Thursday, October 22, 2009

Book Suggestions for the Individual at Level 0- (Zero Minus) or Square One.

Fun Books for People who wish to casually study and learn Latin.

I know there is a group of people out there who will never savor the journey and quest that each goal we make requires of us.  Some people want to simply cut to the chase.  While I do not usually pursue my goals this way, I understand those who may choose to do so.  Consequently, I have come up with a list of books that will get the Beginning Latin Learner on the road.

Now, by Beginning Latin Learner, or BELL as I will refer to them in future, I mean the individual who has had no prior exposure to the Latin language.  If you studied it in school, you are not an absolute beginner, or as they say in Latin, tyro.  The following books are designed to help people at level zero. While each book has its own pros and cons, some books have more pros, and some books have more cons.  These books can usually be found at any major bookseller such as Amazon, Borders, Barnes and Noble, BooksaMillion or other mass marketers.

1.  Getting Started with Latin:  Beginning Latin for Homeschoolers and Self-Taught Students of Any Age.  William E. Linney.  Armfield Academic Press, 2007.  
This is an excellent choice for those starting at square 1.  This book is for those who have NO linguistic background at all.  The lessons are very, very simple and take about 30 minutes.  The lessons in the book are easy to schedule into a very busy schedule. However, the lessons must be done every day to see progress. The only negative aspect about this book is that the pace for some, NOT ALL however, is slow.  Remember since you set your own pace as you learn, this may or may no be an advantage or not.  On my scale of 0 to 10, with 0 being the lowest and 10 the highest, I give it an 8. It is truly the ideal book for someone who has never learned another language nor spoken another language.

2. Learn Latin.  Peter Jones. Duckworth, 2008. ISBN-13: 978-0715627570.
   This book is also a great choice for those who have little Latin background.  Mr. Jones who is an eminent classicist in Britain has written books on learning Latin for all levels.  In this book, he is able to take ideas which seem dry and stiff and make them into fun, alive concepts which are very simple to do.  He gives you small bites of Latin that are easily chewed and absorbed.  He also suggests further readings for those whose appetite for more Latin he has whetted.  Once again, one must work on this for 20 to 30 minutes every day; however, each section is set up that way.  This book uses the British model of Latin teaching; e.g., Verbs are presented first and the order of the cases is Nominative, Accusative, etc., not Nominative, Genitive, etc. like here in the U.S.A.  On my scale of 0 to 10, with 0 being the lowest and 10 the highest, I give this book a 7.  This is an excellent book for the casual Latin learner who wants to seem erudite without having invested much in its pursuit.

3.  Beginner's Latin.  G.D.A. Sharpley.  This book also is a good choice for those who think they don't have any linguistic experience.  The author gently leads and guides the student slowly, step by step.  The author keeps the grammatical and linguistic explanations to a bare minimum.  The book teaches Latin by using the story of monks in a monastery.  The story is quite charming, but the way Latin is taught using the story is well done.  One gets a sense of classical Latin grammar but with a more medieval Latin vocabulary and tone; one could say it is the best way to start if one is unsure about which road to take. However, the best part of the book are the two CDs which accompany the book.  Most of the book is presented orally on the CDs (there are some sections that are omittted).  In my opinion, one learns to tune one's ear and brain to the sounds of spoken Latin starting at the very beginning.  All of these unique features come together well in making  a pleasant linguistic experience.  I rank this book on a scale of 0 to 10 at 7.5.

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Routes to Latin Fluency

In my last entry, I talked about setting and achieving your linguistic goals with Latin. If you have not yet decided on what you want out of your Latin studies, do so now before proceeding. Without these highly defined objectives and goals, you will have no way of measuring your progress nor staying focused on your learning and fun with the language. And, you will end up having a bad experience, which Latin ought not to be.

There are as many different ways of learning as there are learners. My aunt, Miss G. Ipson, who is a special education teacher says, "All of us are both gifted and talented learners and special education learners at the same time." In other words, we all have our learning strengths and weaknesses. Latin learning is no different. You will find aspects of it which you can excel at and other aspects which may frustrate you. This, too, can be an obstacle to learning and having fun with the language. Know your learning styles and play to your strengths. It's as simple as that. Knowing this is important to know so you can select the best style of Latin course for you. There are all kinds of different course styles for people who wish to teach themselves.

I want to tell you about the two principle routes and other less traveled routes one can take into Latin learning, from which you can choose your course and course style. Each one has its advantages and disadvantages. I do have my favorites, but those are suited to me. Each one also has similar, but not identical, destinations. One must consider the journey sightly more than the destination though since one can have great fun along the journey as well as at the destination. Please seriously consider these routes as they can bear sweet and delightful fruits.

The first principle route consists of learning Latin from the Classics by reading classical authors and imitating their writing style and vocabulary. This is a great method, and it is most widely used. This method relies very heavily on grammar, parsing, and translation. All who are serious about learning Latin sooner or later will study the Classics and Latin this way, which I personally love since in part the Classics motivated me to study Latin. There are many books and audio-visual courses based on this method. If you follow this method, you can expect a certain degree of reading fluency and perhaps some writing fluency. No one ought to judge you by the amount and kind of Latin you want. This is also the principle method for teaching Ecclesiastical Latin.

The next route one can take is studying Latin as any modern language. You learn to speak Latin and use it as you would Spanish, Mandarin, Arabic, Russian, or English. You can then use it with the growing numbers of Latin speakers in the world. Latin is not a dead language as many say. Recently it is beginning to enjoy a rebirth or renaissance in the world. The secret of this way of learning Latin is that not only will you be able to speak the language, but being able to speak it will lead to being able to read and write the language easier. I think that this is the best way to achieve fluency in writing and reading. This way you will also learn the Classics since Modern Spoken Latin is based on the thoughts, words, expressions and linguistic patterns of the Classic writers. Modern Latin, however, also allows for new expressions of thought and idioms to be invented--one of the myriad ways one can have fun with the language. Unfortunately, there are not many programs of this kind yet. This is also not the method currently used in most schools and universities. You may find some hostility towards this method; but, I believe this is so only because the power that be do not want to democratize the teaching of Latin.

You can also start with Ecclesiastical Latin or Medieval Latin. Both are excellent starting points too. They are taught, however, by the first method described above. If you could find Medieval or Ecclesiastical programs that start with the oral language, that would be even better. There is and will be a greater resurgence of Ecclesiastical Latin because of Pope Benedict XVI. He wants it to be fostered and used more. Medieval Latin is considered a hybrid between the Ecclesiastial (much of which is Medieval) and the Classical. They both can be rewarding, too.

Now, weigh your options in your mind. When you have made your choice, come back and we'll start you in the right kiddie pool for Latin Immersion. Remember though, if you decide to change routes in the middle, there is nothing wrong. Our learning has to be adapted to our lives, not the other way around.

Sunday, October 4, 2009

The Latin Kiddie Pool

“If immersion is the best way to learn a language, then let me start in the linguistic kiddie pool.”

This is the Latin Language Kiddie Pool. We made this Kiddie Pool for all of us who want to learn Latin but never learned a “foreign” language successfully—including English. We designed the Kiddie Pool to prepare you to jump into language immersion. We think that complete immersion with nothing wavering is the best way to learn languages. ‘Learning by doing’ is still the most comprehensive way to learn a language, but we know that you have to be prepared before you jump in. Here at the Latin Kiddie Pool, we want to give you a few things before you dive into complete and total immersion. We do NOT believe in devices to keep you 'afloat' because these will only retard your language assimilation. We do believe that there are somethings that you need to know before you start your study of Latin.

Before we start any endeavor we need to count its cost and be able to afford the cost. Perhaps this sounds axiomatic, but it is true for all things we undertake, especially learning any new skill or talent. When one talks about learning Latin, one should ask oneself what are the linguistic goals one has. Does one want reading fluency to savor the classics and nothing more? Does one want to be able to write it fluently, too? Or, does one want to SPEAK Latin? How far are YOU willing to go? How much are you willing to pay in terms of commitment, time, money, and relationships? Are you in for a penny or a pound?

Now that we have shaken you up just a little bit and perhaps even scared you, we want you to know it's not that hard if you commit to it. We want you to have fun, lots of fun learning and using Latin (or any other foreign language for that matter) . Begin by thinking about your goals. Then, write them down. Any unwritten goal is just a dream. Writing them down will also help them condense from a nebulous state into solid, tangible goals. Post your goals everywhere you can see them. Do this so you can mentally and orally recite your goals as mental affirmations every moment possible. This is just your first step in a wonderful, exciting journey of billions, and billions of light-years.