Celebration of Progress: The Conquering of Unit 9's Plateau

It's finally done, it's finally happened. The language stalemate, the plateau, the struggle to climb over, has been achieved!

Unit 9 has been great, but at certain points a mental challenge overcoming the speech and instant translation of what I was reading. After taking a day last week to practise that one section over and over again, then going into Unit 10, I found I had finally broken that and was able to instantly say and translate the sentences. I was keeping up toe to toe with my audio instructor and was feeling quite proud.

However, more than that, I'm greatful for the progress I have really seen. My quickness and recognition has improved, I don't take as long as I used to to work through new material (the understanding of it). Plus, I am on page 219 out of 661. That's a lot of hardwork over a period of 6 months.

Could i have gotten more done in less time? Yes I really could! However, life was happening often and I had to constantly divide my time amongst other responsibilities. So what could have taken 3 months, is going to take more. I have no issue with that. I can go between FSI and the book grammar work and feel I will come out ok.

Once I finish Unit 10, I will be going back to grammar. I had to use discipline to stop myself from working on grammar. Not because it was bad, but because I was not doing my speaking practise, which is extremely important. I could eat that grammar book up while watching movies, listening to music, etc. But speaking practise requires me to focus only on it, since i need to look at the book.

I overcame that, by making my self-study work live. That way I could practise
more, share my understanding, opinions and nuances as I do, and realise just how much that process makes the work stick better than being spoonfed in an oversized classroom of people going their own pace.

What fun!

It's time I go, food awaits!

Happy learning!

FSI Livestream Practise Work... A New Way to Study

Lately I've been doing livestreaming of me working through and sharing/teaching the FSI German coursework. It's really alot of fun, but more importantly teaching helps me learn faster than if I were just going through the motions the regular way. It also gives me an opportunity to clear up any mistakes or share any concerns, nuances or opinions as I go through the work.

And work it is not!  I have found I have made some serious progress since I first started in April. Being able to follow this course and practise speaking with the german tutor lady was great. Because otherwise, that would be my only missing element in this self-study path. Speech.

See writing and being able to read is extremely important, but what people seem to take for granted is that the ability to speak and be understand is more important than writing, reading, etc. Animals in the wild communicate often, because communication at the right time is vital to survival. And what many take for granted is that, usually the once who cannot read, is the hardest work regardless, because work take action and motivation, and that really can't be put into words at all.

Saying all that, if you can read, write and speak you are going places! No matter where you are starting off at, take it slow and work you way up and do it more if you are passionate about it, you'll go places either way.

I'm out of here! The playlist to the Codename: Ralph's series is below, and the videos up to the livestreaming are available to watch. However, if none of that interests you, then just use it as ASMR material to chill too. I don't mind a bit!

Happy Learning!
Codename : Ralph's Language Corner (German)

Reviving the blog and Return to Vlogging

Finally, loose ends are tied or nearly so, and now I can get back to my passion. Learning languages.

Currenly I am back at learning German as of late last month. progress is good, but slow as I work on my grammar, speech and reading ability. Even more fun? I now vlog my work and any progress on my youtube channel Pharaoh's Corner. I will occasionally come and write here too, but for now my sharing focus is directed at the youtube channel.

Happy Learning!

Temporarily putting Voice Blogs and Video Blogs on Hold

I'm working to rearrange a few tings related to my youtube, and this means i'm putting a temporary halt on the voice, and video blogs. I'll still write blogs, but the other side of it is on hold until I finish organizing things.


Thanks for stopping by! Happy Learning!

Reviewing and Progress of Unit 6.2

It's 8:50 am and I've gotten up to do my lessons. Since it has been a few days sinc e I've practised, I thought why not review. Also I want to talk about learning resting. Giving yourself a few days structured practise and then coming back it fresh. But there is more. This will be a voiced blog today, since I'm in the middle of practise. So check it out!

Providing Blog Entries AND Voice Recorded Versions

I've made a decision to start voice recording my blogs. They will be written first (when necessary), and then I will orate them and sometimes discuss them further if I need to. This way you can choose any medium you want, Written or orated.

I'll be starting by recording some of the older blogs here, and then up to the newest.

Happy Learning Everybody!

Phasing Unit 6 : A Minor, But Overcomeable Challenge

So far so good, and interesting at the same time. After having started sharing the first few of my recent units on youtube, I have found that I am assimilating these lessons much faster than before. It's not that I'm talking directly to anyone. I don't really have anyone here I can practice or share things like that with, it's just that, somehow by having shared, I have improved much faster. A combination of determination, hardwork and the willingness to be vulnerable could be it. But it's not really vulnerability if you doing something in your element, even if you stumble and may seem to look silly. It's in this case, I'm doing something I have complete confidence in, in which those things, those judgements don't really bother me that much. I'm sharing of my own free will and giving many the opportunity to see the progress as each video will be made.

Enough of that!

Unit 6... because of all I had pratised and as a result of me sharing, I have made aLOT of progress. So much so, that, today's practise of 6.2 has left me confident to move on to personal studying and mastering of unit 7. But there is a small snag, and it's extremely minor. It's this simple phrase "Wir ko**nnen die Rechnung nicht bezahlen."  No it's not hard to say slow, or to even remember what it means. No, my tripping point is saying it normal speed. As mentioned many times, there is always an undercurrent anxiety, excitement, and this ,if not controlled, can cause me to tense up and trip up as a result. So when I say the phrase, I find there is a 1 second hesitation, before I can catch myself and then I usually say the phrase completely through. It's that need to say it propely to make sure I am understood, and those thoughts rush in in that one second, I must quickly return my focus to just saying the phrase and starting over if I mess up, versus messing myself up before I can even say the phrase. Get it?

Verbal self-sabotage. I'm coining that to mean those times when we must say something important, or we are on stage and must sing, dance, etc and that one moment that can make or break. Although having said that, how you handle after that is also important.

I remember very recently, out of my wonderful curiousity, searching about what is a opera singer's nutrition. And in some of the other questions below, I saw "Has an opera singer ever burped on stage?". Being me, i quickly looked to see what the answer was. Most mentioned it's possible, but they try to avoid fizzy drinks and foods, especially before going on stage. However, there was one person who mentioned seeing a stage performance where a singer actually belched, and caught everyone off guard for the few moments, but instantly and without making much of a fuss, continue singing their part and all was well.

Quite interesting!

So having said that, in the case of practicing a foreign phrase, there is that moment of hesitation that could arise, the thoughts, the tension try to choke you. However, in that split second you have to pause that and move on with the sentence. If you mess up after then you try again, if you mess up before and you are able to, the laugh it off. Now I say if you are able to, because if you are doing this as your passion, your mistakes will mean nothing to you, but a little stumbling block. However if you are doing this, because you need a better job, or because it's required, and you find it a bit of a chore, you may not be able to stop the frustration from rising. That doesn't mean you can't learn the performer technique, it just means it'll be a bit more difficult.

Thus, in my case, I have to use this technique to temper it so that, just like the previous phrases, I can file it in my head and say it with ease and accomplishment.

Having said that, I deem Unit 6 completed!

Write you all again soon, Happy Learning!

Continuing the Vlog Experiment : Making a little change

So as I mentioned in the last vlog, I did unit 5.2 - 6.2 and it turned out better than I had expected. So today I was getting ready to privately practice 6.2 and then realized, by having shared my experience live on the fly, I had actually really make some progress in pronouncing the sentence Wir ko**nnen die Rechnung nicht bezahlen.

This has me now wanting to attempt something different. Having you hear me start the Unit without practice, and then doing a follow up with progress. So this means, doing the last section of the unit (5.2, 6.2, etc), then moving on to do the whole unit. In this case, I will be reviewing Unit 6.2, then I will start also recording Unit 7.1 - 7.2. Then when I've practised enough on my own, I will return and record the 7.2 Unit, and then start on 8.1-8.2.

This does not mean I won't have a look at the unit. I have to so that I can get an idea of how long it may be, and what I will be walking into. But speaking will be raw, and I will also read the sections.

Soon I will also contact the website owner who has been gracious enough to host these files.

Let's see how this goes!

Happy Learning Everybody!

Unit 5.2 - 6.2 Recorded and Show of Progress

A few days ago, I was finally able to record Unit 5.2 - 6.2 and the progress through them. I took a break yesterday, to give myself some much needed rest and will continue practising today.

So the link to this is here :
It's 2hours long, but it's an on the spot review of Unit 5.2 and the Beginning of Unit 6 all the way through. I started unit 6 before, but this time around there is a lot of progress.

One of the words I mentioned in this clip was featured in a past blog, was ko**nnen = kuhn'n. That's the closest I can get to the sound in a transliterated way. Here's the link to that blog. Its talks about the beginning progress for learning unit 6.

This is all for this blog. I'm going to be practising today, and if anything new comes up, you'll know I'll return!

That's all for now, Happy Learning!

NEW~ Codename: Ralph's Languages Vlogs

Codename: Ralph's Languages Vlogs:

It's finally come about that I have the courage to take my practise journey to youtube. This blog will still be used for the intricasies, but the youtube Vlog will be the portend of the more structured non structured sharing of each unit as I practise them.

This blog will still feature the shorter practises, but now you can travel along with me on the longer and necessary portion of the journey. I have the first introduction video up now on youtube. So check it out!

Here's to a New Journey!

Happy Learning Everyone!

Unit 6 Delving and Progress

The time had finally come yesterday. The final edging away from Unit 4.1-4.2 and Unit 5.1. Today, I've actually gotten extremely close to phasing out Unit 5. I have a few speaking hiccups, that I will share in another blog later today. But I felt that, I was ready to move on to Unit 6 fully. So thus, I did so.

Unit 6 as always, they start with a review and a writing exercise. I have not done the writing exercise for this yet, I will do that before I start my grammar reading later on. I focused on reading, listening and speaking.

6 is richer. In fact, sechs ist richer. I've got some new words, and some are definitely familiar.

Bratwurst = Br-aht - vourst
Mark = Mahk
Acht = Ahct
Wieviel = Vee - Fi-ehl
ko**nnen = kuhn'en (en is a taper, like ... Lighten up)

One of the things I liked about Unit 6 is it helped me clarify some speaking issues (I believe this is done purposefully for the whole book to be honest)

I clarified my pronunciation of verstehen (fer-stee-en), which makes saying the sentence "Verstehen Sie Frau Kunze?" "Ja. Ich verstehe Frau Kunze."

Also the ending sound of "en", even though I knew it inherently, I didn't know for sure if that it's how it's pronounced in Germen. That softness of "en", versus "eh-n". The "en" is said with a closed mouth towards the end to stop the outward sound.

The phrases in this chapter will take some serious practice to say at normal speed, but I'm getting there. The hardest phrase is "Wir ko**nnen die Rechnung nicht bezahlen!" Now, of course, saying the phrase slowly isn't an issue, it's just like I mentioned in the last blog, that there is a lot of "bite" in this phrase. Meaning, there rhythm is rapid and easy to trip over. The mind knows what to say, it's getting the tongue to cooperate that's the problem. You'll get to hear that soon.

I have lots to do. Practise is done for the moment, and the day needs me.
Happy Learning Everyone!

Practice, Progress, Vocal fry and Mild Dehydration Effects

This post is actually going to be into some parts. I started this topic yesterday (4-10-2016) and now I am working on filling in more information.

First, with perseverance I am finally almost ready to leave Unit 5.2 behind. I'm starting to memorise the phrases and news words in this unit. I'm also starting to handling the speaking shift when saying phrases like: "Ich fahre zum Bahnhof" or "Ich fahre zum Flughafen" . Phrases like these, I say have a lot of "bite" There is a constant sharp rhythm. As my tongue slowly works it's way through this language, those types of combinations are slowly starting to settle in my muscle memory. I'll include a clip of that in another blog post.

And speaking of clip, I actually want to post a on the spot learning practise. Meaning, a clip of me navigating the language and recording it. Now, when I do that, you will hear some "colourful" english words..... I'm human, and more, I'm having a blast. Learning languages is something I can laugh at sometimes, so you'll get an opportunity to hopefully witness that. Whatever you hear, it's not going to be forced or manipulated. It will be in real-time and pretty raw.

And lastly, that's where you will hear my voice wake up, (i'm practicing in the early morning for speaking, even or so for grammar reading), you'll hear my voice crack, my tongue get stuck, and my voice possibly dying away. Of course you'll also hear a chug of water. Talking dries the throat, but constant practice can sometimes tire the voice. Perseverance is my goal at that point, though. If I ever have the opportunity to travel overseas and visit the places, I'm learning my languages in, then talking everyday is a high possibility and necessity. I'm working to build that endurance as much as I can by practising through to voice breaks. We'll see what happens.

So look forward to the first bit of progress video clip in a blog coming today. It will be showing the "zum" trip ups of Unit 5 and I'll also add in a few minutes of practice in Unit 6.

And saying that. Unit 6 blog is up next!
Happy learning!

Tonight's the Night! Phasing out Unit 1- 4

I feel I have finally reached a mastery over these units, and again with the help of Unit 6, I was able to correct a few mispronunciations and clean up some mistakes. Now that I've reached that level of confidence, I'm finally phasing those units out. Tonight is my last night to finish Unit 4 and bon voyage to it I say! It's amazing to see the progress, but I have a very long way to go and intend to meet my goal of mastering the introductory course in 3 months or so. As long as I actually complete it, I've achieved the goal I set out for, and will make some room for other languages to learn, and to bring this to maintaining level.

Now recently I found a pdf for grammar for German, both basic and intermediate. With a little glance at basic, I realise just how beneficial it will be and how it immediately helped me understand another mistake I've been making. German has a lot of capitals in their sentence. Sense the FSI pdf I'm using is a scan, I assumed the random capitals were a faulty typewriter. However my quick glance in the grammar book, has alerted me that, those were in fact intentional. It was correct grammar and writing, and thus you will notice the uniformity in older posts. So be prepared for that to change going forward. I've got a lot to study, and yoga to do before it!

Happy Learning!

Current List of Languages Learning and Wanting to Learn

List of Languages Wanting to Learn

German

Russian

Italian

Czechoslovakian

Vietnamese

Currently Learning

German

Possibly Next

Italian

Russian

Getting Closer to the Discussion about Dialects

I've added a few other languages to the list of possibilities. Of SERIOUS possibilities, and one of them happens to be Italian. The introductory course this time around for this language, speaks immediately about What italian is. Its talks about Phonology, Vocabulary, and Grammar, and interestingly, they are talking about dialects, a subject I want to breach in relation to German, Vietnamese, etc. This man, the narrator is explaining a basic, but in depth way about dialects, and a few things clicked about how I wanted to talk about them.

But even more, listening to this, I really eventually, also, want to breach the subject of how really all our languages are intrisincally the same, even if we don't understand each other, and how we have adapted to communicate beyond words. This makes me wonder about an experiement that could or should take place about being dropped off in a foreign land, but not just trying to learn the language by muddling, but I wonder, how would one survive if they decided not to speak, but instead tried to learn how to indicate with actions what they want or are trying to say? How about an experiment where we dig beyond words. There are people who have done this completely silently, but I'm more talking about, still maintaining your own language but light vocalizing (false words), and point, motioning.

People all over the world understands the motions of "I love you", "I'm hungry". Basically, I guess I'm hinting to miming. Using actions and mood to convey what you want or how you are feeling.

I'm getting ahead of myself, but I hope it's clear what I mean. Soon I will talk more about each of these topics in their own blog.

Happy Learning!

The Fun of Self Study

Ever since I left the school environment, I had realized there were things I needed to work on. Math was one of them, but I also enjoyed learning languages. I wanted to learn, so that I could talk with different people and maybe visit these areas.

As a result of my grades during school, I never qualified for an language learning or exchange program. I also had trouble learning in a full classroom. Everyone's pass was so different, but usually faster than my own. Or I was being bullied in front of the teacher or in other areas in school. This affected my confidence greatly and made difficult to focus on my classwork. It also made it hard to be taken seriously in school and classrooms in particular, because I really didn't want to take part half the time. My achievements didn't mean much, and when I struggled and couldn't get the right kind of help, I felt often defeated and quite depressed among other things in my life.

When I decided to seriously take up learning Vietnamese, I search quite hard for reading materials, classroom style sheets or anything I felt that could be easy to latch onto, but alowed me to really put in time and effort. I eventually found a program online, and having Linux as my main OS, so to speak, I needed something that could run in a browser, versus software. Language software isn't very supported on Linux, so browser based was next best thing.

I purchased the low cost program subscription and really put in the effort and time. 4 or more hours a day I would practice, until I felt I was ready for the next. Reading, picture association and speaking, were all apart of what I was doing, and it was the sole focus at the time. I was study until I fell asleep, and then wake up and do it again the next day. I also spent time writing, even though it was not necessary to the course. I could use my time how I wanted, to learn what I wanted to learn.

Eventually I reached a point where I wanted to do language exchange. I had reached a level of confidence to move from the hand-hold on the software and thus I found websites like conversationexchange (which is free and a very good start. I may do a blog about this site at a later date) and italki, which one of the learners I met from conversation exchange introduced me to, which is a big and diverse step-up from conversation exchange.

I can't check all you guys notes!! No!!

I enjoyed some of the experience, but the different way this site is setup compared to the first, is a bit more overwhelming for me. People ask for their writing to be checked, to learn privately or ask questions. It's a bit more open, than conversation-exchange. To which I may use that next time. Both are very good at finding someone to work with, but italki verges on social media and it can be enriching, yet overwhelming when you need a break. Eventually I had so many requests I shut my account down. I did have some people from here who I helped, but the most came from conversationex'.

It was a joy to work with them, but the difficulty was coursework. How do we structured and take turns learning, asking questions and having a little fun. Some people were doing it mostly because of job opportunity, but I could feel there was no passion behind it. That's not bad, sometimes you do what you have to do, but passion helps you absorb it and makes the most of it. The schedule of all our lives also made it hard to collaborate and eventually my own life had come to a screeching halt because of family emergencies. I felt quite sad not be able to continue my exchange. Either my internet was not working properly and I couldn't do a hangouts to learn (which I was actually starting to learn something with this other person), or again family emergencies. The people I was learning with understood my situation and even more, understood my sadness at having to put this on hold. Evenutally I came to start this blog and document some of my journey.

I still wanted to learn, but I realized the best way was to do it on my own with the materials left by by others. They put in their work, and I wanted to put in the work to learn it. The problem is, until now, the materials I found were helpful, but scattered and giving me only one part of what I needed, reading, writing. Speaking was an issue. I was lost.

Then I decided to learn German. one thing I knew for sure, is that military people have to learn different languages, so that they can perform at their destinations and stations, but also to understand what the enemy may be saying, so as to save their own and others lives. I figured that they were doing something to learn languages. They had to be functional courses, and to the point, because they do not have ALL day to learn something. They need to learn as much as they need to survive, and the rest will come in time once they are in the zone.

So I decided to look for language courses that are fast. I originally started with Russian, since that's what I was looking for at the time. I found the FSI course. The website looked super simple and I honestly almost passed it up, but I remember sometimes simple is best, check the work and then decide.

GOLD!

When I looked at the Russian area and saw all the course work AND tape recordings, I knew I struck gold. I downloaded some files, but I had not gotten around to learning Russian from it yet, because..... I ran into an important project that requires me to learn German. I was hesistant as I've mentioned before, because German is one of those languages I orignally didn't want to learn. I've only ever heard people speaking German like they were going to kick your ass! However I did favour the Austrian dialect, and I thought hmm. Even more, the project, these singers sing beautifully in German and I said... ok... I accept this challenge!! And thus here I am today.

I enjoy studying in my own time, doing another activity or not. Trying to say it naturally (German thankfully drops my voice naturally). Trying to say the same thing with different moods, and (unsuccessfully) trying to sing those words. Hmm... not yet huh? I don't have to worry about working with anyone else's schedule on such a grand scale, I don't have to worry about being hungry and or sick and having to slog through a course. If I need rest I can wrap up my learning and rest. If I want to learn at 5am in the morning, I will learn at 5am for a few minutes and go back to sleep. I need a nap? Fold up and take a nap. Studying on my own allows me time to learn at my own pace and make sure I master it.

Does this mean class doesn't have it's place? Of course not! For many people, learning in groups is even more enriching than solo. Some can keep up and even challenge themselves in such an environment. The key is choice. If you struggle in a class environment, take the risk and learn on your own and dedicate yourself to it. Set your own schedule OR be flexible. Say, in an hour I will study this, and prepare yourself to study, and when you want to stop, Do so.

That's what I got for solo learning. No matter what, choose what you feel is best and always have fun!

Happy Learning!

Halt! Das ist nicht gut! : Mastery Review Time!

Halt! Turn Back!

Yesterday or so, I decided I wanted to dip my toe in Unit 6. The beginning stages were not bad, it was the review and then you write. However I got the number
section too and was ok. Null, Eins, Zwei, Drei, Vier, Fu**nf, Sechs, Sieben,Acht, Neun, Sehn. No big deal, just a bit of memorisation needed there. However structures are changing, speed is increasing and most importantly, the Drill got harder.

They started talking about Marks, I got that part. However, when I saw that next section, I had to put my own brakes on. I only have so many marks? I don't have enough marks? And then the combination of the words, the full on speed and complexity. PLUS, they EVEN decided to make it a longer drill too. not just Hello, Hello, How are you?, Im fine.... No. They literally jumped into full on conversatuon territory...... NOPE! Not yet.

I actually have words I still need to strength and Sprechen is one of them. I can say Shp, I can say Rech, Rechen. Shprechen? I still slip into SP instead of Shp, and my lazy tongue gets stuck and says "ken" instead of "hchen"(my own little way of spitting). Slowly I get it, but normal speed I get my tongue caught. Dru**ben is no longer an issues, and in fact Unit 6 helped clarify some sounds for me.

Verstehen.  The new word Vier in Unit six sounds like "feel", because of the force you need for the V. So knowing how to pronounce V like this, I decided to repractise "Ich Vesterhen Frau Kunze" in my head and it sounded much better. That one little pronunciation clarification makes the words flow out of my mouth much easier, than we I was solely using "Vee" instead of a "Fee" sound. I'm still saying a "Vee", but it's close to "Fee" now, with more force behind it.

So did Unit 6 destroy me? No, in fact, dipping my toe into Unit 6 gave me some more tips and words to work on. Those little changes have me needing to go back and just strengthen the words I already know, work on the phrases, and masters these first 5 sections. As I said before, 5 IS getting better, but the mastery is not there. I also have to remind myself to go ahead and slow down and get the accuracy right, first. I have the luxury of learning at home in my own time, and thus, if I need to slow down and replay a part, I have the option for sure.

In fact that's why I enjoy self studying no matter the subject. I can really sit with myself and focus on what I need to correct and strengthen and take as many or less breaks as I need for restroom, to eat, to socialize or get fresh air, and then come back to study with a fresh head. I'll talk more about this in the next blog entry.

Happy Learning!

Moving forward and Hanging Back Unit 5 and Now Unit 6

I've practised a little bit today and I'm starting to feel more confident, BUT not foolishly so. I'm ready to add unit 6 to my line up and slowly easing away from Unit 4.1-4.2. I'll be doing my practise from 1- 4 and only on any sections that ask me to practise without hesistation.

When I did yoga, it was the best time to practise. It helped me focus heavily on yoga, and listening. Listening to my body, and listening carefully with my ears, without my eyes interfering. It's a great experiement and I have also practised quite well doing this.

Unit 5 and 6 require more engagement, and easing away from 4 means, I have a bigger challenge, and the challenge is going well, but not yet ready for complete cutting off. I have to understand and keep a deep diary in my head about sentence structures AND being able to recall : Ich verstehe and Sie verstehen. Das/Es and Der / Er . When I hear sentences i want to make sure I have these down in my head so I can be more automatic in how I respond. But see, they increase the speed and the challenge is recall AND speed and accuracy.

I'm getting better, I'm moving forward!

Happy Learning!

Having a Little Fun, Progress with Unit 5.1 - 5.2

I'm better at saying certain words. I'm slowly catching up to the speed, and able to recall a proper reply in a little less time. Much progress... und auch fun!

Mrs. Kunze has, so far, been a staple in the Frau practice. And the last part of the unit 5.2 was intersting and inspired a bit of "fun". Regular speaking (the FSI style), and then my own way. Awkward and Irritating. Mrs. Kunze, I'm so sorry, but it's practice!

FSI (i added und)

Me: Guten tag, Herr Becker. Wohnen sie hier?
Mr. Becker: Ja, Ich wohne hier.
Me: Wo ist das hotel?
Mr. Becker: Es ist hier rechts und Das restaurant ist auch dort.

Awkward

Me: Frau Kunze? Frau Kunze... Frau Kunze?
Mrs Kunze: Ja?
Me: Guten tag
Mrs Kunze: Guten tag
Me: Wohnen sie hier?
Mrs Kunze: Ja, Ich wohne hier.
Me: Wo ist das hotel und restaurant?
Mrs. Kunze: Das hotel ist hier rechts, und (points) das restaurant ist auch dort.
Me: Danke sehr, Tschu**ss!

Irritating

Me: Frau Kunze? Frau Kunze? Frau Kunze!
Mrs Kunze: Ja!?
Me: Guten tag...
Mrs Kunze: Guten TAG.
Me: Wohnen sie hier?
Mrs Kunze: JA, Ich wohne hier...
Me: Wo ist das hotel und restaurant?
Mrs. Kunze: Das restaurant ist hier rechts, und (points) das hotel ist auch dort.
Me: ....... Es ist?
Mrs. Kunze: JA!
Me:....Danke sehr...........
Mrs. Kunze: Hm....Auf Wedersehen!
Me: Auf Wedersehen...

There it is! Just some fun practice. Though I am getting better so far with Unit 5 as a whole, It will take a few more days, up to 4 or so, before I feel confident enough to move to 6. Before I do that, I will definitely do a quick review of the exercise and make sure my notes are in order.

Thanks for stopping by, Happy Learning!

The Plunge into Unit 5.1 - 5.2

Yesterday I finally took the plunge. I reviewed Unit 4.1 - 4.2 to polish up what I was practising and then I took a breath and began.

How i've been doing these units is pretty simple. The tools I have are a notebook, a pen, pdf file of the coursebook, and my mediaplayer. I put the cassette mp3 files in a the queue and I add calming music in between each unit and subunit. This way, I do all my practising for that cassette file and then give myself a break to write notes, get some water or simply thank myself for a job well done. It's amazing how I've improved, however, unit 5 has been pushing me to the limit. I expect it to take maybe a week or less (depening) to get a solid hold onto rhythm.

Unit 5 includes the review, the practice, the new sentences, sentence structures and a whole lot more information. One of the things I immediately noticed is a subtle speed increase. They are definitely assuming and subtley encouraging you to step up you memory recall and speaking speed and accuracy.

Some of the sentences I've learn such as "Guten Morgen, Frau Kunze." and "Wo fahren sie hin." caught me off guard in the speed. I find myself tongue locking. It's this strange, possibly primal thing where, if I cannot keep up with speed and I lose my thought mid-sentence, my tongue will lock up and I will gently hold it down like a vice. This happens especially when learning the phrase "Ich verstehe Frau Kunze nicht." I know exactly where the bite happens Ische ver  and Kunzeeh nicht. If I don't lift my tongue in time it gets caught and I have to stop and try again.

The other challenge I'm reaching is, Recall. Now respectfully I do expect this recall to take longer than a month to be ingrained, but I was surprised at how long it takes me to recall it. It's not that I don't know it, but my brain has always been a file cabinet, and it has these words filed away too far back. Eventually my brain may bring the file cabinet up closer from frustration of packing it way in the back. Phrases like "Wo ist der Bahnhof?" should not take me 15 minutes to recall after learning it consistently.

So let's talk about "rechts" and "restaurant". Both are new words. The first means to the right, the other... is self-explanatory. No, really it means restaurant!

Totally Twisted!

Wo ist das restaurant? Es ist hier rechts.   (Es ist heer reychts) When you are in the moment and they give you less time to respond, you'll discover how quickly how you'll sound "Esh ish sheer rayss" LOL That's obviously wrong, but that's exactly what was happening at times. My brain is taking too long to synchronize with what I have to say.

There are a lot of interactive writing activities now too. I get to try to write what I hear them say, and sometimes they add new words, I get to determine and listen to see if a sentence is a statement, question, or command.

One of the things I wish I had was like a portable work book I could practice
with when out in the world. Then when I come home, I would have some practice under my belt and then can resume learning from the FSI course.

Respectfully, Unit 5 is literally the beginning of the real deal, and my gluteus maximus is being kicked in trying to learn and assimilate the lesson. However, I am also having a blast. Even though I have a goal in mind learning German, I'm not letting that dampen the fact that, I also love learning languages, and I'm enjoy learning this!

Happy learning Everyone!