Disce ludens I
Beginners · 31 lessons
Parts of speech, parts of the sentence, declensions and conjugations of the first two years of Latin, with forms and syntax taught together.
Latin course · since 1998
Learn Latin as if a good teacher were sitting next to you.
Disce ludens guides learners step by step through forms, syntax and vocabulary. Hints are free; the solution costs a point. Built from 30 years of classroom teaching by Thomas Wegener.
The app currently teaches in German. An English edition is planned.
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Disce ludens I · Lesson 8 · Parts of the sentence
Mater et pater pueros iam ad ianuam exspectant.
Which part of the sentence is marked?
In short
Disce ludens is a Latin course for the first years of Latin: 69 lessons on forms and syntax, a translation trainer with sentences from Caesar and a vocabulary trainer with 1,565 words. It was written by the Latin teacher Thomas Wegener and now runs as a web app with no ads and no trackers; the demo is free.
Latin rarely fails for lack of effort
It fails on endings that will not stick, on sentences where you cannot find the verb, and on homework nobody at home can help with.
Disce ludens drills exactly these points: every form, every part of the sentence, step by step, with hints that show the way without giving the answer away.
- 69 lessons
- 4,260 exercises
- 1,565 words
- 2 display modes
Two display modes, the same exercise
Switch at any time, even in the middle of a lesson. Progress and errors are kept.
Modern mode on a phone
Nostalgia mode is made for computers and tablets; on a phone it runs in landscape.
Three programs and a vocabulary trainer
Disce ludens II
Intermediate · 31 lessons
The sequel: subjunctive, participles, infinitives, subordinate clauses and the major constructions.
Verte ludens
Translation trainer · 7 exercises
Original sentences by Caesar, translated step by step with vocabulary, background information and guiding questions.
Vocabulary trainer
1,565 words · 7 boxes
A Leitner card box: words you know move back, words you miss come round again soon. Separate boxes for each direction.
The method
Hints are free
Almost every exercise has graded hints that show the way without giving the answer away. Revealing the solution costs error points.
Precise but fair
Answers are checked tolerantly: capitals at the start, spaces and the final full stop do not count. For forms, every letter matters.
Any textbook
The lessons follow the grammar of the first years of Latin, not one particular book. The recommended order comes from the original; every lesson can be opened on its own.
Nostalgia or modern
Nostalgia mode shows the exercises as they looked in 1998. Modern mode is clean, readable and works with keyboard and screen reader. Switch at any time.
Why it works
- Retrieval, not rereading. Actively recalling knowledge keeps it longer than rereading (Roediger & Karpicke, 2006). Every card asks for your own answer.
- Spaced repetition. Spreading practice out beats cramming (Cepeda et al., 2006). The vocabulary trainer brings words back after 1, 3–4, 7, 14, 30, 90 and 180 days.
- Graded help. Support that helps only as much as needed lets learners get there themselves (Wood, Bruner & Ross, 1976). First hint 1, then hint 2, then – for error points – the solution.
- Immediate feedback. Feedback is among the strongest influences on learning (Hattie & Timperley, 2007). Disce ludens tells you after every answer whether it is right.
From the classroom, for the classroom
Thomas Wegener taught Latin at the Dillmann-Gymnasium in Stuttgart, Germany. Between 1997 and 2005 he turned 30 years of teaching into three learning programs for Windows. He tested the lessons in his own classes; the drawings were made by his students.
Disce ludens means “learn by playing”. Stephan Sigloch continues the programs in succession to Thomas Wegener and has rebuilt them as an app, with the same exercises, hint texts and error logic as the original.
For schools and parents
- No ads, no trackers in the app. No third-party analytics or advertising services.
- No email address needed. Guest access for learning, licence codes for full access.
- Names stay in the browser. The server only knows an anonymous ID.
- Solutions stay on the server. Answers are checked there and cannot be read out of the app.
What Disce ludens is not
- Not a dictionary. The trainer covers 1,565 words, not a full vocabulary.
- No audio. Latin is read and written here, not spoken.
- No teacher view yet. It is planned.
- Not offline. The app needs the internet because answers are checked on the server.
- Not in English yet. The app teaches in German at launch.
Pricing
Free to try: Disce ludens I lessons 1–3 and the vocabulary trainer with 20 words. Disce ludens I and II include the vocabulary trainer.
| Package | per year | one-time |
|---|---|---|
| Disce ludens I | €19 | €39 |
| Disce ludens II | €19 | €39 |
| Verte ludens | €19 | €39 |
| Vocabulary trainer only | €9 | €19 |
| Everything | €39 | €89 |
Schools: everything for €3 per student per year. Ask for a school licence.
Frequently asked questions
What is Disce ludens?
Disce ludens is a Latin course for the first years of Latin with 69 lessons, 4,260 exercises and a vocabulary trainer. It was written by the Latin teacher Thomas Wegener and now runs as a web app.
Does Disce ludens fit our Latin textbook?
Yes, Disce ludens works with any textbook and follows the grammar of the first years of Latin. Every lesson can be opened on its own if your book uses a different order.
What does it cost?
The demo is free; each program costs €19 per year or €39 one-time, everything €39 per year or €89 one-time. Schools pay €3 per student per year.
Is the app available in English?
Not yet; at launch the app explains Latin in German. An English edition is planned.
Do I need an account?
No, a guest access without an email address is enough to learn. Full access is unlocked with a licence code.
Is student data shared?
No, the app has no ads and no third-party analytics or advertising services. Names stay in the browser; the server only knows an anonymous ID.
Disce ludens.
Learn by playing.
Notify me at launch
The app launches soon. Leave your email address and we will let you know.