Why We Like Rosetta Stone

Just what do we like about this program? We love its subtle and natural approach to learning. You do not have to endure repetitive drills or lots of grammatical information. Instead, you learn the same way you learned your first language: you are immersed in the language and learn from context. Instead of doing translations, you learn to think in the new language. Best of all, this happens so effortlessly that at first you may not even realize how much you are learning!

While there are many run modes, the primary mode of operation involves being presented with a group of 4 photographs (out of thousands of images with the full program) and a word or phrase spoken by a native speaker. You then select the image that corresponds to what you heard. Once a correct answer is selected, the images are shuffled and you are given another spoken phrase. You get immediate feedback, and you learn to directly associate what you see with what you hear, without going through the process of translation. You learn to think directly in the new language, which is the best way to achieve fluency.

As you progress, the words and phrases build into sentences and dialogues of increasing complexity. The Speech Recognition feature lets you fine tune your pronunciation and compare it to the native speaker. Different run modes let you focus on reading and writing the language, or hearing and speaking it. This is one of the only true immersion-style programs available and you will be amazed at how quickly you can learn without ever doing any translation. Since translation is not involved, it doesn't even matter what your own native language is! For example, the Spanish program works the same way whether you speak only English or only Arabic. The CD-ROMs even understand multiple computer languages and can be used with either a PC or a Mac (see specifications below). Includes speech recognition.

The Rosetta Stone is currently available in 31 languages! We know of no other program that offers such a variety of languages. If you don't see a language that you want to learn, let us know.

When you purchase the Rosetta Stone you have available to you unlimited FREE support. There is free 800-number telephone support, M-F, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. EST, as well as e-mail and online support.

There is a complete satisfaction guarantee on any of the Rosetta Stone series purchased from us. If you are not satisfied for any reason, you can return it to us within 6 months from the purchase date and we will issue a refund.

The Rosetta Stone offers one of the most natural learning methods we have seen (other than moving to a foreign country). It is used by the Peace Corps, the US State Department - NASA even used it on the Mir Space Station so the US astronauts could learn Russian and the Russian cosmonauts could learn English! More languages are being added constantly, so check if you don't see the language you want listed. We carry every language available for the Rosetta Stone.

What is the Homeschool Edition?

Please be aware that many vendors sell the Personal Edition. The personal edition is intended for home users. It does not include the Student Management System. The special Homeschool Edition is essentially the same as the more expensive Classroom Edition except that it is not designed to run on a network with many students using it at the same time. It contains everything the Personal Edition does plus more (at no additional cost). All learners, not just homeschoolers, will benefit from these extras.


● Students work individually at their own pace. Rosetta Stone Homeschool features predefined curriculum paths for learning, so parents can be sure their students are moving forward…even if they don’t speak the language themselves.

● Parents can track each student individually.

● The Dynamic Immersion™ method makes learning effective without translation or boring drills.

● Pre-loaded lesson plans make scheduling easy, or create your own lesson plans.

● Version 3 offers printable material, such as scripts for every lesson and a complete index of words taught in your program. The most popular programs offer even more help: a printable Student Workbook, with a quiz for each lesson, Unit Tests, and Answer Key for the workbook and tests. Latin American Spanish and American English include these extras now; when you order French, German, Italian, Japanese or Mandarin Chinese, you can download the extra supplements (at no additional cost) beginning in August 2008.

● More homeschoolers choose Rosetta Stone Homeschool Edition than any other language program.

System Requirements: Based on US versions of operating systems - when ordering, please let us know if your computer is running a non-US version of Windows. (subject to change)

● Windows (32-bit editions only) 2000, XP or Vista, Mac OS X 10.4 or later
● 512 MB RAM
● 1 GHz or faster processor speed
● 600 MB free hard-drive space (per level)
● 16-bit sound card
● 800 x 600 display resolution (1024 x 768 recommended)
● Internet or phone connection required for product activation
● Speech recognition feature requires a headset microphone (USB recommended), which is included with your software
● 16X CD-ROM Drive (for installation)

Note for Microsoft® Windows Vista™ users: Current Rosetta Stone® products have been engineered to install and run on the Windows Vista operating system. Some 3rd party components used in Rosetta Stone products have not been certified by Microsoft as ‘Vista Compliant’. Accordingly, you may encounter some Vista-related operating issues. Rosetta Stone technical support may or may not be able to resolve these Vista-related issues. Rosetta Stone technical support may or may not be able to resolve these Vista-related issues. Rosetta Stone disclaims any representations, warranties, guaranties and conditions with respect to the compatibility of the Rosetta Stone products with the Windows Vista operating systems.

Review at http://www.unschooling.org/fun05_foreignlanguage.htm  (this article was written many years ago before Rosetta Stone became so well-known among home educators).

 

Satisfaction Guaranteed!

Please note that we are an authorized dealer of the Rosetta Stone and there is a complete satisfaction guarantee on any of the Rosetta Stone series purchased from us. If you are not satisfied for any reason, you can return it to us within 6 months from the purchase date and we will issue a refund.

Your purchase also includes unlimited free support from Rosetta Stone. You can call their toll free number or take advantage of their e-mail and on-line support (contact information is on the box).

Please note that refunds are issued only for the price of the item, not the shipping costs. If your order originally received free shipping, your refund may be reduced by up to $15 to help cover our original shipping costs.