Monday, April 14, 2008

Foreign languages

Learning another language can often be a daunting task, particularly when you're not living in a country where it is widely spoken. Sometimes I feel as though I have ample amounts of time to burn so I'd like to do something productive and invest in myself. Sure I'll always have more German to learn and need to brush up on grammar, but you can only do so much. The trick is trying to keep it light and fun.

While attending language school is one way of learning, I also appreciate a site called Live Mocha. It's an interactive website that offers courses in reading, writing, listening, and communicating with other members. The German is a bit too basic for my needs, but I'm able to take online courses in Mandarin Chinese, Hindi, French, and Spanish, which is a nice break from being inundated with German.

It's also nice to for travels, although I don't know how often I would need to say 'You are a man' to someone in any country. I must be honest though - in addition to the picture dictionaries that I am very fond of, I also will sometimes print out a cheat sheet from Single Serving. You can even download the mp3's and listen to them for additional practice.

Happy Learning!

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Hi Emily,

Thanks for the link to live mocha. It looks like a great site to learn. I've used different sites like bbc, but this one looks better, and I like being able to communicate with others learning German or native speakers.

I signed up for German 101, but I think I'm actually somewhere near the end of 101 and the next level. I like to learn more and more before each trip to Germany. It makes it more fun to be able to understand people and order in bakeries and restaurants. Thanks again!

Emily said...

I'm glad that I could help Carlos!

I think as long as you can order beer and food you'll be alright. And as soon as people catch wind you speak English they'll want to practice theirs.

You're trip is coming before you know it!