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Sarah M
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Okay. In the past, I have totally brushed off Latin as a school subject. I don't know any Latin, and I don't think anyone I know IRL does either. BUT.... I keep seeing it come up in the plans of homeschoolers I respect and admire (even unschoolers' plans...).
So.... I'd like to hear from those who do teach Latin. Why is it so important?
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CrunchyMom
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I've never read the book, but Climbing Parnassus is a book that answers your question. Here are some articles regarding the book that brush upon the reasons:
The Case for Parnassus
Climbing Parnassus
Interview with Author
The Latin Centered Way of Climbing Parnassus
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Tami
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Memoria Press has a number of articles on the 'why' of Latin here. There is an archive section (same page) with lots of good things there. These give sound educational reasons.
From a church perspective, if you are Catholic you might want to consider it simply because it
~is~ the official language of the Church. Lots of Catholic reading is peppered with Latin. And as the Church is ordered and logical, in her structure and in the explanation/defense of her teachings, so is Latin. It's such a perfect match.
Hope this helps! 
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Tami
When we are crushed like grapes, we cannot think of the wine we will become. (Nouwen)
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cvbmom
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Tami wrote:
From a church perspective, if you are Catholic you might want to consider it simply because it
~is~ the official language of the Church. Lots of Catholic reading is peppered with Latin. And as the Church is ordered and logical, in her structure and in the explanation/defense of her teachings, so is Latin. It's such a perfect match.
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Tami, I love your reasoning 
God bless,
Christine
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Cay Gibson
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All I can offer is that it helps w/ test scores since most our words are rooted in Latin. 
If it's any comfort to you, if it was left up to me my children would suffer severe neglect in Latin. 
When I hsed my oldest, our pastor offered a Latin class for the homeschoolers.
Now we have a "4Real" Latin teacher teaching three levels at our co-op. She majored in and taught Latin at LSU college!!!
We are so blessed.
If it's any help, she uses Latina Christiana and Henle and they play lots of word games in class.
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Evette
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I have Latina Christiana, but I have not used it yet (I purchased it two years ago). 
I started reading the teachers manual several times over the last two years and always gave up. After reading through the links, I feel inspired to give it a another try.
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LLMom
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It's good for learning English grammar and vocabulary. Plus we attend a Latin Mass so it helps with that too.
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Sarah,
You and I keep thinking and asking the same questions 
My question is for those of you that teach Latin, do you teach another language as well? For example Spanish or French or ASL?
Just thinking through my future plans and scheduling.
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Mimi
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Barbara C.
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I can see certain perks to knowing Latin (Catholicism, English vocabulary, base for learning other languages, science vocabulary). I could say the same for Greek and a million other things, but alas there is really only so much that you can teach your kids without being a slave driver.
I would like us to eventually learn certain phrases/responses in Latin that are used in the Mass. But otherwise I plan to use one of the English vocabulary programs that is based on Latin and Greek roots.
Actually, I probably would have taken Latin if my Catholic high school had offered but our only choices were French or Spanish.
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jdostalik
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1. Teaches grammar better than a typical English course ever could.
2. Helps with vocabulary (a big help on the PSAT/SAT down the road).
3. Helps when you decide to do another language (French, Spanish or any Romance language all have Latin roots--you will learn a new language much easier).
4. Helps with memory work/retention.
5. It is the language of Holy Mother Church!
6. The ancillary study of Ancient Rome becomes more meaningful!
We have used Prima Latina, Latina Christiana I and II with much success (LC I and II have been done online with Memoria Press' online courses--I hope to be able to learn alongside with some of my kids eventually, but for now, I just teach Prima Latina and then farm out the big kids to Memoria Press... 
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mariB
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Jennifer, your list above says it all...We do it for most of those reasons and because I just feel we should in my gut...every time I try to leave it...we have to go back!
A big part for me is that it is the language of The Church.
We like Latina Christiana.
Our 17 and 15 year olds have been taking an online course for the past couple of years and are finishing up Latin II. Our 15 year old will continue with Latin III next year for 10th grade.
There is so much "meat" to Latin. In other words grammar, ancient history, writing (highschoolers write in Latin Journals everyday), and it definitely exercises the mind with lots of analytical thinking!
We always do Catechism, math, Latin, literature...and then the rest is really loose at our house. So having Latin some how has made me feel a little more relaxed as a home schooling mother. Of course I do absolutely no Latin with the high schoolers...any of their Latin questions go right to their online teacher.
With the 5, 9, and 13 year olds we are using Latina Christiana. I plan to buy the DVD's. The five year old likes to have a zip lock baggie with copies of "pictures" with the latin word attached. Example, a picture of a girl with puella, puellae written on the bottom. She likes to play patty- cake games with her sister so...we do lots of rhymes but we also do Latin chants like "amo, amas amat, amamus, amatis amant" :)
We probably won't do the same online course with the 13 year old as our older boys have...our family's schedule has changed a bit...looking at Memoria Press for him!
My advice would be do Latin with your children if you, the mother, is inspired to! I've always felt that way about subjects that we chose for home schooling. Have you ever used books that every time you pulled them out you wanted to gag? I have! I have friends that would never consider doing Latin...it seems overwhelming to them or they dislike the idea...and you know what? That's O.K. for them! I have one friend whose daughter does not like the online class that our boys take but loved Latina Christiana! I guess it is really about what fits for each family!
If you want your children to do higher levels of Latin but have no experience, than I would recommend a co-op or an online class!
Blessings,
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CrunchyMom
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I will add something that is in the articles I linked. It isn't just "grammar" and English skills (though, studying Latin often can take the place of a dedicated English grammar course). Latin also teaches the sort of logical thinking skills that Algebra does. I don't actually use Algebra much at all, but I think I benefitted from having taken it more than just performing well on a standardized test.
There is a rigor in studying it that trains the mind to think, but in studying it, you are also studying the works that are the basis for Western culture and edify the soul--something Algebra can't boast.
My friend who is a die hard classicist (she has her Masters in Ancient Languages) emphasizes translation early on. However, she does not start teaching it until age 9 when the are established independent readers and have some basic English grammar under their belts.
Also, you could always start teaching the prayers in Latin as well as learning some Latin hymns to expose it to your children in a real way without having to decide right away to formally introduce a curriculum.
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jdostalik
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mariB wrote:
There is so much "meat" to Latin. In other words grammar, ancient history, writing (highschoolers write in Latin Journals everyday), and it definitely exercises the mind with lots of analytical thinking!
We always do Catechism, math, Latin, literature...and then the rest is really loose at our house. So having Latin some how has made me feel a little more relaxed as a home schooling mother. |
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I couldn't agree more--especially with that last paragraph! Are you my twin?
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Jennifer in TX
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italianalaskan
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So, is any of you doing just Latin for grammar with your kids?
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jdostalik
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I am with my oldest daughter, Maggie. I use Easy Grammar and Primary/Intermediate Language Lessons with my younger kids here and there but once they hit LC I and LC II, I hope to continue dropping formal grammar studies ( the olders will still do writing using IEW).
Hope this helps!!
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Jennifer in TX
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BrendaPeter
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italianalaskan wrote:
| So, is any of you doing just Latin for grammar with your kids? |
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Yes, just Latin. We're very "Latin-Centered" over here.
If you want to have your kids learn the prayers quickly, pray the Rosary in Latin .
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have you read the well trained mind? that book is what hooked me on latin. a very good read.
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helene
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My husband teaches Latin at a seminary and I had 6 years of it in my own educational background, but we don't start teaching it to our kids until about 8th or 9th grade when a foreign language becomes a serious subject for high school. It seems there are so many other things to teach in those younger grades, including a solid grammatical basis upon which a study of Latin would later depend. But maybe it's just that it slips through the cracks because practically speaking I can never seem to get to it until suddenly my student is in high school!........sorry, that wasn't very convincing, was it?
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LeeAnn
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italianalaskan wrote:
| So, is any of you doing just Latin for grammar with your kids? |
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We is!
We are also using Latin-Centered Curriculum.
My 11yo is halfway through LCII, my 9yo is just starting LCI.
I do also have my 9yo using the CHC Language of God grammar workbook since it teaches things like common abbreviations and how to write a letter, etc., that aren't taught through Latin. Otherwise, we aren't doing any other formal grammar study but Latin.
Latin and Math are our two daily subjects, everything else comes in rotation.
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Mackfam
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CrunchyMom wrote:
| you could always start teaching the prayers in Latin as well as learning some Latin hymns to expose it to your children in a real way without having to decide right away to formally introduce a curriculum. |
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I take a sort of relaxed approach to Latin in the home...possibly because my oldest is still only 12. A couple of years ago, the Holy Father requested that all Catholics learn the basic prayers of the Church in Latin. I found that to be a joyful way to introduce Latin for us. We enjoy learning Latin hymns - they are so beautiful. I didn't find Latina Christiana a good fit for our family, but we did enjoy Prima Latina and it was instructive for me, yet gentle enough for me to use with all the children at once. It started us learning those basic prayers in Latin. I'm still discerning what to use with the children next year, but I'm leaning towards Classical Academic Press - Latin for Children.
I do find a great deal of beauty in Latin - particularly the fact that Latin is the language of the Church, but also because of the beauty of order in the language. I don't think there is a need to rush into Latin study...but that's just my 2cents. Wouldn't it be beautiful to just print the basic prayers in Latin and English and introduce them gently over the year? Perhaps you could work in Adoro te Devote and Salve Regina as well.
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4Real Forums : Living Learning
Topic: convince me: Latin
