When it comes to teaching Latin at home, there are quite a few options. Parents can find the best curriculum that fits their child’s learning style and interests, as well as the budget. This article will explore some of the best Latin homeschool curriculum options available and provide guidance on determining which one is right for your family.
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In this post, we’ll look at the following Latin curriculum programs that are popular today. These are:
- Compass Classroom – Visual Latin
- Memoria Press (Prima Latina and First Form Latin)
- Veritas Press – FREE consultation
- Classical Academic Press
- Oxford Latin
- Schoolhouse Teachers
- and more.
Let’s look at these Latin homeschool curriculum programs in more detail below.
Compass Classroom – Visual Latin
Visual Latin by Compass Classroom (pictured above) is a complete, Christian, online Latin curriculum for middle and high school students.
This online course (pictured above) offers you online access OR the DVDs.
Both come with online PDF workbooks, but you can also purchase them for offline use.
The lessons in Visual Latin by Compass Classroom are not just educational; they’re also designed to be entertaining and engaging.
This ensures that your children learn Latin and enjoy themselves as they start their Latin learning.
What It’s Like
If you get the physical copy in the mail, you’ll get DVDs with files that include printable worksheets.
These worksheets are an essential part of the curriculum. They are designed to reinforce the lessons and provide additional practice.
If you get the online version, you’ll get online access to PDFs, and you can complete the worksheet portion as fun interactive quizzes on their online platform.
Each lesson of Visual Latin is meticulously designed with three comprehensive parts: grammar, sentences, and reading /translation.
This Latin homeschool curriculum is specifically tailored for families without any prior Latin experience, instilling confidence in parents about the thoroughness of their children’s Latin education.
Students can complete lessons independently, making this a good option if you’re a parent working from home.
Visual Latin 1 and Visual Latin 2, each with 30 lessons, cover a wide range of topics, from cases and mood to pronouns, nouns, and verb tenses, providing a comprehensive foundation in Latin.
Then, Visual Latin 2 builds upon the foundation of the first volume and covers verb tenses, present participles, the perfect/pluperfect tense, adverbs, the subjunctive, and more.
The recommended schedule is one lesson per week for the school calendar year.
You can use this program for all of your children, too, which is lovely!
Check out this Latin homeschool curriculum here.
Memoria Press – Latina Christiana
Latina Christiana was designed as a beginning course for homeschooled students interested in learning Latin.
The program was specifically written for parents or teachers with no background in Latin. Latina Christiana includes everything you need to start your Latin journey today!
Latina Christiana receives many great reviews online and is commonly considered one of the best Latin homeschool curriculum programs available today.
Check out this Latin curriculum and the homeschool Latin curriculum review here.
Once you complete Latin Christiana, Memoria Press offers First Form Latin. The homeschool Latin curriculum includes a student text, workbook, teacher’s guide, answer key, quizzes and tests, flashcards, and a DVD.
The course is also an online class for families who would like more support.
First Form Latin can be used by older children new to Latin or by younger children who have completed Latin Christiana.
First, Second, Third, and Fourth Form Latin use a grammar first principle. This limits the amount of vocabulary a child is required to learn before mastering the necessary grammar for success.
The Memoria Press Latin series finishes with high school students studying Henle Latin and selections from Caesar’s Commentarri de Bello Gallico.
If you’re looking for one of the best Latin curriculum for homeschoolers, be sure to check out Memoria Press.
Learn more about the Memoria Press Latin series here.
Schoolhouse Teachers
Schoolhouse Teachers have a primary Latin curriculum you get when you buy their homeschool curriculum.
Children can start with Beginner Latin and then progress to Latin II (both pictured above).
This curriculum provider also offers hundreds of electives (and multiple languages, such as Spanish and Korean) for all children at the same subscription price.
They’re one of the most affordable Latin programs.
Schoolhouse Teachers Beginning Latin is a 24-week course for students between the third and the twelfth grades.
The video lessons give children an understanding of basic grammar and vocabulary while also allowing kids to see how Latin is still used in English today.
In addition, there are worksheets, charts, quizzes, and answer keys to help children master the information.
Check out this Latin curriculum here.
Classical Academic Press
Classical Academic Press offers a couple options if you’re looking for a good Latin program for kids (pictured above).
Firstly, they have Latin for Children, which introduces young children to Latin.
The program is designed for children between the fourth and the seventh grades.
The interactive approach will introduce children to vocabulary, grammar, and English derivatives.
Older children can try the Latin Alive series, which presents Latin through Roman culture and in other entertaining ways.
Latin Alive is designed for students in the seventh through twelfth grades. The Latin program teaches students Latin basics and how to read and translate Latin texts.
Finally, suppose you have more of an audio-kinesthetic learner. In that case, you can try their audio CDs, which present Latin through songs children will love to learn. They also have a Latin CD with Christmas carols on it!
Check out this Latin curriculum here.
A Gentle Feast
A Gentle Feast (a full Charlotte Mason homeschool curriculum) offers an engaging Latin curriculum that is an excellent choice for homeschoolers seeking to introduce their students to the beauty and intricacies of the Latin language.
The AGF Latin curriculum is designed to align with the Charlotte Mason educational philosophy, fostering a deep understanding of language structure and its historical significance.
The curriculum provides:
- A well-rounded approach to Latin instruction.
- Incorporating living books.
- Interactive activities.
- Engaging exercises that cater to various learning styles.
With a focus on building a solid foundation in Latin while nurturing a love for the language, A Gentle Feast’s Latin curriculum equips students with essential language skills while fostering a connection to classical literature and cultural heritage.
Take a look at the AGF Latin program here.
Canon Press
The Canon Press Latin curriculum is helpful for classical homeschoolers who want to understand Latin and deepen their knowledge of the Latin roots of the English language. It’s also for students who want to read ancient Roman and Latin-language texts.
Canon Press offers several Primers with accompanying flashcards.
The curriculum is designed for children in the third grade and higher.
Logos Latin
Logos Latin is a great way to connect with historical documents (like the Illiad and the Odyssey) and the foundation for modern ‘foreign languages.’
This Latin program has weekly activities that include:
- coloring pages,
- story writing,
- word searches,
- crossword puzzles,
- anagrams,
- comic strips, and more.
Following three friends throughout the workbook, students will learn to conjugate verbs, translate and pronounce new vocabulary, and learn derivatives.
The course can be started by children in the second grade.
Check out this Latin curriculum here.
Oxford Latin
Oxford Latin is an excellent choice for older students or students in college.
The Oxford Latin Course uses a reading-based approach as it offers students everything they need to know that is essential in a first-year Latin course.
The program focuses closely on the life of the Roman poet Horace. It also has cartoon images that appeal to older/college-aged students (as opposed to younger homeschooled students).
The course includes robust Latin grammar and a companion website that supplements the vocabulary and grammar learned in the Oxford Latin course.
You can check out the Oxford Latin curriculum here.
Latin for Littlies
Latin for Littlies is an excellent Latin curriculum homeschool option for little kids.
It can be used for small children aged K to Grade 2, which means you can start your Latin homeschool curriculum quite early.
This program uses daily matching exercises, continuous review, and phonetic pronunciation in its 30 five-day lessons. This course gently encourages young students to study Latin for familiar words.
The Latin for Littlies workbook includes notes on using the book, original illustrations, optional coloring opportunities, English derivatives, and more.
It’s one of the best homeschool Latin curriculum options for young children.
Check out this Latin curriculum here.
Latin’s So Not Tough
Latin’s So Not Tough is a homeschool curriculum covering all grade levels. Young students in grades K through Primary school can start with Level 1.
Older students can start at Level 2 or 3. The program has six levels in total.
A kit with Latin’s So Not Tough curriculum includes a student workbook, answer keys, and a booklet with quizzes and exams. It also includes Latin flashcards on a ring.
A classical pronunciation key is also available for families who want their children to learn proper Latin pronunciation.
Combining Latin’s Not So Tough with their corresponding Hey Andrew, Teach Me Some Greek is an excellent way to add Greek and Latin roots homeschool curriculum to your child’s education.
Check out their complete kit here.
Linney’s Latin Class
If you would like a free Latin homeschool curriculum, check out Linney’s Latin Class. The class is a free online class that uses the textbook The First Year of Latin.
The textbook is free PDF, or you can buy it from Amazon.
Linney’s lectures are offered as a series of YouTube videos. Study aids and an answer key are available to help children master the material.
The class is appropriate for high school students. The first 33 lessons are equivalent to one year of high school Latin.
Learn more about Linney’s Latin Class here.
BJU Press Latin
BJU Press offers Latin 1 and 2 courses as a boxed homeschool curriculum. That means this program is available and comes with teachers’ manuals to help parents teach the material. You (as the teacher/parent) don’t need any prior Latin experience to teach your children this program.
Latin 1 introduces students to basic Latin vocabulary and sentence structures. They learn Latin grammar, and each concept is addressed gradually in an inductive way.
The teaching format allows a teacher with no previous knowledge or experience in Latin to instruct the Latin course.
The educational materials also summarize Roman history from the kingdom to the Republic and provide an overview of mythological Roman gods and goddesses in the light of God’s Word.
Latin 2 helps students enrich their English vocabulary through the study of Latin. The Latin educational materials teach grammar, vocabulary, and translation skills while emphasizing Roman history and Latin translations of the Bible. The text is designed so the teacher does not need previous experience in Latin.
Check out this Latin homeschool curriculum here.
Latin in the Christian Trivium
Latin in the Christian Trivium is an offline workbook that comes to you in the mail.
The first textbook of Latin in the Christian Trivium includes 16 chapters that provide an introduction to the language of Latin and the history of Italy, Rome, the Republic, and other aspects of Roman life.
This Latin curriculum uses the Bible as the primary source, providing information on the alphabet, pronunciation, declensions, moods, and other basic grammatical details.
Helpful charts, examples, and graphs are provided to help children memorize and recall information.
Exercises are completed in a student notebook provided by the program.
With this program, Latin students will follow the story of a Roman centurion and his family. As they read, students learn new vocabulary in the context of this Roman family.
Check out this Latin homeschool curriculum here.
Why Learning a Latin Homeschool Curriculum Will Help You Learn Other Languages
Learning Latin may seem daunting, but it can help increase your chances of understanding other modern languages and broaden your horizons.
Latin has been the basis for many European languages since the Middle Ages. It is still used in medicine, science, and law even today.
Because of its roots in so many cultures, mastering Latin will give you an advantage when learning other Romance languages like French, Spanish, or Italian – all of which have their foundations in Latin.
Furthermore, by studying Latin grammar, you will become familiar with sentence structures common to most modern European languages, such as German or Dutch.
So, Latin is such a valuable language to learn.
Learning a Latin Curriculum in the Grammar, Logic, and Rhetoric Stages of Classical Education
When students study a Latin curriculum today, they often do classical education. Classical education has three stages, the grammar, the logic, and the rhetoric. We’ll learn about how Latin is used in each stage below.
Grammar Stage
In the grammar stage, learning emphasizes memorization and the basics of language skills to lay a strong foundation for later stages. (The Grammar stage is typically geared towards elementary school-aged children.
During the Grammar Stage, students focus on mastering the grammar of their native language through Latin by memorizing vocabulary words and rules of pronunciation and spelling.
The goal is understanding how language works so students can read and write effectively.
As part of this stage, emphasis is placed on memorizing facts about each subject to gain quick recall for later use.
Logic Stage
The Logic Stage of Classical Education is the third and middle stage of the Trivium.
This stage focuses on teaching children how to think critically and logically, emphasizing the use of the Latin grammar students learned in the first stage.
This stage aims to teach children how to understand complex concepts, draw logical conclusions, and use language effectively (of which tasks are assisted by their knowledge gained in the grammar stage).
As they progress through the Logic Stage of Classical Education, they will become more proficient in these skills by learning to reason with structured arguments and use sound judgment when making decisions.
Rhetoric Stage
The rhetorical stage is the third of three in the classical Trivium. During this stage, students learn to think deeply, ask questions, and develop their opinions.
At this level, engaging with Latin texts is often a significant learning component (although students can choose to discontinue their Latin curriculum when they reach high school).
Students are encouraged to explore literature from ancient Greece and Rome and other essential historical works.
The rhetoric stage aims to create wise students who can persuasively and winningly present well-reasoned arguments.
So, as you can see, a Latin curriculum or program is indispensable to classical education.
Why Study a Latin Curriculum (Isn’t it Dead?)?
Latin is considered to be a dead language.
Yet its study and understanding remain important for many reasons, particularly for those interested in linguistics, law, theology, and literature.
The origins of Latin can be traced back to the days of Ancient Rome. It was the official language used by all the people in the Roman Empire. It was widely spoken throughout Europe and beyond until it declined in popularity during the Middle Ages.
Despite this, Latin has immensely impacted our modern languages today—especially English—through its influence over grammar rules and vocabulary words. For instance, dozens of common English terms, such as “magazine,” “direct,” or “personality,” derive directly from Latin roots.
Studying Latin helps us better understand how language generally works by allowing us to analyze word roots and structure while appreciating its historical significance.
You can check out more reasons to study Latin here.
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Conclusion on the Best Latin Curriculum Homeschool Options
The Latin homeschool curriculum options are vast and varied. From online courses to textbooks, there is something to fit the needs of every student. With so many resources available, students can find the perfect curriculum that will help them achieve their goals of studying Latin in a fun and engaging way. Learning Latin language and culture can be brought alive for homeschooled students through carefully selected materials emphasizing understanding rather than rote memorization. With careful consideration, it is possible to find the perfect option for any student.
Hi Rebecca,
Thank you for your helpful Latin article. We have been homeschooling for 6 years, but have recently been growing more interested in the classical Trivium approach. We have never done any Latin, so I would like to find a curriculum that can serve our whole family, myself included. Our kids age range includes: 14, 12, 12, 8, 5, 2.
What curriculum you would recommend that would be useful and beneficial for our entire family with this age range?
Thanks!
Jake
The Memoria Press one is meant for younger age ranges I know…they have a couple of different programs. For older kids, I’d say Compass Classroom. But, for you and teaching the kids quite young, maybe Memoria Press. Hope that’s helpful!