It's estimated that 60-70% of the English language derives from Latin or Latin-related languages, and a substantial part derives from Greek as well. Vocabulary Bridges from English to Latin and Greek helps students trace the connections between the classical languages and their own through a series of dictionary exercises that will increase their vocabulary, help them better understand the use of words, and provide insights into the evolution of language.
How Does This Work?
This is a consumable workbook for students between grades 5-12. There are no illustrations, nothing fancy, just some instruction and lots of exercises. Because there is more Latin influence in English than Greek, the first half of the book covers Latin and the second part covers Greek. Each section begins with an historical explanation of how certain words got from the classical languages to ours, followed by the alphabet of the language in question and a pronunciation guide.
The main part of each section is a chart that lists English words, followed by their Latin or Greek root word, followed by the definition of the root, followed by a blank space for students to write down the English definition of the first word. There are variations on this exercise as different word groups and parts of speech are examined, but the form is pretty much the same for all of them. At the end of each section is a lengthy review.
Most of the work can be done using simply the worktext and a good dictionary. There is no answer key, so you'll either have to trust that your student knows what he's doing, do the work with him, or laboriously retrace his steps to grade the material; we suggest the first or second option, though the third might be good if you're really bored.
Our Honest Opinion:
This isn't really a stand-alone course for anything (unless dictionary skills or vocabulary). Vocabulary Bridges would make an excellent supplement to a formal study of Greek or Latin, or an introduction for a student getting ready to study one or the other. The author suggests not trying to do the first and second sections simultaneously, and this is probably a good idea—you'll get much more out of the exercises with a more focused approach. You might have a student complete the whole book to decide whether he wants to study Latin or Greek. Whatever you use the worktext for, it will increase familiarity with language and students' ability to use words correctly.
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