Visual Latin Review

A few years back when I was researching homeschooling methods, I really liked what I read about the Classical method.  With this method of schooling though came a big decision, the one where I committed to teach Latin.  

My daughter is in 2nd grade now, so for the past couple years we have mainly been focusing on vocabulary and pronunciation.  I break out in a sweat just thinking of next year though.  I've been checking out all of the Latin curriculum, still unsure of what to do.  

Then I found Visual Latin!

Visual Latin was exactly what I was looking for!  It's a combination of short videos and exercises that work together to teach Latin, and the best part is, that it is designed so that it requires no prior knowledge of the language.  

Each lesson contains one grammar video (an introduction to the new concept), one video of sentences (putting the new concept into sentences), and one Latin reading.  Each video also comes with a corresponding worksheet to complete (and answer key).  The videos are only about 5-8 minutes long and you can repeat them as much as you would like.  It is designed for the student to complete 20 lessons in a semester, or 2 lessons per week for 10 weeks. Of course, you can go as fast or as slow as you want, that is what is nice about it!

What really makes the videos work for us is Dwane Thomas, the teacher.  He has been teaching Latin for 15 years and he and his wife homeschool their 5 children.  Dwane teaches Latin in a very relaxed way, which is really refreshing, especially for such a daunting subject.  He uses his unique sense of humor to explain the complex Latin grammar in a lighthearted manner.  My daughter and I are often found laughing at his silly jokes.  He keeps to the point but makes it entertaining to keep the students engaged. 

My Thoughts:  I have been watching these videos right along with my daughter and I have been learning quite a bit.  As I said before, for the past couple years we have mainly focused on vocabulary and pronunciation, but we've also learned a little about declensions.  I have to say that Dwane explains the basics of Latin in a way that I really understand.  He puts it in very simple terms and has fun with it.  Although I am not the one who has to learn Latin, I want to be comfortable enough with it to help teach and answer questions.  I would definitely recommend Visual Latin!!

Thoughts of a 7-Year Old:  I like watching Visual Latin because Dwane does little funny jokes to make it entertaining.  I also like it when he writes more sentences because the screen will say funny stuff like, "Fear not, he's writing more sentences."  It has taught me so much more Latin then I already knew.

Find Out More:   Visual Latin is recommended for ages 9 and up and the lessons are available to download for only $2.50 each! A single/family DVD or download of lessons 1-10 or 11-20 is only $25.  Right now 30 lessons are available on the website, but there are plans to produce 80 lessons, which would be the equivalent of 2 years of Latin instruction.  Topics covered in the first 30 lessons can be seen HERE.

If you would like to check it out first, you can view four introductory lessons for FREE, which provide background and tools for learning Latin.  We watched these and I would highly recommend watching them!  You can also try a complete lesson for FREE!  Other FREE downloads can be found HERE.

Disclosure: This product was given to Our Homeschool Reviews for free for review purposes, and I do not have to return the product to the vendor. I have received no compensation from it and all opinions and experiences within this review are my own.