Beginning Translation

[angelique]

I thought that Latin Translation was best reserved for after learning the Latin Grammar. I remember reading that somewhere on the Memoria Press website (I have read so many articles I can't place it right now). Why are some using Lingua Angelica while teaching LCI? I have ordered it for singing but is it also used for written translation exercises and indeed, isn't this a bit premature? However, I do think it makes sense that you can speed up your understanding of Latin by reading it. Anyway, is there a best time to begin translation work?

[Mungo]

I'm sure someone at MP can clarify, but my understanding is that the translation work LA is meant to be paired with Henle, not LC. There are a few pieces in LA that could be translated by an elementary-age student (e.g., Christus vincit), but the rest would be very hard going for a beginner.

[jeremiah213]

Greetings, I don't recommend using LA until finishing LCII at least. It is helpful to know the songs from memory but there is quite a bit of grammar in there that isn't covered in LCI.

[amyco]

Ah! I am glad to know this...we are in LCII right now and I keep looking at our copies of LA, wondering when in the world would be a good time to start it...now I will feel no more guilt about not having started yet, and we'll just keep singing!

Thanks!

Amy in Colorado

[tanya]

I might can clarify this issue by telling you the way the LA is used at Highlands Latin School. The 3rd graders do LCI and get a LA book with it. The teachers only use the LA for word recognition so the students understand what they are singing in Latin. So they only use it for the songs they sing in Latin choir. In the 4th grade, the students do First Form Latin and again use the LA in the same way. By the 5th-6th grades, they begin parsing the songs a little, but only the forms that they know. So the LA is used as a supplement all the way through, but only to the extent of the students' Latin knowledge. It's just a fun break from the regular Latin curriculum and does help their choir director, who really wants them to know what they are singing. And it is fun for the students to be able to use what they know and to see their progress as they use the LA through the years.
I hope this helps!
Tanya Charlton