Latin Primer 3 Student (Student/Study Guide)

Over half of the English language is derived from Latin.
unicorn: cornu,horn
humble: humus, earth
gregarious: grex, flock
pantry: panis, bread
flamingo: flamma, flame

These and thousands of other words we use every day keep this “dead” language–a language of kings and poets, of scrolls and secrets–alive. And this means that when we study Latin, we’re not just learning about Rome–we’re learning about ourselves. Rediscover this time-honored language, which led classical education innovator Dorothy Sayers to declare that “Latin should be begun as early as possible . . . when the chanting of ‘amo, amas, amat’ is as ritually agreeable to the feelings as the chanting of ‘eeny, meeny, miney, moe.'”

In Latin Primer 3, the language basics explored in Primers 1 and 2 continue, with an increasing emphasis on translation. Revised and expanded, this text introduces students (grades 5 and up) to Latin’s final noun declensions and verb conjugations, as well asA to the perfect tense, indirect objects, simple prepositions, and more, opening up broad frontiers for their understanding and enjoyment of this early language.

Those of you familiar with the older editions of Latin Primer 3 may wonder what’s different about this new edition. If you’ve been using the new Latin Primer 1 and 2, you probably have a good idea what all the excitement is about!

To begin, the content and teaching approach of this third edition is fundamentally the same as before. We have added more exercises, moved some of the vocabulary around, etc., but these new editions won’t force teachers or parents to struggle through a long period of adjustment. If anything, this new edition will be much, much easier to use.

Why is that? Well, actually, there are several reasons.

First, the Primer 3 now features weekly Word Lists. Just like Primers 1 and 2, students will receive a new Word List every week, rather than once every few weeks. This transition from Primer 2 to Primer 3 has never been more simple or familiar.

Second, we have completely redesigned the layout. While older editions were arranged by category–a word list section, exercise section, and test section–the new edition has been arranged in a simple lesson-by-lesson format. For example, all of Lesson 1’s components are grouped together, back-to-back. When you finish one lesson, you’re on to the next. No more flipping back and forth between sections: everything you need for each lesson is right at your fingertips, whe