Author Topic: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016  (Read 61502 times)

Cookie78

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #100 on: January 31, 2016, 04:47:30 PM »
Things I learned today: My fluency is nowhere near good enough to explain in Spanish why I want to retire early and why I think there is more to life than work. Lucky for me someone else sitting beside me understood completely and argued on my behalf.

Ahhhh the things that come up after the simple question of why are you studying Spanish....

shadowmoss

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #101 on: February 01, 2016, 11:56:28 AM »
Saw this thread a couple of days ago and now have a 2 day streak going on Memrise.  Doing both Duolingo and Memrise.  I do prefer Memrise.

nnls

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #102 on: February 02, 2016, 01:58:38 AM »
Saw this thread a couple of days ago and now have a 2 day streak going on Memrise.  Doing both Duolingo and Memrise.  I do prefer Memrise.

I also prefer Memrise, I find what it teaches me more useful than duolingo

shadowmoss

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #103 on: February 02, 2016, 11:44:51 AM »
3 day streak.  I was happy to tell Francisco (Hispanic co-worker who is attempting to help me learn Spanish) that I can now say 'can I reserve a room for one night for one person' in somewhat mangled Spainsh.  He didn't try to tell me what I said, now that I remember...

PMG

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #104 on: February 02, 2016, 12:25:23 PM »
Have y'all been keeping up with this? 

I'm working on French. I'm taking a French II class but need all the motivation I can get. 

Can anyone recommend any interesting (and simple) French podcasts, websites or literature?  I am listening to a lot of French music via Spotify. Trying to inundate myself.

http://conjuguemos.com has been more useful than duolingo in my small experience. No good mobile interface but good ways to practice conjugation in many languages.


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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #105 on: February 02, 2016, 02:17:41 PM »
My wife and I are going to Argentina in April (she's native; it's my 6th time). I'm sure I'll improve my Spanish, since I've pretty much permanently improved with every immersion and two weeks will be a record-long stay for me. But that won't take much work, just showing up and doing my best.

I have a shit-ton of professional continuing ed this year, but I hope to knock it all out by September, at which point the two of us have talked about studying a new language together. My top 3 would be Japanese, Mandarin and Arabic. TBH I can't recall what she's said about hers, but we both love the idea of collaborating so we can practice at home together.

Things I learned today: My fluency is nowhere near good enough to explain in Spanish why I want to retire early and why I think there is more to life than work. Lucky for me someone else sitting beside me understood completely and argued on my behalf.

Ahhhh the things that come up after the simple question of why are you studying Spanish....
Solo hay que practicar. Si quieras decir que no te gusta trabajar solamente por dinero, y has cosas mas importantes que sentarte en una oficina hasta que mueras... asi se dice. ;)
Tambien es posible decir que la libertad te importa mas que todo, y quieres ahorrar plata para comprarla prontisimo!

I fantasize about taking a long (6-12 months) vacation in my wife's hometown, staying with her mom in the house she grew up in, and really hitting fluency sometime after FIRE. She's less excited about the idea than I am, but I think she'd do it just to indulge me.

He didn't try to tell me what I said, now that I remember...
"I would like to reserve a person and a room for one night", maybe? Trololol

Apples

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #106 on: February 02, 2016, 04:09:12 PM »
Saw this thread a couple of days ago and now have a 2 day streak going on Memrise.  Doing both Duolingo and Memrise.  I do prefer Memrise.

I also prefer Memrise, I find what it teaches me more useful than duolingo

Interesting.  I tried memrise for about a week and thought Duo was better?  What lesson do you do on memrise?

Apples

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #107 on: February 02, 2016, 04:21:05 PM »
Have y'all been keeping up with this? 

I'm working on French. I'm taking a French II class but need all the motivation I can get. 

Can anyone recommend any interesting (and simple) French podcasts, websites or literature?  I am listening to a lot of French music via Spotify. Trying to inundate myself.

http://conjuguemos.com has been more useful than duolingo in my small experience. No good mobile interface but good ways to practice conjugation in many languages.

Thank you so much for sharing that website!  The stories on it are a huge help...I feel bad checking out spanish kid's books at the library b/c we have a large Hispapnic population using them.  Instead I can read those!  Also, it's fun to do the timed conjugation tests!  Yes, I am really cool, how did you know? :p

ETA:  Dang it, those are actually textbooks.  Boo.  The website is still really cool though.
« Last Edit: February 02, 2016, 04:22:44 PM by Apples »

FIPurpose

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #108 on: February 02, 2016, 06:11:52 PM »
Have y'all been keeping up with this? 

I'm working on French. I'm taking a French II class but need all the motivation I can get. 

Can anyone recommend any interesting (and simple) French podcasts, websites or literature?  I am listening to a lot of French music via Spotify. Trying to inundate myself.

http://conjuguemos.com has been more useful than duolingo in my small experience. No good mobile interface but good ways to practice conjugation in many languages.

I use podbean for listening to podcasts you can find a good set there. For French I've been listening to Coffee Break French which is helpful for practicing pronunciation. And it's taught by a couple of Scots so they're easy to listen to.

MerryMcQ

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #109 on: February 02, 2016, 06:51:49 PM »
I'm learning ASL, using Lifeprint online. Hoping to also get into a class at the local community college. My goal is to get through 3 lessons per week (1 hr a day), and both year 1 & year 2 by the end of the year. I'm also teaching my kids and husband 1 ASL word every night at dinner, so by the end of the year they should have a pretty basic vocabulary.

So... does anyone have suggestions for learning French that don't rely on listening skills? We're traveling to France later this year and I'd like to brush up my 20+ years ago high school French, at least reading skills. I'm following along in my daughter's high school text book right now. My pronunciation is terrible but hopefully when we're there, I can simply say "Je suis sourde" and folks will understand, or at least not laugh. :)

meghan88

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #110 on: February 09, 2016, 10:18:24 AM »
So... does anyone have suggestions for learning French that don't rely on listening skills? We're traveling to France later this year and I'd like to brush up my 20+ years ago high school French, at least reading skills. I'm following along in my daughter's high school text book right now. My pronunciation is terrible but hopefully when we're there, I can simply say "Je suis sourde" and folks will understand, or at least not laugh. :)

Spoken and written French are quite different.  Written French is far more formal - sentence structure, syntax and grammar are not the same as when spoken.  Add to that all of the regional slang and expressions and you're in for a challenge if you're going to learn from the written words only.

For a good base in written French, try getting through some of the shorter stories from Le Monde online - cutting and pasting into google translate to give yourself an idea what they're on about when you get stumped.

Bonne chance!

PMG

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #111 on: February 09, 2016, 01:19:30 PM »
I switched my phone to French a few days ago.

It's certainly helping me learn weather and calendar vocabulary!

Lordy

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #112 on: February 12, 2016, 05:03:53 PM »
For those interested in learning German:

As a little reading exercise I can recommend "Nachrichten Leicht". It's a news recap in easy german, updated weekly (Satudays, I believe):

http://www.nachrichtenleicht.de/


Megma

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #113 on: February 12, 2016, 06:12:58 PM »
For those interested in learning German:

As a little reading exercise I can recommend "Nachrichten Leicht". It's a news recap in easy german, updated weekly (Satudays, I believe):

http://www.nachrichtenleicht.de/

Thanks! I'll check that out!

alleykat

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #114 on: February 12, 2016, 07:56:29 PM »
For those that have a working knowledge of a language, check and see if there are movies/shows in the language on YouTube.  I have looked up Greek shows on YouTube and it is so helpful.  While I don't understand everything, it is perfect for practice.  You are able to pick things up and learn just from the context. I am loving it. 

jfietz

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #115 on: February 13, 2016, 01:26:53 PM »
I've been learning Spanish for the last 3 weeks now. I've been using Anki to learn vocab.

EXLIer

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #116 on: February 14, 2016, 07:19:22 AM »
I've been learning Spanish for the last 3 weeks now. I've been using Anki to learn vocab.

Do you make your own or download already made decks?  If you d/l pre made decks, how is the selection of them?

This Wife's Life

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #117 on: February 22, 2016, 06:39:11 AM »
I'm in! Spanish for me. I'll commit to an hour a day with duolingo, mango, free weekly Spanish class at the library, and cheap resources I find at garage sales/thrift stores. Plus, as I progress maybe a weekly meetup group. Adios!

jfietz

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #118 on: February 22, 2016, 08:27:06 PM »
I've been learning Spanish for the last 3 weeks now. I've been using Anki to learn vocab.

Do you make your own or download already made decks?  If you d/l pre made decks, how is the selection of them?

I make my own. I'm hoping the the effort of making the cards and looking for kind of memorable pictures will help me remember words a bit easier.

turketron

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #119 on: March 04, 2016, 06:38:54 PM »
I'm in. I've been half-assed learning Portuguese via Rosetta Stone for like 6 or 8 months now, and I can get reimbursed by my employer for the $200 I paid for it when I finish so I should really double down and get it done.

I used to be pretty much fluent in Spanish back when I graduated college (in 2008 or so...) but it's been on the decline ever since, so I'm hoping to get that going again, via duolingo and also a weekly Spanish chat group we're starting up at work. I also just picked up some Spanish versions of books I've already read on my Kindle (the Fellowship of the Rings and The Golden Compass, to start) to work on my reading comprehension.

So I've actually followed through with this! In another post in my journal I set specific goals for myself and I've been kicking ass so far: http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/journals/turketron's-financial-ramblings/msg942460/#msg942460

As I'm nearing the end of what Rosetta Stone offers I'm trying to ramp up my Duolingo usage to help maintain the knowledge I have. I used Duolingo prior to RS and just dove back in today, and they've really polished it up since I last used it. They now offer a spoken portion for Portuguese, which seems to work equally as well as Rosetta Stone's does. Also it involves more writing questions which I like better than the "matching" part of RS, as it forces you to remember the accents and tildes and whatnot.

My name is Turketron on there as well if anyone wants to add me!
« Last Edit: March 04, 2016, 07:37:08 PM by turketron »

nnls

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #120 on: March 04, 2016, 07:18:54 PM »
I have started Spanish lessons I go once a week for 10 weeks for a $75 fee, I am hoping it will give me someone to practice with.

Outside of class I have been using duolingo and memrise. I am liking memrise a lot more than duolingo

ohsnap

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #121 on: March 06, 2016, 07:06:57 AM »
I am coming in to this challenge late.  I've been working sporadically on Spanish for about 2 years.  I've finished 3 semesters at the local community college, so I've got a good understanding of the grammar.  Other than that, I use Duolingo (currently level 15), Memrise (which I really prefer over Duolingo because it's more practice with useful phrases), and Pimsleur CDs in the car.  My husband is fluent in Spanish so I know plenty of useful household phrases like "tráeme un café"

I scrolled back through and followed a bunch of you on Duolingo, if I missed anyone my username is spanishalli.

cats

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #122 on: March 07, 2016, 10:44:01 AM »
I finally put the Duolingo app on my phone.  Makes it much easier to sneak in an exercise here and there throughout the day!

kerik68

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #123 on: March 08, 2016, 07:05:33 PM »
Late to this challenge as well!

I'm a complete Spanish newbie and have started on Duolingo as well. I also signed up for Benny Lewis's Fluent in 3 months free emails. 


ohyonghao

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #124 on: March 14, 2016, 07:29:30 PM »
My trip back to Taiwan got me wanting to brush up on my hand writing more.  Once I learned to type I really let the Chinese writing slide, I was embarrassed that I could barely write my own name.  I broke out my 3000 character dictionary and have started writing every character about 18 times across a graph composition book.  I fill in a column from the list and then work on it whenever I have the chance.

Also started reading some Taiwan news and noting down new vocabulary.  I need to look into a good flashcard system for iOS, and think about managing my own cards, or finding sets.  I believe there are sets available for Taiwan's school system requirements.  Problem I've had at this point is finding things that a) I don't know yet, and b) I'll use so I don't forget.

Thanks for the suggestion of Anki, not sure which app people are using on iOS, a little confused by the different ones available, but AnkiApp is free and seems to do the job.  Look forward to getting some good sets of words in there, might even break out my English-Chinese by category dictionary and see if I can prime it a bit.

CientoUno

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #125 on: March 14, 2016, 08:07:41 PM »
So I have been learning Thai for 2 years, this month I decided to go hard core. Taking 2-3hours a day of classes in the morning before work. Making a big difference. Using Anki like 30 min a day also to practice vocab. Who else wants to speak fluently their language by end of the year?

เก่งมาก! ขอให้โชคดี :)

I've been living in Thailand for about 1.5 years now and it's a neat language. Good luck. I really don't want to forget it, and want to keep improving, when I move back to the US next fall. Something to keep in mind for the eventual "Goals of 2017" thread! Where do you live by the way? Apparently LA has a massive Thai population, which is a big reason I'd like to head there.

Sylly

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #126 on: March 15, 2016, 12:29:16 AM »
Ooh, just saw this thread!

In for Spanish. Just recently picked it up again on DuoLingo (sylly) after neglecting it for a few months.

Thank you also for pointing out Mango! Just tried a lesson and it seems to be more practical. I'm also excited to see that it has an Indonesian course. Been looking for a good one of that..

shadowmoss

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #127 on: March 15, 2016, 01:17:41 AM »
Going back in to Memrise.  I do well for awhile, then slack off.  What I'm learning seems to be staying with me, though.

LOL at the idea I may have said I want to reserve a room AND A PERSON for the night.  :)  Might have made him wonder what place I'm using to learn Spanish.  Come to think of it, 'for one person' and 'and a person' are similar.  Have to watch that.  There are a few phrases that can get one in trouble.  One time a co-worker in Honduras asked me a question around noon.  I thought he was asking me if I had a man (while looking at his watch).  He was asking if I was hungry, urging me to go to lunch so I would get back so he could go. 
¿tiene un hombre?  Man
 tienes hambre?  Hungry

Apologies if I've told this here before, one of my favorite stories from that time.

HenryDavid

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #128 on: March 15, 2016, 08:06:18 AM »
For Italian, per gli amatore di bici, watching bike races online in Italian is great.
Naturally this also works for French, German, Dutch . . .
http://www.steephill.tv tells you what's on and a VPN can help you defeat geo-blocking.
And of course people post long excerpts on youtube with original-language commentary.
An easy lazy way to pick up a bit while chilling out.

In general, finding video of something you already know a bit about, so you can follow, then watching it in your target language is a handy resource. As is watching DVD films you've already seen, but with the language switched. You don't get lost and you can focus on the verbal part.

E poi posso vedere sempre "I Simpson!" Ou bien "Les Simpson" en francais.

cerat0n1a

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #129 on: March 15, 2016, 09:06:55 AM »
E poi posso vedere sempre "I Simpson!" Ou bien "Les Simpson" en francais.

The voices in French though, Bart in particular,  yuk!

Welsh on duolingo for me, supplemented by the BBC website which has some good resources for a wide range of languages.

FunkyStickman

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #130 on: March 31, 2016, 11:12:33 AM »
I'm still working on Japanese with Mango Languages. I've logged somewhere around 50 hours. I started doing flashcards with writing in Anki, but it was extremely time consuming, so I will pick that up again later when things aren't so hectic.

MATSG

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #131 on: April 08, 2016, 06:12:09 AM »
I'm in for Spanish.  I've got Rosetta Stone and just signed up for DuoLingo.  I'm hoping to get a solid streak going and practicing at my second job, a Mexican restaurant!

kerik68

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #132 on: April 10, 2016, 01:23:40 PM »
I'm on a 42 day streak with Duolingo Spanish. Still plugging along and redoing many of the exercises regularly.

ransom132

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #133 on: April 10, 2016, 01:53:00 PM »
I'm in!  Spanish in DuoLingo.

Probably will do about 15-20 min day (3 of their little lessons, 30 "points").
Thanks for bringing up duolingo, I just signed up :)

letired

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #134 on: April 18, 2016, 09:27:26 PM »
I'm in! I've been using Duolingo sporadically for a while now, and I'd like to actually finish off the French lessons sometime this year!

K-ice

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #135 on: April 18, 2016, 11:13:07 PM »
Thanks. I'm in too.

Just started takng a formal class 2h/week but I need more.

Duolingo did not have my language but Mango does.

I'm so excited!

Quiz this Saturday and a trip later this year.

I already have about a 100 word noun vocabulary but I can't string together any verbs or pronouns etc.


sununderwood

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #136 on: April 19, 2016, 10:09:16 AM »
Hi!

I speak Spanish and Portuguese and I just started making videos every day half in each language about random topics to get more spontaneous speaking fluency with both. It's really quite embarrassing as they're full of basic errors and lots of dopey "uhhh", but oh well, that's life. Even after a few days I've found it's easier for me to separate the languages better so I'm stoked about continuing this idea.

Does anyone want to join me and make videos as well, and we can watch each other's videos now and again and encourage/correct each other? No matter what level you are -- a thirty second video where you force yourself to use what you know on your feet is a great way to reinforce your duolingo/memrise learning. Duolingo and memrise are good for getting good at duolingo and memrise but I think there's a big gap in what those systems are like and what it's like to apply language in the real world. Feel free to message me if you're interested or post here of course!

No shame, we're all just a bunch of internet strangers. Here is my channel, pretty sure I'll naturally talk about mustachian topics all the time...

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4kAX9ONfJ1h4FjQfgVxZTA

ohyonghao

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #137 on: April 19, 2016, 03:56:13 PM »
My flash card review has been going well, found a treasure trove of 7k+ words well tagged with topics.  I wish the program I was using allowed for me to select multiple tags at a time, seems like I have the choice of all vocab or a single tag.  I also might be starting some side work as an interpreter for gestational surrogate customers, which will really force me to get some more vocabulary down and into my active vocabulary.

jordanread

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #138 on: April 20, 2016, 09:56:55 AM »
Hi!

I speak Spanish and Portuguese and I just started making videos every day half in each language about random topics to get more spontaneous speaking fluency with both. It's really quite embarrassing as they're full of basic errors and lots of dopey "uhhh", but oh well, that's life. Even after a few days I've found it's easier for me to separate the languages better so I'm stoked about continuing this idea.

Does anyone want to join me and make videos as well, and we can watch each other's videos now and again and encourage/correct each other? No matter what level you are -- a thirty second video where you force yourself to use what you know on your feet is a great way to reinforce your duolingo/memrise learning. Duolingo and memrise are good for getting good at duolingo and memrise but I think there's a big gap in what those systems are like and what it's like to apply language in the real world. Feel free to message me if you're interested or post here of course!

No shame, we're all just a bunch of internet strangers. Here is my channel, pretty sure I'll naturally talk about mustachian topics all the time...

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4kAX9ONfJ1h4FjQfgVxZTA

I really like that idea. I was going to watch your videos, but I don't speak the language. :) Also, your speaking was good enough to auto generate portuguese subtitles (unless you specifically selected that).

sununderwood

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #139 on: April 28, 2016, 08:53:02 AM »
Hi!

I speak Spanish and Portuguese and I just started making videos every day half in each language about random topics to get more spontaneous speaking fluency with both. It's really quite embarrassing as they're full of basic errors and lots of dopey "uhhh", but oh well, that's life. Even after a few days I've found it's easier for me to separate the languages better so I'm stoked about continuing this idea.

Does anyone want to join me and make videos as well, and we can watch each other's videos now and again and encourage/correct each other? No matter what level you are -- a thirty second video where you force yourself to use what you know on your feet is a great way to reinforce your duolingo/memrise learning. Duolingo and memrise are good for getting good at duolingo and memrise but I think there's a big gap in what those systems are like and what it's like to apply language in the real world. Feel free to message me if you're interested or post here of course!

No shame, we're all just a bunch of internet strangers. Here is my channel, pretty sure I'll naturally talk about mustachian topics all the time...

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4kAX9ONfJ1h4FjQfgVxZTA

I really like that idea. I was going to watch your videos, but I don't speak the language. :) Also, your speaking was good enough to auto generate portuguese subtitles (unless you specifically selected that).

Haha, awesome! I didn't select that! What languages do you speak? Have you made any vids too? I'd love to watch them.

I did a video in French today (yikes) and have made a goal to do at least one in Italian and one in German soon, as both of these languages I need for my future travel/living plans. I'm really enjoying the process of making vids, and they're working!

jordanread

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #140 on: April 28, 2016, 09:30:16 AM »
Hi!

I speak Spanish and Portuguese and I just started making videos every day half in each language about random topics to get more spontaneous speaking fluency with both. It's really quite embarrassing as they're full of basic errors and lots of dopey "uhhh", but oh well, that's life. Even after a few days I've found it's easier for me to separate the languages better so I'm stoked about continuing this idea.

Does anyone want to join me and make videos as well, and we can watch each other's videos now and again and encourage/correct each other? No matter what level you are -- a thirty second video where you force yourself to use what you know on your feet is a great way to reinforce your duolingo/memrise learning. Duolingo and memrise are good for getting good at duolingo and memrise but I think there's a big gap in what those systems are like and what it's like to apply language in the real world. Feel free to message me if you're interested or post here of course!

No shame, we're all just a bunch of internet strangers. Here is my channel, pretty sure I'll naturally talk about mustachian topics all the time...

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4kAX9ONfJ1h4FjQfgVxZTA

I really like that idea. I was going to watch your videos, but I don't speak the language. :) Also, your speaking was good enough to auto generate portuguese subtitles (unless you specifically selected that).

Haha, awesome! I didn't select that! What languages do you speak? Have you made any vids too? I'd love to watch them.

I did a video in French today (yikes) and have made a goal to do at least one in Italian and one in German soon, as both of these languages I need for my future travel/living plans. I'm really enjoying the process of making vids, and they're working!

I've got 1 phrase in french, I can stumble through a conversation in spanish and german, and can almost speak and read at a russian kindergartener level (probably preschool level with less vomiting). Fortunately for me, I have a relatively good grasp on the linguistics part of latin, so I can occasionally suss out what people are trying to say in any latin based language. I have only made videos in english, and unrelated to language, but I like that approach. Normally I'll find someone who speaks the language, and wants to learn english and do video calls with them. It's a bit more helpful, but I haven't done it in a while.

Actually thinking about it, it would be interesting to find a solid speaker of something, and then do a group hangout to discuss and practice. Also, my neighbor is spanish, and his kids love my dogs, so I practice my spanish on them. They laugh at me, but it's all good.

Cookie78

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #141 on: June 06, 2016, 02:54:32 PM »
I dropped the ball on learning Spanish big time the last 2 months. Got distracted by warm weather, gardening, and yard work. Still listening to Spanish music and practicing a bit with co-workers, but I haven't been reading books, doing lessons, or practicing flashcards in way too long. Now that the garden is completely planted I hope to get back at it, even just a tiny bit each day.

K-ice

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #142 on: June 06, 2016, 11:55:33 PM »
Try to keep it up Cookie.

So that quiz I took the other day. The instructor was nice enough to just put a bunch of red all over it and not give me any grade. They gave me a generous "good".

I did get about 90% on the translating section but I can't even conjugate "I am" never mind the other verbs we should know.

They nicely warned me to practice over the summer or I would be placed in the beginner class again.

I think I will do some mango before bed tonight & every night.

Blissful Biker

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #143 on: June 18, 2016, 10:46:08 AM »
I am learning French on Duolingo.   One of my kids started French immersion last year, and the other will start in September.  I want to be able to understand their homework and set a good example of lifelong learning.  I am a big fan of Duolingo and would recommend it.

jordanread

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #144 on: June 20, 2016, 05:29:50 AM »
I am learning French on Duolingo.   One of my kids started French immersion last year, and the other will start in September.  I want to be able to understand their homework and set a good example of lifelong learning.  I am a big fan of Duolingo and would recommend it.

Blech, way to remind me that I am really sucking at this. I need to make this a higher priority. You said you are a big fan of Duolingo, and I've enjoyed it. Have you learned any other languages with it?

Apples

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #145 on: June 20, 2016, 01:43:27 PM »
I'm in!  I want to re-gild my 2/3 done tree in Duolingo for Spanish, and learn at least 5 new lessons on there while keeping the tree golden.  I have a lot of work to do re-gild it, and can only commit to 2-3 lessons/day, and I'm terrible at keeping my streak going.  Also, once August hits I actually have Spanish coworkers I communicate with and my use of Duolingo drops off for those few months (which is how I end up needing to re-gild an entire tree).  Because I use my Spanish for mostly talking and listening, I find it helpful to focus on keeping lessons gilded and in my concrete quick-recall memory.  Learning lots of new lessons helps me get better at recognizing a lot of words if I'm reading, but it takes a while to be able to use most of those new words in conversation.  So golden tree with 5 more lessons done!  (I'm up through Sports, which was really handy to talk about the U.S. - Mexico soccer game where we got killed.)

I have exceeded my 2016 goal thus far!  I have now down 6 new lessons, gotten the tree gold, and I can tell in my daily conversations that the new vocab is slowly sinking in.  Again, I'm marathoning this, not sprinting through it.  I'll probably be on level 19 or 20 for points by the time I get the tree done, which is pretty slow by Duolingo standards.  And most of the people I friended*there have significantly slowed down their progress!  Come on people, get back on the horse!  You can still do a quick lesson on your commute or before the cool band you're going to see starts playing :p

Also, Mexico lost 0-7 to Chile in the Copa America Centenario this weekend.  I'm so glad I know enough Spanish to fairly easily discuss the basics of the game with all my employees.  Great fun (for me, not them haha).

*or whatever the correct term is for connecting with people on duolingo

jordanread

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #146 on: June 21, 2016, 05:32:05 AM »
Apples, I keep forgetting! I finally did a lesson yesterday. It took me way too long to figure out I was in portugese, not spanish. The connecting sounds like it's useful. Anyone is free to add me and give me shit if I don't keep up on this.

https://www.duolingo.com/JordanRead3

Nancy

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #147 on: June 21, 2016, 05:40:50 AM »
I have a 179 day streak going on Duolingo. I completed the French tree and have kept it gold. Huzzah! I'm starting to learn Portuguese now, and it's loads if fun. I suspect it will take me longer since I'll also be practicing French. I keep my tree gold before I move on to the next lesson, which helps me remember. I'm not in a rush since I know that learning these languages will be a lifelong pursuit.

I need speaking practice so I'm hopefully going to attend some local language meetups.

how do you practice speaking? With people you know/meetups/apps?

Chanel No5

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #148 on: June 21, 2016, 09:20:28 AM »
Can I join this challenge now? I am studying Italian on my own. I took one Adult Learners class three years ago. After that I used a self study with a CD's and workbook. I travelled to Sicily last year and plan to go again next year. I also have used Duolongo and like it a lot. Ma, posso provarlo? È buon idea :) What i really need is a talking partner.

Apples

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Re: Learning or Improving at Another Language in 2016
« Reply #149 on: June 21, 2016, 12:10:42 PM »
This is probably an unhelpful reply, but I practice with my coworkers/employees.  We have a Hispanic crew for most of the manual labor on our fruit farm.  Many of them only know basic English.  They enjoy when I mess up in a funny way :p  Native speakers still have to speak slowly for me, and it's been two years.  But it helps me get better at conjugating verbs in past and future tense in the moment and figure out where exactly to use por and para.