I think Carl also commented on Athenaze. I taught from it for five years,
and found it to be very good, though the neo-archaic illustrations were a
little hokey. It is at a good midway point between being too traditional on
the one hand and too inductive on the other, and it provides a lot of good
reading exercises, enough that I could pick and choose, in an effort to keep
things interesting. One of the things I didn't like about it was the
two-volume format which made it more expensive than necessary, since a
student needs to work through both volumes.
>We teach our beginners now, by the way, from Schoder & Horrigan, Greek
>through Homer (vel sim.). Because Homerica grammar is much simpler than
>later Greek, it goes fast, and we get through nearly a book of the Odyssey
>in the first year.
I can sympathize in view of the difficulties Classics departments are
encountering in keeping students, but maybe an equally good or better
approach is to do NT Greek, if the idea can be sold to the department.
Granted, Homer is probably more appropriate and a Classics or Greek grad
should be able to say that s/he has read a significant amount of Homer, but
wouldn't NT Greek provide a better foundation, short of an Attic Greek
approach? Perhaps Mary would comment on the transition their students make
to Attic, whether they encounter major problems or not.
Don Wilkins