TOS Review: First Form Latin (Memoria Press)

There are many great reasons to study Latin such as “studying Latin improves a student’s critical thinking skills” or “studying Latin improves a student’s understanding of English vocabulary and grammar.”   I know that studying Latin can provide an excellent foundation for studying other romance languages such as Spanish, French, or Italian.
Despite these great reasons for choosing to study Latin, Latin wasn’t on my radar for this school year.  We’ve dabbled a bit here and there with Latin but we decided to go in a different direction. 
God, apparently, had alternate plans for my daughters’ education. As part of the TOS Crew, we received the bundle package from Memoria Press for First Form Latin which includes the DVD, audio CD, Student Textbook, Student Workbook, Teacher Manual, Workbook and Test Key, Quizzes and Tests, and even the flashcards!

I wasn’t sure I wanted this program because we’ve used Latina Christina 1 from Memoria Press and it wasn’t a good fit for my family.  First Form Latin, however, is turning out to be a much better fit than I expected. {Breaking News July 2017!  Latina Christina has been revised and updated! I plan on using it with Supergirl once we finish Prima Latina!}
Let me state upfront that if it was not for the DVD this is not a program I would be comfortable using.  The DVD relieves the stress of having to spend hours preparing to teach Latin.  With the items in the bundle kit, I can mentor, monitor and grade assignments but allow the program to truly do the teaching.
How we are using it: We are striving for one lesson per week or one lesson over 5 days:  I used information from the Teacher Manual to create the following outline:

• Day 1:  As a group we watch the DVD Lesson and then flip through the new flashcards.  On their own the girls complete the first section and the enrichment section of the workbook.
• Day 2: As a group we listen to the pronunciation CD as part of the daily recitation.  Then we go through flashcards including reviewing past lessons.  On their own the girls complete a section a of the workbook.
• Days 3 and 4: Same as Day 2.  Some lessons have more sections than others sometimes Day 4 has two sections to work through in the workbook
• Day 5: Quiz or Test

This is a very thorough, systematic, mastery based approach to studying Latin.  .I like that grammar is incorporated right from the start and not just a list of vocabulary words.  I like that on both the CD and the DVD the students are reminded that proper pronunciation is not as important in Latin because “there really aren’t any Ancient Romans around to correct us.”
I also like that I can use this program with all three of my “big girls”.  First Form Latin can be used by students as young as 5th grade and is appropriate through adult level.  Completion of First Form Latin is equivalent to one year of high school foreign language.
Additional optional  resources are suggested in the teacher manual including when to add them to the weekly schedule, however, we did not choose to use these.  These resources would be a bonus to those who are studying Latin and will be taking the National Latin Exam.
Latin is not the only subject available from Memoria Press.  At Memoria Press you will also find materials for Classical Studies, Christian Studies and I even spied something for Greek!
It wasn’t my plan to study Latin, but we were impressed enough with First Form Latin that I purchased additional workbooks so that my 7th grader, 9th grader and 11th grader could all use this program together.
Visit the Review Crew Blog to read more reviews of First Form Latin from Memoria Press:
All information is correct and accurate as of the date of this review.
Disclaimer: As a TOS Crew member, I received this product free of charge to review. This review is my honest opinion with, hopefully, enough detail as to why I liked or did not like a product so that my readers can make an informed decision. I received no compensation.