From the time I was six, I have loved learning foreign languages. I began with four years of Spanish while in Panama, progressed to French while in Michigan, then took more Spanish in California. My high school years in Iran allowed me to study both Farsi and German. Finally, college in Oregon included a year of Russian. Sad to say, but old age has taken its toll and much of what I learned has vanished from my memory. Yet I will always remember with fondness the thrill of mastering a mysterious language. Therefore it is only natural for me to want to share that excitement with our children, and towards that end I am continually evaluating foreign language programs. In my opinion, the all-new Rosetta Stone is the best program available for older children, ages ten and up, particularly those who live in a state that requires proof of foreign language mastery for highschool graduation.

Completely re-written, fresh content has been added to this program and the types of activities have changed. A new administrative tool includes lesson plans made specifically for the homeschool student that parents can select based on their family's learning objectives. A PDF version of course content is provided describing each lesson in the program.

Currently in use in more than 7,000 schools and fifty-five countries, Rosetta Stone's computerized foreign language program utilizes photos and pictures that portray real world situations. By matching the spoken phrase and image correctly, children learn a foreign language the natural way, by associating sounds, and later written words, with objects and ideas. None of the other dreary methods typically associated with learning a new language are here.

Rosetta Stone is a first-class program, outstanding in many ways. But every program has its warts and Rosetta Stone is no exception. Because the program is based on real-life photos, you should expect to see photos of people in various manners of dress, participating in all types of activities. Honestly, most children are exposed to more flesh in a simple trip to the grocery store, and the lively pace of the program does not encourage lingering over these types of pictures. There is nothing vulgar here, but if you blanche at the sight of a child in shorts or a woman wearing a sleeveless dress, you should be aware of this potential concern.

The first level of Rosetta Stone will probably take up to one year to complete, though some children could proceed more quickly, with some lesson plans requiring less review and fewer exercises. Details about various lesson plans are available in the parent's guide. There is a difference between the ordinary Rosetta Stone Personal and the homeschool version. In addition to what is included in the regular Rosetta Stone, the homeschool version includes a parent's guide that provides explanations of lesson plans, suggested cultural activities, and more; twelve preloaded lesson plans including a full year curriculum path; and an administrative tool that allows you to plan and track your child's progress and track multiple children individually on the same computer.

Rosetta Stone Version 3 Homeschool Edition is available in three levels: Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3, and in 14 languages. Rosetta Stone now comes bundled with a free headset.

Parent Administrative Tools

Parent Administrative Tools let you track your student's progress with just a few mouse clicks. You'll see which exercises they have completed, assess how well they've done and determine how long it took them to finish. You will also be able to select predefined lesson plans and generate progress reports, documenting student achievement for college and job applications.

Testing

With Rosetta Stone^® Homeschool, Students are tested periodically as they move through their assigned lesson plans. Students automatically advance from exercises focused on specific language skills to tests.

As students progress through their assigned lesson plan, and reach the end of a lesson, they are tested with a review exercise, or test. Depending on the student's score, the review exercise will then be repeated at a later time in the lesson plan. A student who scores lower will see the review exercise more quickly than a student who scores higher. Eventually, the review exercise will no longer be repeated after a student achieves a satisfactory score.

One of the greatest features of Rosetta Stone Homeschool Version 3 is the Milestone Activity. Once a student has completed a Unit of material, they must complete a Milestone Activity. Milestones force the student to actually speak into the microphone and participate in conversation on screen. Milestone completion is essential to proceeding to the next Unit in Rosetta Stone Homeschool Version 3.