{"id":2078,"date":"2025-04-16T18:21:22","date_gmt":"2025-04-17T01:21:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/langlabbies\/?p=2078"},"modified":"2025-04-16T18:21:22","modified_gmt":"2025-04-17T01:21:22","slug":"why-im-taking-language-courses-for-fun-and-you-should-too","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/langlabbies\/2025\/04\/16\/why-im-taking-language-courses-for-fun-and-you-should-too\/","title":{"rendered":"Why I\u2019m taking language courses for fun, and you should too!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/a>
I LOVE the French pronoun triangle!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

When I tell people I\u2019m taking Beginning Chinese, the first thing everyone says is \u201cWhy?\u201d It\u2019s not a requirement\u2014I\u2019m taking it for fun! Learning French and Chinese at Reed has been the highlight of my time here. For both languages I started taking classes with zero experience\u2014my first times saying Bonjour<\/em> and \u4f60\u597d were here at Reed! It was certainly difficult and still is, but I couldn\u2019t imagine learning these languages all on my own. I\u2019ve loved my language classes so much that I\u2019m planning to take another one next year. Read on to find out why I find Reed\u2019s language courses so special, and why I think you should consider registering for one next year!<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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  1. Faculty are always there to cheer you on!<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n
      <\/ol>\n\n\n\n

      When I was a freshman taking First-Year French, my professor was one of the first people here at Reed who truly believed in me. Language professors really do get excited to see you improve. Language departments also tend to be smaller than other Reed departments, so you get close with your professors\u2014they\u2019re like mentors for language! Having such supportive professors in my language-learning journeys have helped me in staying motivated, trusting the process, and understanding my goals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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      1. Experiencing new cultures\u2026 especially food<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

        Learning a language is so much more than just its grammar and vocabulary\u2014it\u2019s the culture of the people who speak it! \u201cCulture\u201d is so broad that there\u2019s something for everyone: art, music, literature, history, politics, food, fashion, media\u2026the list goes on. Beyond your language courses, there are several ways to engage with culture on-campus, such as visiting Language Houses or spending time with a Language Scholar. I always leave French House\u2019s Pause Caf\u00e9 with a happy belly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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        1. It\u2019s so rewarding<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

          We as Reed College students cannot be the kids asking for a marshmallow right away<\/a>. Language courses kind of sneak up on you. They don\u2019t rely on points, leaderboards, or streaks to measure your progress. It may be difficult to instantly see your day-to-day progress, but over time, you will see how far you\u2019ve come! Trust me, I thought I was going nowhere in French until it suddenly clicked that I made so much progress in a language I had never spoken before. Soon we shall all be getting two marshmallows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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          1. Enjoy the process<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

            With all the apps, websites, and podcasts suggesting otherwise, learning a language isn\u2019t something that can be done instantly. It takes time, practice, and motivation to get you to reach your goals. Reed\u2019s language courses aren\u2019t only preparing you to ask where the bathroom is, they\u2019re teaching you how to engage critically and creatively with a language. Learning a language is like sitting and spending time with a friend you don’t know yet\u2014why rush?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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            1. Reed\u2019s language-learning community<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

              Being a language learner means being part of a community! There are so many students, faculty, and staff who are passionate about languages, it\u2019s a great opportunity to meet and spend time with friends. Here at the Language Lab, we host events for the language-learning community (and everyone interested in joining!) every semester\u2014we hope you\u2019ll join us!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

              When I tell people I\u2019m taking Beginning Chinese, the first thing everyone says is \u201cWhy?\u201d It\u2019s not a requirement\u2014I\u2019m taking it for fun! Learning French and Chinese at Reed has been the highlight of my time here. For both languages I started taking classes with zero experience\u2014my first times saying Bonjour and \u4f60\u597d were here … <\/p>\n

              Continue reading “Why I\u2019m taking language courses for fun, and you should too!”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2883,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[73],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2078","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/langlabbies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2078","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/langlabbies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/langlabbies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/langlabbies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2883"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/langlabbies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2078"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/langlabbies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2078\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2081,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/langlabbies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2078\/revisions\/2081"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/langlabbies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2078"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/langlabbies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2078"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.reed.edu\/langlabbies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2078"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}