Wednesday, February 11, 2015

Pacing

After several years of trial and error, I have settled upon the following schedule for my LLPSI course:

5th Grade - Latin 1/2 - LLPSI 1-8
6th Grade - Latin 1 - LLPSI 9-16
7th Grade - Latin 2 - LLPSI 17-24
8th Grade - Latin 3 - LLPSI 25-32
9th Grade - Latin 4 - LLPSI 33-40
10th Grade - Latin 5 - LLPSI 41-45
11th Grade - Latin 6 - LLPSI 46-51
12th Grade - Latin 7 - LLPSI 52-56

Every year, I recommend that students take the National Latin Exam and use the month of February to prepare. Also, I recommend that students use the summers to read the Colloquia Personarum (after 5th, 6th, and 7th grades),  Fabulae Syrae (after 8th grade), and the Epitome Historiae Sacrae (after 9th grade).  In the summers after 10th and 11th grades, students can go through any of Oerberg's readers, like Caesar, Vergil, Cicero, and Ovid.

I will modify this schedule as necessary with my own students.  Right now, I have a talented senior who has never studied Latin; he is going through Latin 1/2 and 1 in a single year (Capitula I-XVI).  Some colleges go much faster than that.  However, I have found that most, if not all, college professors wish that they had more time to spend on building basic Latin skills, and their pacing is forced upon them by other factors and not by what is ideal for learning.  In my opinion, students need time to internalize new vocabulary and grammar.  It aids long-term memory.  My schedule maintains rigor without outpacing the abilities of a typical student.

Let me know about your successes and failures with the pace of LLPSI.

1 comment:

  1. " In my opinion, students need time to internalize new vocabulary and grammar. It aids long-term memory."
    You are correct sir! This course is amazing and your worksheets with videos are the perfect brain refresher.

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