Reading Sara’s post on Soviet Winnie the Pooh truly inspired me. As a beginning Chinese student, I love watching C-dramas, but sometimes it’s a bit challenging to understand what’s going on, especially with the complex love triangles! Children’s cartoons are a great way to introduce yourself to more Chinese media, especially because they’re designed to use elementary-friendly language. Even if they don’t have captions in English, the animation style can make it easy to pick up on the story and characters. Here are some recommendations I’ve found, plus a bonus C-drama recommendation!
Practice your French and learn some science!
Sometimes the best way to practice a language is by just passively listening to it. This could be in a movie with subtitles, or just an interesting video on YouTube. I see it as letting your subconscious absorb the language through osmosis. Is that even a thing? Maybe there’s a science channel that talks about science-y stuff like that. Wait… there is!
C’est Pas Sorcier is a TV show available on YouTube that explains all kinds of science-related stuff in French. They’re meant for middle and high school students whose first language is French, so they do speak a little fast. I would recommend it for intermediate French speakers (A2 level). My personal favorite is “Comment fonctionne notre électroménager?”, it’s very interesting and the characters are really funny. This show is shown A LOT in French high schools, it’s very nostalgic and even though they’re still releasing new videos, they’ve kept their vintage essence. Go check it out!
Here’s the link to the channel! https://www.youtube.com/@Cestpassorcierofficiel
Resource for A1 German Students!
Do you want to practice your German over break but are tired of Duolingo? Do you also get the feeling that every movie in German sounds like a long, incomprehensible sentence? But more importantly… do you like to watch really bad movies that make you scream at the screen?
Nicos Weg is a movie made for learning German that has all the vocabulary you need for A1 level. You can find it on YouTube, but I added the link at the end of the post! The characters talk slow, but not too slow to the point where it’s annoying, and the storyline is (kind of) great! It’s an entertaining movie, that’s for sure. While most characters are really likable, the main character Nico will make you want to pull your hair out. I was watching this movie with a friend who doesn’t speak any German and we were both incredibly entertained, mostly because of how ANNOYING the main character is! We kept complaining about the plot holes of the movie and next thing you know we watched an hour and a half of it. Time flew by and I actually learned so many new words. Did you know that elevator is Aufzug in German? It makes no sense but it’s true! It’s such a great resource for hearing all the A1 words in a movie that moves at a pace that beginner students can follow, and I highly recommend it even if the general cinematography isn’t the best. I would describe it as the German version Twilight. Tschüss und schöne Pause!
Non-trivial way to improve your Russian and make everybody believe you’re a native speaker (sort of….)
It’s never been a secret — Russian is notoriously challenging, filled with confusing conjugations and challenging slang that leaves even the most experienced learners crying, screaming and pulling their hair.
But you don’t have to jump straight into banging your head with a thick Oxford dictionary — there are multiple easy – perhaps even childish – ways to upgrade your Russian skills.
1. Watch Peppa Pig and (Soviet!) Winnie the Pooh (the brown one)
Watching cartoons in Russian is a great way to advance those basic level speaking and comprehension skills if you’re a beginner and just starting your journey. It’s helpful to start with a form of media that incorporates straightforward, simple phrases that are yet widely used in a day-to-day speech of native speakers. For me, Soviet Winnie the Pooh is perhaps one of the first cartoon I became familiar with — it’s an easy-going, kind and relaxing animation filled with witty comedy that will help you to accustom yourself to basic-level phrases, and pronunciation.
Leaving a link for everyone interested!
2. Read fan fiction!
If you’re like me, you understand the frustration of finding a really-really good fan fiction after hours of scrolling only to discover it’s in a language you don’t understand. How about we use it to our advantage? Go to your favorite fan fiction website and search up anything related to your favorite fandom. It’s a slightly more advanced technique than the one described above — as fan fiction are mostly written by native speakers, you might find yourself learning new slang or word order that you never encountered in your formal Russian textbook!
3. Crosswords/Table games
This one is rather self-explanatory — grab some friends, get a scrabble in Russian and learn as you go! A little hint: playing Monopoly in Russian is even funnier and I find it helpful to avoid conflicts typically caused by this infamous game when 80% of those involved are still learning how to curse 😉
The Duolingo French Podcast: Découvrez l’histoire de Joséphine Baker
Are you looking for more ways to immerse yourself in French? Podcasts are a great way to implement French into your everyday life. It’s especially important to engage with the language outside the classroom. Whether you’re taking a walk around the canyon, getting lunch in Commons, or trying to fall asleep, a podcast can add a lot more French exposure to your life. It’s a simple way to improve your French comprehension, vocabulary, and cultural knowledge. At the same time, it can be difficult to find the right one. For beginning to intermediate students, I have a recommendation for you: The Duolingo French Podcast!
Continue reading “The Duolingo French Podcast: Découvrez l’histoire de Joséphine Baker”Italki: Not offered at Reed? No worries!
If you’ve ever wanted to learn a language that isn’t offered at Reed, give Italki a try! Italki has tutors and teachers from all over the world, and languages from A-Z (literally). If you’re looking to start learning anything from Azerbaijani to Zulu, check out the site to discover what else they offer! Whether you’re just starting out or want to meet with a native speaker to improve your conversation fluency, you can find the tutor you need at the time you’re available.
Continue reading “Italki: Not offered at Reed? No worries!”They play spoons in Vermont?…
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?…”Meow? CAT Tools for the Translator
CAT (cute abbreviation!) stands for Computer-Assisted Translation and works either in-browser or as downloaded software to assist translators in translating. I investigated three different recommended CAT tools to see how they worked, and if they would be useful for (longer) translation projects Reedies might do! All three are completely free to use, but have paid features as well.
Continue reading “Meow? CAT Tools for the Translator”Podcasts en Español
Learning a language can be exceptionally frustrating. Especially when the only times you are hearing this language is in a classroom, three times a week, for 50 minutes. You’ve probably heard your Spanish teacher tell you to listen to music and movies in Spanish since your first class in middle school. While this is good advice, it can be hard to understand music in Spanish such as Reggaeton, cumbia, or Spanish hip hop when you aren’t as familiar with the language. The words blend or maybe there is too much slang to comprehend whatever Bad Bunny or MC Solaar is saying. To that I say do not fret, podcasts are the way to go!
Continue reading “Podcasts en Español”Interview with a French Tutor
Nina: How long have you been studying French?
K: Since 7th grade!
N: What is your favorite way of practicing?
K: Just talking to other people who speak French. When I went to New York, I heard a lot of people speaking French, and I would just walk up to them and start up a conversation. Really any time I hear someone speaking French I try to speak with them. Any other way of learning just isn’t as fun. It’s necessary of course, but it isn’t as entertaining.
N: Are you ever scared to mess up? Or talk to native speakers?
K: Sometimes, but generally no, because I’m never going to see these people ever again. Also, French people abroad are just excited to speak to someone in French.
N: What is your favorite form of French media?
Continue reading “Interview with a French Tutor”