Friday, September 13, 2013

Tip Time - CC Cycle 2, Week 3

Latin and Grammar 

This week I want to encourage you to learn all the pronouns and their correct names with your children. It may seem like overkill in the next few weeks but it is REALLY helpful when they get to Latin.  In fact, in using Visual Latin I got lost in the pronouns.  I didn't know their proper names and it got confusing very quickly.  If your kids know them in English it will make it easier when they get to Latin. You see, in Latin they have to know all of the pronoun categories and then within each category the case, number and gender.  The tables are HUGE (here is a taste of some of them).  I also think that reading Latin aloud regularly will help kids "get it" because the pronouns are in context (and occur often).

I was greatly relieved this week when I heard Andrew Kern say that pronouns were one of the hardest things in Latin, after the subjunctive tense.  I guess I am not alone.  Making sure your kids understand the types of pronouns in English will go a long way - I hope anyway!

This week we also move on to a new set of verb conjugations - imperfect tense.   Here is a quick overview of the different tenses and what they mean and how we use them in English.  I know that the memory work is just the endings.  With older students I would also emphasize the way it is used.  Since we spend two weeks on each ending; maybe the first week you can memorize the endings and the second week connect them to their English equivalent.  Also notice that here you are just adding "ba + the present tense ending" to make the imperfect tense (except for the first person singular).

Math

Here is a great way to help your children get the why behind skip counting.  If you don't have a lot of time just listen to the first half of the recording.  The second half moves into multiplication and division if you are interested.   It is a good introduction to thinking mathematical with your children.  Honestly, a lot of what he says is accomplished through Montessori math.

So that's it for this week.

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