Wow, you finished all of Visual Latin 1 & 2?! Well done! Here is what Dwane Thomas recommends after Visual Latin:
It’s very possible to use Henle Latin with Visual Latin. We actually made a guide to show how the lesson topics line up. You can download that here.
It’s very possible to use Lingua Latina along with Visual Latin. We even made a guide to show you how the lessons line up! Download it here.
No, we do not have vocab lists available for Visual Latin 2. This is by design, because of the increase in vocabulary that is used. Dwane recommends that students graduate to a Latin dictionary or use the free website, Whitaker’s Words.
Visual Latin uses Ecclesiastical pronunciation. But, honestly, there is little difference between the two pronunciations. I created a video on this topic some time ago. Here it is: https://youtu.be/Wh-QorH3Fi4
Visual Latin is more designed for middle school students. It is designed to help Latin students with any Latin curriculum. So many Latin courses are based on books. They can be quite dull. We designed Visual Latin to take some of the pain out of learning Latin. The series can be used with any Latin book, including Henle Latin.
I always recommend Visual Latin first. Then, if students want more, I recommend Lingua Latina. I only recommend First Year Latin by Robert Henle for those in Classical Conversations. There is a teaching guide for those using Visual Latin to work their way through Henle Latin. Here it is: https://www.compassclassroom.com/henle-latin-teaching-guide-pdf
Answer provided by Dwane Thomas:
“There is nothing at all wrong with memorizing all of the Latin endings. Some of my best students are from the Classical Conversation world. They have most of the Latin endings memorized.
However, it is a bit strange to meet students with all of the Latin endings memorized who cannot read in Latin. I run into that often. It’s odd. If you memorized the technical manual to your car, it would be impressive. But, it would be strange if you had memorized the manual, and could rattle off the names of every gadget under the hood, but still did not know how to drive.
In all of my classes, I flip the order. I have students start reading in Latin. We learn the endings as we go. Some students memorize the endings, some don’t. As we read, they all end up learning the endings in the end.
Instead of memorizing the endings, I would recommend more reading.
Read Lingua Latina. Read Cornelia. Here is a reading list from my book, Via:
For Beginners:
1. Cornelia by Mima Maxey
2. Carolus et Maria by Marjorie Fay
3. Julia by Maud Reed
4. Lingua Latina by Hans Ørberg
For Intermediates:
1. Ora Maritima by E. A. Sonnenschein
2. Fabilae Faciles by Francis Ritchie
3. De America, by Herbert Nutting
4. Lingua Latina by Hans Ørberg
5. Viri Romae by Charles Llomond
For more advanced students:
1. Gospel of Matthew by St. Matthew
2. Roma Aeterna by Hans Orberg
When you have finished this list, visit the Latin Library.com. There you will find more Latin than you will ever read… and it’s all free.
If you do decide to memorize the endings (and it does not hurt to do so), I have a series on YouTube that may help: https://dwanethomas.com/memorize-latin/
And finally, I think the easiest thing you can do is simply keep the endings nearby as you read. I have compiled all the Latin endings in one location. Originally, this was going to be a Folder for my students, but, it never made it. Since it was going to be a folder, I condensed all of the endings into four pages. Print it out and keep it nearby as you work. When you get stuck, simply refer to the charts. Find the ending you need and compare it to what you are reading. It will take time and practice, but it will come.
Here are the charts: Download
