#clearthelist October 2018: Language Hunt In The Brecon Beacons
Catch up with my monthly language learning progress for intermediate Welsh and a few other languages and projects, plus September’s top Fluent Show episode
It’s time again for my language learning update with #clearthelist, the monthly language learning round-up sharing language learning goals, support, and accountability.
What Happened In September?
After all the summer’s travels, it was nice to spend a consistent bunch of weeks at home. I got back into my usual language routine — only to the extent that that routine actually exists! I’m not a “1 hour at this time every day” kind of person. In fact that kind of schedule would drive me crazy, so instead I focused on the goals for the month and making sure I maintain that daily contact level.
All in all, a good month for language! Plus, I’ve now started meeting on a weekly basis with Lindsay and Shannon again because we’re putting on a Women in Language sister event in November. Make sure you’re on the Women in Language list to stay up to date!
In other activities, the month was full up with promo, planning and bookings for the next Fluent German Retreat, which will be Christmas themed in December. I. Cannot. WAIT!!!
Travel in Wales: Is Welsh Useless After All?
At the end of the month, my husband and I spend a week travelling in Wales. It was lovely, we visited the Brecon Beacons, I swam in a lake, we walked in stupendous landscapes. By all measures, this trip was a success.
Except…I hardly spoke the language! You may have read how much I spoke in just 3 days at my last Welsh visit, the Eisteddfod in Cardiff., and wonder how come I didn’t get as much practice in this time?
In truth, I couldn’t find anyone who spoke Welsh. You may have heard before how the Welsh language was pushed out by English over the last 100-200 years. In the Brecon Beacons, this is super evident. Lots of people told me about parents and grandparents who “got beaten up in school for speaking Welsh, so they stopped”.
Make of that what you will. I think it’s not funny.
Where I grew up in Germany-near-Luxembourg, it was common to head to another country and for the border region folks to be bilingual. Yes, even in a tiny language like Luxembourgish. No one EVER would call Luxembourgish useless. Yet here in the UK, people do it to the Welsh (and probably the other UK languages) all of the damn time. Why would you have this presumption that a language is “useless”?
Anyway!! Do you have thoughts about this? Share them in the comments below, or come to the Polyglot Conference, buy me a drink and let’s put the world to rights.
The Fluent Show
The Fluent Show celebrated European Day of Languages (26 September) in style this year, with a HUGE 20 language quiz edition hosted by me and Lindsay. We quizzed each other and you lot. I’ve yet to find anyone who recognised all 20 languages. Could it be you?
Listen Here To Take Our 20 European Languages Quiz
Language Goals and Progress
Let’s have a look how September went in terms of language goals. I’ve got a feeling about this one!
Listening
The goal was to switch the radio on in Welsh 2-3 times per week. I managed this in week 1 (starter’s enthusiasm) and in week 4 (the car radio had Radio Cymru). In between, I did watch a few shows on S4C including coverage of Ironman Wales. I’d say 8 out of 10 for this goal.
Reading
Sgwp, Sgwp, Sgwp. It’s the book that keeps on giving. I’ve not set up a pretty good routine of reading the chapter, highlighting vocab, looking it up and putting it into my notebook, and reviewing previous words while I’m there.
I got through more chapters in September, but feel like more reading in Welsh is necessary.
Speaking
Speaking was pretty great! I had two meetings with Nicky and arranged to meet my friends Dafydd and Gavin while I was in Cardiff on the Wales trip.
I also set the goal to get through Say Something in Welsh 2 up to level 18, and in fact I’ve just finished level 19. Da iawn!
Writing
Well…I did download the exam papers. But then I didn’t look at them in detail. In fact, I totally forgot about this goal so it’s time I got back to it.
Through instant messaging in Welsh, I’m noticing that slowly I’m better able to translate “what I want to say in my head” into Welsh language without hesitation. Writing is always a slower skill for me, because speaking comes naturally with my extrovert/gregarious personality.
But as my tax advisor said…”you can’t hand wave through everything”.
Monthly Contact Goal
September looks pretty good, with 22 days out of 30 checked on the “daily contact with Welsh log”. Even when I didn’t speak Welsh to people on my trip, it was contact every day through bilingual signage and Radio Cymru in the rental car.
Other Languages
There’s always a chance for other languages to sneak in, and I did a tiny bit of playtime on the [Drops app] in Chinese and watched some Netflix with French subtitles.
Goals For October 2018
In October, I’m planning a trip to Croatia and a talk at the Polyglot Conference in Ljubljana, so it’s a busy one. Are you coming?
In October, I want to keep up the current Welsh level and play with a few other languages such as Chinese. I’m hoping to spend a good amount of time with Lindsay and Shannon, so maybe I can annoy them with my practice of tones.
Listening
At this stage, I feel it’s important for me to get lots more realistic spoken Welsh input so it’s definitely key to keep that TV or radio habit up. The goal’s 2-3 times a week, as before.
Reading
It’s not a particularly inspired goal, but I will continue to make progress with Sgwp and have a book of short stories lined up for afterwards. Reading is such a great way for me to grow my vocabulary. At this stage it’s more helpful for new words than online lessons!
Taking into account the big amount of travel I’ve got coming up, my goal is 5 chapters of Sgwp.
I want to dedicate the rest of the time to picking up the good old Chinese in 10 Minutes a Day again. Perhaps I should actually spend 10 minutes a day on it and then I’ll learn way more Chinese!!
Speaking
I will continue to book in an hour or so every week for a virtual paned a sgwrs (cuppa and a chat) in Welsh when my friends can spare the time. I am also craving contact with more speakers, so am considering putting together a Meet-Up Cymraeg here in Canterbury in the next month.
I'm also very pleased to be back on the Ceffyl (horse) with Say Something in Welsh, so my aim is to complete challenges 20-22 in level 2.
If you want to start learning Welsh yourself, download my free Teach Yourself Welsh toolkit here.
Writing
Tricky! I do want to work on that exam paper, but this month I don’t feel ready. I’ll set a different goal and park this one. My goal is to post a Welsh language caption on Instagram at least once a week.
How Was Your Month?
So that’s it for this month’s goals! Be sure to check out the linkup for #clearthelist, hosted by Lindsay Williams and Shannon Kennedy.
By the way, if you want to hear more about what you can do when you’ve failed to meet a goal, check out September’s Fluent Show episode about goals with tips from me and Lindsay.
Are you setting goals, too? How do you feel about your target language and its usefulness?
Leave a comment below to tell me all about it!
What To Do When Duolingo Gets Boring
After 3 months of learning Spanish with Duolingo, Luka has had enough and wrote to me asking how to move forward. Listen to my response in this episode of the Fluent Show.
Every other week on the Fluent Show, I put aside a little time to answer your listener questions. Email your question to me at kerstin@fluentlanguage.co.uk or tweet it to @thefluentshow
Luka asks:
I have been learning Spanish for 3 months. I started learning with Duolingo and was really into it, and recently I have been using a textbook as well but have become really demotivated - not because I give up, because I am bored of duo lingo. I’m tired of the way it’s trying to teach me and I don’t feel like I’m progressing. [..]
My question is, if I’m not using duo lingo, what can I actually do to learn Spanish? I’ve looked everywhere and all the websites have a lot of ‘tips’ but not an actual guide saying things like resources to use etc.
Does that sound familiar?
Listen to my answer and the best tips on how to learn a language here:
How To Refresh Your Duolingo Experience
Duolingo is a small app with a big promise, and largely it keeps its promise because it’s a game and it does correct you right in the lesson. Duolingo is nice enough, but it can become a monotonous experience and it sounds like you’re hitting a wall
Tips for dealing with Duolingo boredom - in Duolingo!
Get on the web version so you can read explanations (more about this here)
Restrict yourself to a few minutes a day - how about Duolingo while waiting for your kettle to boil or your bus to arrive?
Try out one of the in-app clubs so you can compete with your friends and compare progress.
Duolingo is great, but…in all these scenarios, you’re still reacting to a screen and you maintain your sense that you don’t have a plan. So let’s address the other issue: Motivation!
How To Refresh Your Whole Language Learning Experience
Most projects, be they language learning or dieting or a new job, start with enthusiasm and optimism. You have reasons why you’re doing this.
But that initial motivation, that burst, does not last. Motivation is cyclical: It leads to an experience of success, and then that boosts you on to work through a boring period, and then you have another success experience. So in a way, you’re not having that experience of success.
How To Create A Sense Of Progress And Success
In order to feel successful in a predictable, sustainable way, you need to learn how to set good goals for yourself. Your success must be more than a vague sense of progress, it has to be “I achieved what I set out to do".
Your practical goals - I call them Path Goals - need to be SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant/Realistic…and whatever people say the T stands for. I go with Time-Bound.
I also advise learners to work with the 4 core skills listening, speaking, reading and writing.
Your start is to set yourself goals, think about where you want to be and what that looks like. Get specific! And then ask “what do I need to do to get there?"
Your goals can totally include Duolingo and your text book, but I would advise you to start where you are. Right now where you are is bored with no sense of progress. So your goal has to be:
Excited about Spanish learning
Feeling like I’m getting somewhere
So what will help you answer those two questions? That’s the interesting bit.
Example: Learning Spanish For Travel
In a coaching session, this is what we’d explore. What are you into? What is interesting you about Spanish?
Let’s say you’re dreaming of walking the Camino de Santiago in Northern Spain. So you’re interested in travel, you dream of speaking Spanish to the locals there, to have the right words to talk about your religion and spirituality, and to feel confident sorting your own food and accommodation.
That’s your Vision goal - the big, inspiring thing you dream of.
To get a sense of your Path Goal, ask yourself how much time you have and what you want to tackle first. Let’s say it’s ordering food and learning about Northern Spanish food.
Your 3 month goals could be
to cook a meal for yourself
to role play a restaurant scenario with a tutor
to know 50 words for food items
to study a restaurant menu
to listen to 10 podcasts so you can understand the words
to pronounce every place name on the Camino.
These are specific goals. They’re way less boring than doing Duolingo forever in the hope you’ll finish a skill tree, because they are YOURS.
No app or textbook is leading you now because your routine is becoming personal. The next question? What do I need to get there? Duolingo becomes a part of the journey, rather than your leader.
No, a short-term goal approach won’t teach you all of Spanish instantly. But that’s because that doesn’t exist. Language is a long-term game.
Yes, you will have to think differently. But this is how to fire up your motivation and keep going.
The Language Habit Toolkit
If you want to learn more about this, the Language Habit Toolkit is designed to help you set up exactly this way of thinking and create a solid language learning routine.
There’s even a Resource Manager worksheet included, in which I’ve listed exactly what you need to set up a good and supportive set of resources. Duolingo is a good start, but I’d advise you add an input resource and a set of reference material.
A few final tips:
Practice with people, either native speakers or at least by finding like-minded folks. Feeling like you’re on your own with this makes motivation harder to maintain. Come and join our Facebook group for check-ins every Saturday.
I actually spoke to you Luka and you mentioned you’ve listened to Spanish music. That’s so awesome! Always look for interesting input from real life like stories, music, conversations. Lyrics are great for interest.
Always consider how far you’ve come - being aware of your progress from a few months ago is an instant cure for feeling like you’re getting nowhere.
For Spanish Learners
You can find my curated list of resources and articles for Spanish learners at www.fluentlanguage.co.uk/for-spanish-learners.
The Fluent Show is supported by LiveLingua, where you can have your first Spanish lesson entirely for free. I tried it out, and spoke Spanish for a whole hour. And they have many other languages available like German, French and Russian. Get your free lesson by clicking here.
Episode Links
The Two Sides of Foreign Language Learning
What does it take to start learning a language and stick with it...even through the difficult parts?
Today I have a guest post from linguist and blogger tutor Julia Gracheva. In this article, Julia is all about balance and will give you actionable tips on marrying the two important sides of learning: Joy and Discipline...or Yin and Yang!
What does it take to start learning a language and stick with it...even through the difficult parts?
Today I have a guest post from linguist and blogger tutor Julia Gracheva. In this article, Julia is all about balance and will give you actionable tips on marrying the two important sides of learning: Joy and Discipline...or Yin and Yang!
Over to Julia..
How To Create Balance In Language Learning
Learning a foreign language is fun! Learning a foreign language is rewarding and uplifting! Learning a foreign language is a pure joy you could only otherwise get from eating chocolate (insert “cheese” instead of “chocolate” if you are a savoury person not a sweet one)!
Now, let me tell you: it’s not all peaches and cream (and, yes, I am writing this hungry). It’s oftentimes hard, brain wrecking work that doesn’t give you immediate results to motivate you to keep going. But this hard work has to be done, so that your language learning could also be fun, rewarding, uplifting and a pure joy (have just tucked into a cheese sandwich, so no more food mentions, I promise!).
What is the Yin and Yang of Language Learning?
I will be referring to the hard part and the pure joy one as the yin and yang of language learning. These parts are very different and still cannot exist without each other.
Yang is that hard bit, the grammar you need to understand, the words you have to memorise and the peculiar sounds that you teach your mouth to articulate.
Yin is the fun bit, the melody of the language, its humour, flavour and culture. It’s all the stuff that makes a combination of sounds, words and grammar rules a unique, rich and fascinating phenomenon which is a language of the people who speak it, reflecting their unique ways, views, lifestyle, history and what not.
I have seen many adults lured into studying a foreign language by its yin side only to discover the yang one is not so easy and far too long winded to crack in a couple of months of even intense study. They would learn some frequently used or touristy words and phrases, some easy dialogues, may be read an easy book or two in this language or even complete a beginner course at a language school or with some app. The novelty would wear out, they would discover they are still far away from fluency, their busy adult life would take over and au revoir the big sweet language dream!
Where there used to be pleasant exotic sounds flowing about of hoş geldiniz’s being trained, doors, windows and dinner table carefully labelled with sticky notes with die Tür, das Fenster and der Tisch written on them or where there used to be a poster of the Eiffel tower overlooking the desk with a neat stack of French for beginners books on top with pretty bookmarks showing between the pages, now there is just a whiff of foreign language sadness and a pile of unused publications gathering dust.
Not Forgetting the Yang
So, how do you save yourself from this heart breaking scene of your foreign language that died young? Of a big language dream that crashed down having barely taken off the ground? Of having to repair the wall in your study after the blooming Eiffel tower poster came off with half the wall when you tried to take it down?
Firstly, you shouldn’t forget the yang of foreign language learning. And, secondly, you need to marry the two of them, the yin and the yang.
You need to be ready for the long term game, to realise that there is not only yin but there is yang as well and you cannot get the one without the other. The better you get at the language, the better you get tuned to the culture and understand the ways of the people who speak it. And the more you are able to take part in all this language/cultural awesomeness yourself!
When the novelty of a new language wears out and you have learnt all the shiny touristy stuff about the culture, you can get too lazy to keep dealing with the yang. If you give up on the yang, you won’t be able to appreciate and enjoy the yin deeper, to really understand and fall in love with the culture. And you won’t carry on with learning the language!
So, to make a success out of your language study, to get really fluent in the language you are learning, you need to marry yin and yang.
Finding the Yin
The yin and yang of my first foreign language were separate for quite a while. As I started learning it at school as a kid (I studied English as a foreign language at a Russian school), I didn’t go through this phase typical for many adult language learners that I talked about earlier.
Instead, I just followed the rules as any diligent student would, without too much of a passion and excitement over yin injected into my study. Then at some point in my early twenties I got overtaken by the yin and had to really sort out the yang. So, here is the story of how I married the yin and yang of my language learning.
Marrying the Yin and Yang
So, it starts at school. Do you remember how you studied your foreign language at school? To me personally it all seemed to be about new grammar and vocabulary topics. We drilled them by doing all sorts of exercises and were assessed by doing more (marked and timed) exercises. Of course, after graduating from high school, I didn’t speak a word in the language I had been studying. None of us did. And I would have been surprised if anybody did. And that was fine as apparently learning a foreign language at school doesn’t imply that pupils will be able to speak it.
On the other hand, was I myself trying hard to learn the language? Was I driven by the yin? In other words, was I interested in the culture of the people who spoke it? Nah, not really. I was barely aware of my own at that time. So, the yang of the language was underdeveloped and the yin was just totally lost on me.
You see, kids and teens are very practical about languages: if there is no point in using it, they won’t. Period. Unless, of course, they are bilinguals. Or constantly pushed by parents, tutors or teachers to speak it in artificial settings. None of these two was my case. So, for me there was no point in using it. Indeed, if I don’t need to use a foreign language living in a country where it’s not really spoken, if I am not really fascinated by the yin, why would I want to be able to read, listen, write or speak in it? Especially, if there is more than enough interesting (and easier) information for me to digest in my own language?
But then I got older. And the Internet happened. Websites in the language. Language exchange. Wow. The yin was right there at the end of a long monotonous sound of a modem connecting my PC to the big big world out there. The yin with its people, their habits, foods, houses, their beliefs, dreams and values: all of them not quite like my own hence super exciting. The oops moment - they spoke a different language which I myself could barely speak. On top of it, I was painfully slow with instant messaging and who cares to write lengthy emails in their early twenties? So, I had to sort out the yang for real, grab the books, learn words and drill the grammar. The more I progressed with the yang, the more I enjoyed the yin.
So, the two were finally married and have been living happily ever after. Years passed but I still try to keep up and improve the yang, so as to get a better grip of the yin and enjoy it more. It’s no longer chats with peers and reading love stories like in my youth. It’s mostly collectively expressed yin in the form of the media, non-fiction books and Netflix. The yin that keeps me going with my yang, which in its turn helps me understand the yin deeper. The unity of the two that makes me really fluent.
There is another story of my second foreign language. It is less of a success but the yin and yang idea helps me to keep going. I hope that someday I will be able to mark it as a success story, too.
So, if you feel like giving up your language study, may be all you need to do is marry the yang and yin?
Yin & Yang In Action: How To Learn Languages In Balance
Here are the yin and yang tasks I marry to make my language learning “happy ever after”.
Yin: I watch comedies and TV series. These are a lot of fun!
Yang: While watching I make sure I record the new words I loved. The more words I learn, the better I understand while watching!
Yin: I listen to songs. And even sing them along when no one is listening!
Yang: I listen to and sing along the same songs again and again so that I can sing along with the same speed as the original. It’s not easy but worth it as helps me improve my pronunciation. The better I can articulate, the more I enjoy singing along!
Yin: I talk to my language partner regularly. Luckily he’s an interesting person who makes me laugh and tells interesting stories.
Yang: I make sure I discuss with him the stuff I have recently read about in the language I learn. Thus, I use in the conversation the specific vocabulary and even certain grammar I picked up while reading. The better I express myself, the more I enjoy the conversation.
What helps you to keep going with your language study?
Have you noticed your own sense of yin and yang in language learning? Are you drawn to one of them: the yin that motivates you or the grammar and efficiency of the yang? Tell us in the comments below!
Thanks to Julia Gracheva for sharing this article. You can find more of Julia's writing on the vocBlocks blog. Her target languages are German and French.
How Can I Inject Fun Into Language Learning? (Special Guest: Olly Richards)
Having fun is a key to success when it comes to most big endeavours. Surely language learning is one of those, too. But how can you best have fun when you’re learning a language? In this podcast episode, Olly Richards from I Will Teach You A Language joined me to discuss how you can love learning languages and have fun with it.
Learning a language is the challenge of your life.
It requires motivation, discipline, empathy, and some serious grey cells. It's an art because you learn to express yourself freely, beautifully, and you paint pictures with new words. It's also a science because you need to experiment with what works and what doesn't work.
But How Much Fun Can Language Learning Be?
In today's podcast episode, my guest is Olly Richards from I Will Teach You A Language. Olly says he used to learn languages for fun, going out with friends, and enjoying a great social life.
We had an incredible discussion - click play below to listen to it in full.
Now he's still learning them, but his motivations have shifted to intellectual gratification. He still gets fulfilment and a sense of achievement out of learning a language but in today's show he joined me to ask
"How Can I Inject FUN Into Language Learning ?"
Olly cites a few reasons in this youtube video, for example:
- He is busier than he used to be, mostly because he works a lot.
- He considers himself a social learner, but he doesn't have access the fun part of social interaction.
- He pursues the intellectual achievement, which means books and rules rather than pints and parties.
In January I sent out a tweet that caught Olly's eye and opened up the question about fun. Here it is:
Golden Rules of Daily Language Learning
Make contact with your target language on a daily basis
Find a convenient way of making that contact - the more convenient it is, the better
Prioritise fun and find something you enjoy in your target language
Olly saw that I talked about fun, and it was on his mind already...so we got together to have an in-depth discussion about having fun while learning languages.
The Discussion
Debate Team
Fun or No Fun, That Is The Question
Enjoying something does not mean that you are not learning anything. In fact, it is often a huge motivator for learning a new language - but both Olly and I agreed that fun and motivation are NOT the same thing. Fun and enjoyment also matter in language learning, because they add motivation. But can the fun ever be in the learning, or is it always part of the result?
Olly says:
"I care much more about speaking a language than the learning process. For me, the real fun is speaking the language."
Language Choices
We have to acknowledge that a language that's easier to learn can be more fun, because you can use all you learn just that little bit quicker. But does that mean your motivation to learn it will fade just because a language is "difficult"? Not necessarily! Deciding which language to learn is about much more than just thinking whether you'll enjoy it.
Conquering A Challenge
Adding to that, it's also fun to discover that you have achieved something you found difficult. But is that fun? I argued yes, but Olly wasn't sure - he thinks it's more about the results. We both found that conquering a challenge is a big motivation and so are the results. But the challenge itself may not always be the fun part. It can be the opposite of fun when something is way too difficult.
It Has To Be Interesting
The #1 fun killer? Boredom!
If you're all about the results and you work through those verb drills...but you're falling asleep over them...that's definitely not fun. It might still be productive though!
Olly thinks it's impossible to have 100% fun in language learning. There has to be a disciplined aspect, there has to be some routine...but if you were to focus on that exclusively, you'd lose sight of why you even started in the first place. This is especially important for those of us stuck somewhere in intermediate levels, when the honeymoon period is over and new words feel like "ugh, another one" instead of "wow, a new one".
7 Tips: How To Enjoy Language Learning More
So what can be done? How to plan for fun? Here are a few tips emerging from our conversation:
- If you have been feeling frustrated or under stress, take the pressure off and focus away from the results for a little bit. Try doing the opposite for a while and see what happens.
- Adjust your expectations of what "learning" looks like. and
- Be sillier, and try to use art, music, poetry to expand your mind and explore language. This isn't always easy to do, so consider reaching out to a coach or tutor to help you find a new way of looking at language.
- Embrace your own personality and work with who you are. If you enjoy play and your hobbies include juggling and clown skills, it's a safe bet that you may enjoy reading and telling jokes in another language. I also see this with analytical-minded engineers I work with, who love focusing on creating the most effective flashcards and routines based on data and hard facts.
- Curate your social life! Put the books down and spend lots of time with speakers of your target language, and make sure you end up in situations where your target language will actually be spoken.
- Change it up. It could be that you're bored because you've done the same thing too long. Olly finds that the ideal time to switch to a new activity is after a period of 3 weeks, and changing things more regularly is beneficial.
- Choose the easy language! This tip is a little tongue-in-cheek, but it boils down to the fact that you have to ensure you're making progress in order to keep enjoying what you're doing.
What About You?
Do you have fun when you're learning a language?
Do you think it's possible to have 100% fun in language learning?
Do you enjoy the language learning process? Or do you only really love speaking to people?
Join our discussion and share your answers in the comments below! I'm looking forward to reading how you treat "fun" in language learning!
Episode Links
Da Costa a Costa — Italian podcast recommended by Olly
The Fluent Show: Learning and Speaking 20+ Languages in New York City — Interview with "Language Learning Hedonist" Ellen Jovin
EPISODE SPONSOR
A Free Skype Class For Everyone! Claim It From Live Lingua Today
#clearthelist September 2018: Immersion, Eisteddfod, Druid, Video!
Welcome to my monthly language goals round-up, this time reporting on my language learning progress and new goals for September 2018. I have news about immersion, where I’m travelling next, and how I’m going to get to the next level in Welsh.
OMG it’s clear the list time again, and WHAT A MONTH IT HAS BEEN!!! 🛎 #clearthelist is a monthly language learning round-up sharing monthly language learning goals, support, and accountability.
What Happened In August?
So back in the last blog update, I already shared all about the amazing Fluent German Retreat in Munich. This technically happened into the first days of August, so it’s fair enough mentioning it here again. ☺️
Eisteddfod!
Barely home from the Retreat, I was back on the road, this time for my own immersion experience at the Eisteddfod Genedlaethol in Cardiff. If you’ve never experienced an Eisteddfod before, they’re hard to describe. Imagine EVERYTHING WELSH CULTURE in one place, colourful and happy and ancient and new, packed into a week-long festival. In other words, it’s amazing!
The Eisteddfod takes festival volunteers, so I signed myself up as a steward. Volunteering at the festival is a great way to ensure I speak as much Welsh as possible, experience things from a different angle, and attend events I may not have considered otherwise. Plus, it teaches me great phrases like these:
- Dyn ni’n hollol llawn fan hyn. (We are completely full here)
- Ddeffniddiwch y drws arall, os gwelwch chi’n dda. (Use the other door, please.)
- Paid ag eistedd yn y seddi wedi cadw. (Don’t sit in the reserved seats.)
In addition to all that, I also got free entry to one of the most popular events of the whole Eisteddfod week: the chairing of the bard! Here, you can see the Welsh archdderwydd (archdruid) in action:
The Fluent Show
All that August travel didn’t stop us from celebrating a major Fluent Show milestone as we recorded our 100th Podcast Episode this month.
We celebrated with a quiz and a live show including FIVE awesome guests: Shannon Kennedy, Gabriel Wyner, Richard Simcott, Kylie Sturgess, and Benny Lewis. So much fun! Catch up with us here.
Language Goals and Progress
Time to review August’s goals and get set up for what’s in store in September 2018. As expected, August was not a month for my dabble languages Spanish and Chinese. Instead, I taught lots of German and learnt lots of Welsh, so let’s focus on Welsh.
Listening and Speaking
I had grouped these skills together for August because of the trip, and would say I delivered on both!
My room in Cardiff was rented from Cymdeithas yr Iaith Cymraeg, meaning I had plenty of Welsh-speaking flatmates. I even ran into Robin, who I’d chatted to before on HelloTalk! In addition to that and the volunteering, I met up with friends and Welsh speakers I met online and spent over half of my days speaking the language.
At first, speaking Welsh was tricky and my head was working extra hard on day 2. You know that “I’m an idiot who understands nothing” feeling? Yep, I had it too! But by day 3, it felt like a lightbulb was coming on and Welsh became much easier. Here is a video filmed by Nicky Roberts, showing the way I was able to speak on my final day in Cardiff.
I’ll be honest, I’m actually pretty proud! This is approaching free conversation in Welsh, what better feeling could I have. And shout out to all the Welsh people I spoke to - turns out almaenes sy’n siarad Cymraeg (a German woman who speaks Welsh) has some novelty value and everyone was extra lovely.
Progress After A Few Days Of Immersion
One little note here on immersion, and you’ll see this as I write about the German Retreat on the blog too. This visit to Wales definitely felt like the most effective, productive, and encouraging immersion experience I’ve had so far. Last time I visited the Eisteddfod, my level was “high beginner” (late A1 ish) and I found it motivating and enjoyable, but I wasn’t ready to speak Welsh freely yet.
This time, with my level at a firm “intermediate” (B1 ish), it was WAY different and I enjoyed the experience because I was able to get truly involved.
Often, we think of “immersion” as a learning strategy that is beneficial to complete beginners. But in fact, it’s more helpful when you’re at the intermediate level and you DO have some knowledge to build on. This is when your mind is ready to join up the puzzle pieces and take you to the next level.
More About This And My “Language Waffle” Theory Here
Reading
I got about 7 chapters further into Sgwp!, but still not finished. My goal was to get halfway into it, and I would say I’m at 45%.
However, I also read through the whole issue of Lingo Newydd, including the red bits for advanced learners! Plus lots of incidental reading of programmes and tickets during the Eisteddfod.
Writing
As expected, I didn’t put any longer pieces of writing together in Welsh. I regularly direct message with friends and I posted on Instagram a few times with captions in Welsh, but I’m beginning to feel that it’s time to take my writing one step further.
More about that in the goals section…
Monthly Contact Goal
Every month, I log my “daily contact” with the Welsh language. And August was great, with 23 days out of 31 logged. As always, this also depends on me remembering to tick a box, so it’s not a 100% accurate number.
Best strategies: Visit where your target language is spoken, text friends in the language, and put the magazine where you’ll actually read it.
Tiny Note on Duolingo
I’m now at a level where I can test out of every new level Duolingo gives me and I never remember any of the new vocab it shows me. Duolingo, at my current level, feels like it has become inefficient for Welsh learning. Have you experienced anything similar?
Goals For September 2018
Listening
I have noticed that my podcast Pigion has become boring, but I’ve started listening to Radio Cymru live through the TuneIn app. There’s more music and I understand more than on the podcast, even though the podcast is supposed to be for learners! Radio also makes me feel more connected to the community of Welsh speakers.
The goal here is to switch the radio on in Welsh 2-3 times per week.
Reading
I’m feeling keen to try something different after a year of subscribing to Lingo Newydd, so for this month I’ll stick with Sgwp! and keep an eye out for a new printed publication I can try out.
As usual, the goal is to progress with Sgwp! It’s not a bad novel, and the short chapters are helping lots.
Speaking
It’s SO difficult to come away from an intense “Welsh every day” experience and drop back into normal life where I don’t have all these handy Welsh speakers around me. So my goal for September is definitely
In August, I picked up Say Something in Welsh (SSiW) again and got over my hesitations between the Northern and Southern dialect versions. I now just make my sentences in either dialect and go with the flow, so I feel ready to progress.
I’m on challenge 16 of level 2 and my goal this month is to move through challenge 18.
And lucky me…I’m going to Wales again! No details planned yet, but I’ll be sure to head North and speak more of the language.
Writing
Time to get real: I should put down a page of writing and get it corrected. For writing practice, it can be hard to know where to look as a solo learner. I’ll try the Welsh exam council and see what they ask for at the intermediate level, and work on writing an exam paper and getting it corrected.
If I don’t get this done this month, no harm done as I know September’s a busy one and I will make sure I still DM friends in Welsh every week.
How Was Your Month?
So that’s it for this month’s goals! Be sure to check out the linkup for #clearthelist, hosted by Lindsay Williams and Shannon Kennedy.
Are you a language waffle or a language pancake when you travel? Do you feel the same as me about Duolingo once you’re above the B levels? Are you setting goals?
Leave a comment below to tell me all about it!
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