Second Form Latin scheduling

[GeorgiaMom]

I am in need of advice!

I just completed SFL with my 5A son. He did very well, and is about 95% there in terms of mastery. Latin in his favorite subject and he's a diligent student...he wants to master things and will put in the time. With some shoring up over the summer (we work year round, but much lighter in the summer) I think we'll be ready for Third Form come September.

My son who just completed 4A is a much different child. Emotional, dramatic, and easily frustrated. the 4A program is a great fit for him everywhere but Latin. He struggles with vocabulary recall the most. However, he did very well with FFL this year, and, again, with some work over the summer (mainly vocabulary), I feel confident starting him in SFL this fall. My dilemma comes with pacing. Having gone through it once already, I know he won't be able to do this in a single school year, even with our summer work. The complexity and nuance will take some time for him. I'm thinking through 2 options, and would love to know how others have handled it.

1: Pace the program to do it over 2 years (maybe a year and a half when we factor in our year round schedule)

2: Follow the lesson plans this year for a kind of introduction, and then do the program again in Year 2 with a focus on mastery.

Either way, I see this taking longer than a single school year to do.

Currently, I'm leaning towards option 1, but I'd love to hear thoughts from those who have gone before!y

Thanks so much!

[KF2000]

Re: Second Form Latin scheduling

Tracy,

I have not had a child do either of those options, but speaking as an adult, I would pick option two - do the whole thing twice since you know you’re going to give it more than a year anyway. The reason I say that is that the first time I did First Form with my kids, my tired old adult brain really didn’t take it in all that well. I learned enough to “get” How Latin is set up, but it was really hard to keep pace with the kids who were picking it up so much faster. But then when child #3 did FFL, I understood it so much better and it’s really sunk in. By the time child #4 did FFL, I knew that I knew the material.

Not sure if that translates well to what would be good for your son, but that is what I found to be helpful for me. Good luck!

(Honestly don’t think you can go wrong either way, which is the totally unhelpful answer!)

AMDG,
Sarah

[Angela]

Re: Second Form Latin scheduling

How would he feel having to repeat it the second year? I ask because my son did similarly in FFL this year and I even considered having him do it over again since he is going into 5M and it is scheduled in the CG. I thought he'd enjoy another year to cement it all and the fact that it would be easier the second time around. But NO WAY. He does not want to do it all over again since he technically did fine on all the quizzes and tests. I think he was slightly insulted that I even suggested it.

You might want to consider how your son would feel about doing it again. Maybe he'd be fine, or maybe he'd take offense at having to repeat something because he didn't fully "get it" the first time. (Not that repeating material isn't a very valid approach in many cases!)

I do think spreading out SFL is a good idea, and spreading out TFL is even better! They do get more and more challenging. I'm doing 4FL this summer myself to prepare to teach my dd in 7A and it feels like a significant jump from the previous forms.

[GeorgiaMom]

Re: Second Form Latin scheduling

Tracy,

I have not had a child do either of those options, but speaking as an adult, I would pick option two - do the whole thing twice since you know you’re going to give it more than a year anyway. The reason I say that is that the first time I did First Form with my kids, my tired old adult brain really didn’t take it in all that well. I learned enough to “get” How Latin is set up, but it was really hard to keep pace with the kids who were picking it up so much faster. But then when child #3 did FFL, I understood it so much better and it’s really sunk in. By the time child #4 did FFL, I knew that I knew the material.

Not sure if that translates well to what would be good for your son, but that is what I found to be helpful for me. Good luck!

(Honestly don’t think you can go wrong either way, which is the totally unhelpful answer!)

AMDG,
Sarah

Sarah...you are never not helpful! I've gleaned a lot of wisdom from you every time you post!

I can totally see the benefit in going through it twice for my old brain that can remember the lyrics to every Duran Duran song, but can't remember why I walked into a room.

My stress mostly comes from how he would feel about doing it twice. I worry about his confidence. He's so easily frustrated when he doesn't get things as quickly as he THINKS he should. It's our daily struggle. I may present him with both options and ask his opinion, knowing that the final decision is mine, but it may help him take ownership of things a bit better.

Thanks for your thoughts!

[GeorgiaMom]

Re: Second Form Latin scheduling

How would he feel having to repeat it the second year? I ask because my son did similarly in FFL this year and I even considered having him do it over again since he is going into 5M and it is scheduled in the CG. I thought he'd enjoy another year to cement it all and the fact that it would be easier the second time around. But NO WAY. He does not want to do it all over again since he technically did fine on all the quizzes and tests. I think he was slightly insulted that I even suggested it.

You might want to consider how your son would feel about doing it again. Maybe he'd be fine, or maybe he'd take offense at having to repeat something because he didn't fully "get it" the first time. (Not that repeating material isn't a very valid approach in many cases!)

I do think spreading out SFL is a good idea, and spreading out TFL is even better! They do get more and more challenging. I'm doing 4FL this summer myself to prepare to teach my dd in 7A and it feels like a significant jump from the previous forms.

Angela...this is the main point I struggle with, his attitude about repeating the material and how it would make him feel. You're spot on.

And now I'm thinking about spreading out Third Form as well! I'm learning it along with my kids, and man...they can sure outpace me!

Thanks for articulating what's in my head...and good luck on Fourth Form this summer!

[tanya]

Re: Second Form Latin scheduling

Tracy,

Either option will have the same end result, but it really does depend on your child's personality. My oldest son would have done better with your option one. He was unmotivated, but he was also a student that needed reinforcement for confidence. So a slower pace for him so that he could feel successful on a regular basis was important.

I think you should trust your instincts on what will work best for this particular child.

Tanya