Rosetta Stone questions

[DaughterOfKali]

 Did/does your child do well with it? (my son is 8. He tried it in
the mall and he LOVES it.)

 Is the Homeschool version better or is the regular version
one just as good?

I'm hoping to find the Italian (Italiano) one second hand somewhere but not sure
where to look!

Thanks for any/all input!

[dejagerw]

I have the Rosetta Stone homeschool version, but I haven't used the "homeschool" options. I just us it myself. I think you'll have trouble finding a second hand version of Rosetta Stone though. They've got really tight software protection. I don't even think you can download the program on more than one of your own computers. Rosetta Stone is weird because you never actually really "own" it. You buy it and use it, but you can't resell it or use it on multiple computers.

If you do find a copy of Rosetta Stone for cheaper than Rosetta Stone sells it, it's usually an illegal copy. If you feel comfortable with that, that's fine, but Rosetta Stone will not help you customer service wise, unless you have a legit copy bought from them (not amazon, not ebay, etc.) So, there is a chance you could pay a couple hundred for a cheaper version you may find somewhere, but then it might not work.

[DaughterOfKali]

Wow!  I had no idea!  What about if you buy it from Barnes & Noble (actual store, not online)?  That's legit, right?

[Jazzmin]

I would think Barnes and Nobel is legit. I can't see a big box bookstore selling an expensive language program that isn't backed by the software maker. I think the problem with Amazon.com is that you have the option to buy from a variety of "stores" that may not be authorized Rosetta resellers. The Homeschool Buyers Co-op (I think that is what it is called) just ran a Rosetta Stone discount buy that was backed by the company. Though, I believe the buy was for the homeschool version, and I am not sure what the difference is.

[sleet76]

I bought a copy at a significant discount through Homeschool Buyers' Coop.  I don't know if they are still offering it, but worth checking it out!  Still expensive, but the savings ranged from about 15-40% depending on how many years you bought.  

We have the Spanish version, and we like it.  We haven't used it a ton yet, but I have done the first few units, my 8-yo (when she was 7) has done a few units, and my newly-6-yo can use it fairly well, though he is a good reader, and doesn't mind getting things wrong, personality-wise.

[TEAK's Mom]

The material is not different in the homeschool edition, it just adds the ability to produce progress reports and to track a few different students. If you live in a high regulation state, those reports might be useful.

[Mere]

My kids did the Rosetta Stone homeschool version (Spanish) three days a week all of last year.  I would say that it is a good tool for learning a second language, but my kids definitely need more if they are really going to learn Spanish.  Not that I really expected a computer program to "do it all," but I didn't know what to expect last year!  Anyhow, what the program did do for them is help them nail down some vocabulary, and in general set the stage for future Spanish learning.  For instance, dd just joined a small, HS Spanish class with kids who had taken Spanish before. At first she was intimidated to speak to real people (as opposed to the computer), but once she warmed up the instructor complimented her on her accent.  She also absorbed new words and was able to learn the pronunciation more quickly than many of the other students. 

We will keep doing RS next year, but I'm going to do a better job of incorporating real life Spanish (conversation groups, classes, Spanish movies) into our routine. 

[Lisa1970]

We started with Rosetta Stone and my grumpies did not like it. Then we did other things. They liked that less. They were so happy to be back with Rosetta Stone. They really really hated Power Glide, Auralog (I could not stand Auralog either), and Power Speak.

[dogmom327]

We're looking at getting it for DH and I (the kids are only 4 and 2 and will be going to Spanish play/practice group this fall).  I e-mailed RS today to ask about installing it on multiple computers since I have a desktop and laptop and depending on the day I might be only working on one or the other.  Hoping they e-mail me back soon!

[DaughterOfKali]

Thanks everyone!  The homeschool version is sooo pricey.  I'm going to see if I can use my Educators Discount on it at Barnes & Noble (well, as long as my son's father agrees to buy it. heh heh).