I am looking to teach Latin next year at our school. This class will be geared toward middle school boys (not that we're excluding girls, but I figure the class will likely be mostly boys). Here is the catch: I don't know Latin, aside from the common theological terms we use. So, with that in mind, I am looking for the best way to proceed. Should I take the summer to learn as much as possible and then teach the children next semester, or should I learn along with them? If I learn by myself beforehand, what textbook should I use, and what is a good textbook for middle school children?
Latin Textbook for Middle School Students
- Thread starter Taylor
- Start date
-
- Tags
- latin middle school school textbook
JD
Puritan Board Freshman
https://fivebooks.com/best-books/learning-latin-harry-mount/
I don't know any Latin either and my kids are still preschool age, but I plan to use Kennedy's Latin Primer.
Zondervan does a Basics of Latin course (https://courses.zondervanacademic.com/basics-of-latin) I plan to use to give myself a headstart when the time comes.
I don't know any Latin either and my kids are still preschool age, but I plan to use Kennedy's Latin Primer.
Zondervan does a Basics of Latin course (https://courses.zondervanacademic.com/basics-of-latin) I plan to use to give myself a headstart when the time comes.
I would learn as much Latin ASAP before teaching. I looked through my library for my old Latin textbook but can't find it. It must be in a box somewhere.
Edit to add: Here's the book I went through last time around. There is also a workbook to go along with the main text.
To see preview: https://books.google.com/books?id=p6gKCgAAQBAJ&source=gbs_book_other_versions
Edit to add: Here's the book I went through last time around. There is also a workbook to go along with the main text.
Amazon.com: Learn to Read Latin: 9780300194951: Keller, Andrew, Russell, Stephanie: Books
Amazon.com: Learn to Read Latin: 9780300194951: Keller, Andrew, Russell, Stephanie: Books
www.amazon.com
To see preview: https://books.google.com/books?id=p6gKCgAAQBAJ&source=gbs_book_other_versions
Last edited:
Charles Johnson
Puritan Board Junior
My university used Learn Latin from the Romans by Eleanor Dickey. It wasn't my favorite textbook. There's some kind of inexplicable trend in classics departments of teaching the third declension first and it's just silly.
Personally I have taken a liking to Gunnison's First Year of Latin Based on Caesar's War with the Helvetii. Plus, it's in the public domain, so pdfs are free. And if you want it printed you can just print it, for probably $15 a copy.
It is popular right now to recommend Lingua Latina Per Se Illustrata as a Latin textbook. That's probably an ok text to use to teach the kids, but it would be kind of worthless for your own study, since all its grammatical explanations are printed in Latin.
Ultimately, though, taking time to study and practice reading matters a lot more than what textbook one uses. The end result of all textbooks is learning the language, if one puts in the time, or not learning, if one doesn't.
Polanus1561
Puritan Board Senior
Taylor, are you bi vocational?
I’m already teaching Greek; been doing so for almost two years. I’m adding Latin to the curriculum. While Greek is probably the most valuable (because of Scripture), Latin is still immensely valuable. There is a mountain of Latin theological literature in the West yet to be translated.
Plus, teaching Latin would accomplish my ulterior motive: to learn Latin myself.
Pretty much, for the time being. But this school is with our church.
Charles Johnson
Puritan Board Junior
Latin is a lot easier to start with, since much of the vocabulary is in common with English, and it helps one get a good understand of the grammar of classical languages, which is useful when studying Greek. There is also a more to read in Latin than Greek, including half the Church fathers, and almost every notable theologian 800-1750 A.D (some Puritans that wrote in English being the exception).