This week I interviewed Emilio, a Spanish tutor who’s eager to help people out with Spanish. In our interview, we covered topics such as feeling disconnected from one’s culture, what it means to have a diverse cultural background for one’s identity, and how to sound natural when speaking a new language. Emilio’s advice is to be shameless when speaking! The interview is posted below and was edited for length.
Today we are interviewing Basil-Anne, our Greek and Latin tutor. We talked about starting a language from scratch at Reed, the GLAM department, and studying abroad as a speaker of ancient languages!
Leilani: Would you like to talk a bit about your background, why you chose to study Greek and Latin?
Basil-Anne: Sure! I have studied Latin for a very, very long time. I started officially in fourth grade, but I think my first real Latin class was in seventh grade. So I’ve been taking it for a really long time. And I came into Reed undecided but I was very strongly either going to be a GLAM [Greek, Latin, and Ancient Mediterranean Studies] major or be in the Sociology department. I went to the GLAM open house during O-week and fell in love and was like, “This is where I want to be.” So I dropped Intro Sociology and switched into another GLAM class and have not looked back.
L: You mentioned taking Latin prior to Reed. Did you have the same experience with Greek, or did you start with Intro Greek?
B: I started with Intro Greek, and Greek was a lot harder than Latin because I was starting from scratch. But it’s a very cool language. My favorite thing about just Greek and Latin in general, and I don’t know if this is true for all language learners, is the kind of peak you hit where you’re thinking of every single thing and all of a sudden, you’re just not thinking of every single grammar thing anymore. That’s a really fun moment for me. It corresponds with the course load, like you switch from language classes to literature classes, and that’s just such a fun transition for me, of being able to be like, “OK, I know what I’m doing, and now I actually get to talk about literature.” Which is why language is so fun. So with Greek, I really got to see that process condensed from freshman year to now, senior year. It was great.
Continue reading “Speaking Ancient Greek in modern-day Greece?”
¡Hola! My name is Reed (he/him) and I’m a native Spanish speaker. I’m Argentine/American. My mom being a Spanish teacher made me sit through her lessons since I was a toddler, so I learned how to teach Spanish as a second language. I’ve taught all levels of Spanish in the past, including grammar, spelling, vocabulary, reading, and pronunciation. I’m happy to work through any questions and exercises you might need help with! I have a pretty flexible schedule so feel free to reach out if you’d like to arrange another time!
For our next interview, I talked to Reed, an ICPS poli-sci Spanish tutor. He’s a native Spanish speaker from Argentina, so read the interview for tips on practicing your Spanish and for movies and book recommendations! The interview was edited for length purposes.
Patricio: What do you study?
Reed: I’m an ICPS poli-sci major.
Patrico: Are you minoring in anything?
Reed: Potentially an econ minor, but they’re changing the way the department works.
Patricio: That makes sense. Getting a minor is sometimes tricky. How long have you been speaking Spanish and what made you want to learn it?
Reed: I’m a native speaker. My parents are both from Argentina, so I speak it at home with them and with my whole family basically.
Patricio: Have you lived or studied abroad in any Spanish speaking countries?
Reed: I haven’t. I’m hoping to study abroad next semester. I’ve been thinking of potentially going to Barcelona, but I’ve lived in the US my whole life.
Patricio: Is it hard for you to not forget the language being here at Reed?
Reed: I don’t think so, I speak to my parents and my family quite often so I get to use it a lot. And to me at least Spanish feels like a first language, so I feel like it’s very engrained.
Patricio: Do you practice your Spanish in other ways or is it mostly just by speaking it with your parents?
Reed: It’s mostly just by speaking with my parents.
Patricio: Have you taken any cool Spanish classes at Reed?
Reed: No, but I want to! I’m waiting for Diego to get back, because I really want to take some of his classes, but I think he’s been on leave and I don’t know if he’s coming back, but I hope so!
Patricio: Have you found a good Spanish speaking community here at Reed?
Reed: I’m actually living in the Spanish House, so that’s very exciting. I really like talking to the language scholars, I feel like they’re a really good resource for learning a language. I took Chinese in school, so I like being in the language house community and just getting to talk to everyone in all the different languages.
Patricio: I love the language houses. I lived in the Spanish House in my sophomore year and I had the best time.
Reed: Yeah they’re really nice. We just now started having the weekly events, so it’s just starting to pick up. I’m really excited.
Patricio: Do you watch any movies or TV shows in Spanish? And if yes do you have any recommendations?
Reed: Yes! I watched Wild Hills for the first time a couple of weeks ago; I enjoyed that a lot. But two of my favorite Spanish TV shows are Los Simuladores and Community Squad.
Patricio: Oh interesting, I’ve never heard of those. Where can you watch them?
Reed: I think Community Squad is on Netflix, but Los Simuladores is free on YouTube.
Patricio: What about books and songs?
Reed: Julio Cortázar is my favorite author. I love his short stories, they’re fantastic. In terms of artists, I really like Bajo Fondo, but I don’t think their music has lyrics.
Patricio: As a tutor, have you found some stuff that’s particularly difficult about learning Spanish?
Reed: The verb conjugations, because that’s not something that’s really that complicated in English, it can be a difficult thing for people to grasp and to actually use in practice. I think Spanish can also be a bit overwhelming because every country has slightly different grammar, accents and slang, so it can be a hard thing to get used to when you’re coming up to a new faculty member or friend.
Patricio: Do you enjoy being a Spanish tutor?
Reed: Yes it’s fun! I like consuming a lot of Spanish media and literature so it’s fun to get other people excited and help them out in their language journey.
Patricio: Thank you!
Salut! I’m Holden, one of several French Drop In tutors this fall. I am a Senior BMB major and French literature minor, and I’m 1400 pages into the unabridged Les Miserables. I can help you for all 100 and 200 level classes, French 320, and miscellaneously for essays and reflections in other upper level French classes. If you aren’t taking a French class but want to practice conversational French, I am happy to help there too!
LangLabbie note: Stop by the Language Lab to see Holden’s tutoring hours!
As LangLabbies, we want to make sure Reedies know what resources are available for learning languages. Language tutors are here to help you with your homework, or as Holden, a French tutor states, they’re also here if you want to just talk in French about anything! So we’re going to be interviewing the language tutors to hear their thoughts on language communities at Reed, as well as to see if they have some good books and movie recommendations. The first tutor I interviewed is Holden, a French tutor. You can find the interview below! The interview was edited for length purposes.
Salve! I’m a junior English major and Greek and Latin minor, and I have taken Latin classes from Alice, Ellen, and Sonia. I am eager to help with all kinds of Latin study, such as vocab memorization, preparing for exams, practicing forms, or talking through translations. Whatever it may be, I am here to support you, and I will do my best to cater to your specific needs.
LangLabbie note: Visit the Language Lab for Sabrina’s drop-in hours!
Hi! I’m Teagan, a sophomore international policy studies major. I’ve taken French courses since middle school and have taken classes with Catherine (211) and Hugh (212). I’m happy to help you learn the fundamentals of French and any area of concern! Feel free to email me (tkspillane@reed.edu) if my scheduled times don’t work for you and we can work something out.
LangLabbie note: Teagan can help you out with 100- and 200-level French classes!
As a way to engage more of our students with language programs at Reed, we will be starting a series of interviews with our dear language tutors. Miriam (or Masha!) has a lot to share about her experience!
There is always a backstory to every language journey. Tell me more about your background and what inspired you to undertake a not-so-easy language like Russian.
Learning languages is my thing,especially being a linguistics major. I started with Hebrew, French, some Spanish and moved on to German. And coming to college I wanted something totally different which was Russian – I loved it, it’s my absolute favorite.
Continue reading “They play spoons in Vermont?…”
Hi and привет! My name is Miriam, and I am a sophomore linguistics major.
I took Russ 111 in the fall of ’23 with Zhenya. As a recent first-year Russian student, I know what is expected and will happily help with homework, practicing conversation, or checking grammar. I look forward to working with you!
LangLabbie note: Drop by the Language Lab to see Miriam’s hours!