rather challenging by lesson 15. There are 60 lessons. It is, for this reason, I suggest people start at the beginning.
It’s annoying, I know, to start over. Just don’t think of it as starting over. Think of the first 15 lessons as a high-speed review.
If that doesn’t sound like a course you want to take, there is and even more aggressive route you can take. You could start reading Lingua Latina by Hans Ørberg. This is my all-time favorite Latin book. It is also one of the toughest books available for students learning Latin. It is a novel, written completely in Latin, which teaches students to the grammar and vocabulary of the language as they go. There is nothing else out there like it. Anyone who says differently is selling something.
You do not need my help to read this book. It was designed for self-study. However, if it’s just too much, I do take students through Lingua Latina every year over on my site: www.dwanethomas.com.
I hope I have answered your question. Feel free to contact me again if I have only confused you.
Have a happy Thursday! Dwane Thomas
By the way, every Saturday, I send out a tip of the week. I also include announcements, upcoming classes, and so on. This is the main way I keep up with students and parents. If you would like to hear from me every weekend, and if you haven’t already signed up… sign up for my weekly updates here:
https://dwanethomas.com/tip-week-archives/
