Need Book of Roots help please!

[Ann in OK]

We are doing BofR and I am wondering if I am missing something. My dd (grade 5) is in LCI and, while the vocabulary matches up with the BofR lessons, the lessons in BofR seem rather difficult. I like the idea of having my dd think about the answers, but some of them seem so esoteric that even I get confused about things and check the answers. If a word can be used as 2 parts of speech, for example, they give a definition for one part of speech but ask you to use it as another in an answer.

Should this actually be used with an advanced Latin course, or at least after completing LCI? My dd breezes through everything else and loves her courses, but she is starting to hate Latin because of this book.

Should we do a vocabulary course first? Is there another derivatives program that my be better at this stage?

TIA, Ann

[classical4mom]

I totally agree with you that Book of Roots is much too advanced for this age. My 11 yo and 9 yo daughters completed LC 1 this past school year, and we were going to do Book of Roots this year, but it was as you perfectly describe it, way too esoteric, and too difficult for them at this point.
I do think it's an excellent book, though, so I am putting it on the shelf for a few years down the road.

A good, inexpensive roots program that you can use with your daughter that will give you both Latin and Greek roots is Vocabulary Vine. It is a spiral approach. The author also has a Science Roots that coincides (but does not have to be used with) Apologia Science in the higher grades.

Here's the link for Vocabulary Vine:

http://www.redshift.com/~bonajo/latin.htm

HTH, Nanci

[classical4mom]

I apologize if it sounded like I was knocking Book of Roots. It really is a fine book, and I do plan to use it when the children get older.
This is just my opinion, obviously, that the book is too hard for my children after doing LC1. Maybe others will do just great with it.

~nanci