Trellum

On 12/12/2015, 1:47:54, anna3101 said:

@Trellum Well, I can't believe it. Trellum is back!! Yay! We missed you here I was even thinking of sending you a private message - was getting a bit worried. I hope you are ok and your Dutch life is going according to the schedule

My study book is Polish, so I'm afraid it won't be of much use to you Normally I try to avoid Polish coursebooks because of possible mistakes, but this one seems to be ok - reviewed by a native speaker and properly edited without silly typos and such.

If I ever come across a decent international coursebook, I'll let you know.

Oh, it's ok, I am not even sure I will need to learn more Dutch (I won't talk about this over here for obvious reasons - very sad actually).    But thanks a lot for the reply   I appreciate that. 

Well, this has nothing to do with languages.... but I will share it anyway, because I believe it will illustrate my point well.  Back when I was a third grader I had a teacher that thought the way to ''help'' his students with attention issues was to embarrass them in front the class.  It was much worse when he taught math, as a result I started really loathing the math class and going to school in general.  Even well into my adult years I loathed math and linked to feelings of fear and even panic, because my failures back in 3rd grade were magnified by that awful teacher. 

It wasn't until a few years ago when I found a good tutor to help me pass some exams (needed math tutoring) that I stopped fearing math   He noticed I was terrified to make mistakes, but thanks to him I started to like math again and I no longer feel panic when I have to solve an equation or something like that.  

So yes, having a good teacher (and not a bully who pretends to be a teacher just like the one i had to endure) can make a huge difference.  

I'm not so sure i get it... how can thinking in a different language can lead to better decisions? I don't think that is necessarily true for every language or person, but I guess it can work for some, but I'd not  say it's a rule rather than just an exception. But I did read a while ago something about how some people how thinking in certain languages helped you see things from a different angle or something like that.  But  they never mentioned anything about improved decision making, I applaud you for posting such an alternative statement, because such statements are prone to polemic here and everywhere else  

Music I believe was the one thing that awoke my interest in languages, to be more exact German. Back then I was so young and naive, and I thought German was so cool.  Mostly because I was very interested to find out the meaning of several Rammstein songs.  So I started to write down some words, and looked them up in a german-spanish dictionary I bought specially for that.  Needless to say I didn't get too far with it, but I believe this was my first linguistic encounter. Back then I used to see language learning as something almost magical. 

On 11/4/2015, 8:51:05, Richard.H said:

Oh yeah I hate this about Chinese.

The closest you can get to a universal "yes" would be 對 - this translates as "correct". So it's not really yes but you can generally reply to most yes-or-no questions.

There is no universal word for no as far as I know. Negative reply (or "no") would depend on how the question was asked. Which is a bummer when you're starting out. As you get better I'd say it makes the language more "colorful".

That's the only language I know of that doesn't have a direct word for "yes" and "no"

That sounds so complex! I had heard Chinese is so hard to learn for several reasons, I guess this is one of them.  I truly admire those who are learning this language and those who have been studying for years without giving up.  Truly admirable!    I know for sure I'd never dare to learn Chinese, the script would be the first barrier  

My mother language is Spanish and yes, we do have words for yes and no   Spanish is very simple language, not complex at all. So for Yes we have have ''Si'' and for No we have ''No''.   Spanish is a very straightforward language, nothing special.  My future husband has already learnt how to say yes and no, lol. It's so funny!    I guess we are both lucky we don't have super  complex languages as mother languages.   

So yes, you can answer a lot questions with a simple yes or no    Perfect for the monosyllabic person who is not a big fan of small talk. 

On 10/31/2015, 3:09:26, anna3101 said:

For me, the better option is a paper course book I just cannot help it - I like to "touch" the words and be able to physically turn the pages over, as well as scribble down my own notes right inside the book.

I have a simple but well-structured course for beginners. The only problem is lack of time, especially with other languages waiting for their turn

Oh I also like physical books, but I haven't managed to find a good one to learn dutch.  Mind telling me the name of the course you are using?  The ''Naar Nederland'' course I bought from the Dutch gov is useless, it helped me get to level A1, but that's it.   That course is terrible, no grammar points at all and the same repetitive exercises at the end of each lesson.  Do you know of any good course filled with several examples for each grammar point?   I'm in dire need of one of those, so far I'm using the STAP 1 book I got for christmas. 

Have you checked the Spanish one?  I checked it and it's quite nice, same for the Dutch one, but maybe they take a different approach in the Japanese one (more English) because of the nature of the Japanese language.  I'd need to compare them both to see what they do differently.   I personally found the Dutch one super useful and I really think I will buy the subscription later on,  I plan on taking on the NT2 in 3 years or so   I think I'll buy the STAP 1,2 & 3 books and get the subscription. 

3 hours ago, czarina84 said:

I know what a ballad is.  (That wasn't meant to be snippy; I was just letting you know that I know what a ballad is.)  I just asking about the meaning of the word "balada".  Thank you for answering that question.  I was just confused by the wording.  I'm dyslexic and sometimes words don't register in my head properly.

Oh my bad, I sometimes tend to complicate things a bit and don't realize it, until I get feedback from others (I've a neurological issue).  Sorry, I was trying to say they are both the same when it comes to music styles    And don't worry, I totally get you, my sister in law has the same problem!

On 12/6/2015, 10:09:28, czarina84 said:

So, is balada Spanish for ballad or do you just use it for slower songs because of the way it sounds?  Are balada and cancion synonyms? Sorry I didn't put the accent over the o.  I can't figure out how to do that.

They're basically the same, ballads are simple light songs... mostly about love, same as the Spanish balada   But of  course I am no music teacher, so I'm not aware of all the behind each music style, but for our purpose, yes, you can use them interchangeably.  And no,  balada and canción are not synonyms.  Canción means ''song'' and can be applied to any music genre, like for example, we can be talking about una canción de amor, una canción de rock, etc. 

I signed up and tested it for a bit, they tested my language level (back then it was really low).   I didn't really like the feel of it, so I never went back.  I'd never pay for a stand alone app, but I'd definitely pay for something like what Dutchpod101 offers.  They have their own course and a lot tools, along with some apps. 

OMG!!!!!!  Thank you!!!!!!!   I needed something lik this, I say my dutch is level A1 right now, but I'd like to see how true that is!  I'm downloading the client and  I hope I can test it right away!  

UPDATE: Sadly this client uses JAVA and I can't update it   Because the older version of Java is the only one that works with my oracle client.  I will be able to update it after a couple of months though  

Thanks for the heads up, @Blaveloper   I tried their course in the beginning, I am so glad I didn't continue!  By the way, I also caught a lot mistakes in the Spanish course, I reported some of them, no idea if they tried to fix those or not.   LOL,  I laughed so hard when I read they told YOU  were wrong, YOU, the native dutch speaker o_O  I'm not liking Duolingo at all after this, I didn't like it already    But I won't be going back there anytime soon    

Blaveloper is right, @Enrico.  Apps are not intended to be used as the sole learning tool when learning a new language.  They can be great unless you are rushed by time (as me) and you need to learn specific or reach certain level. Those apps come with limitations, specially the free ones.   It's better to always use a ''main'' course and then us other tools for support. Right now I am using Memrise and my Dutch course, but I'd never dream or using only Memrise to learn dutch.  Free is nice, but can't offer too much if you plan on mastering the language in less than 2 years. 

Oh... I kind of suspected you hard some form of autism, I noticed something in the way you write things on here!  Now I understand,  I have a friend who also has a from of autism, and he is like that as well!    Now I understand  That explains A LOT! 

Thanks, this is something that has troubled me since the start. I have asked different persons about it, specially when I had just started.   I still get confused from time to time when I use my course, then I ask my fiance and he says some words sound like the are pronounced a bit oddly. 

I have the exact same problem, but I am starting to get a hang of it, after almost 10 months studying dutch ( I haven't been very diligent - shame on me!).   You know what really helped me? Listening to the phrases from my dutch course over and over.  The course (Naar Nederland)  is for people who are preparing for the Basisexamen Inburgering, but sadly is not so complete... I mean, it does come with a glossary, but no grammar or explanations... just phrases!   I still have some issues with certain phrases, but if you listen and read along it's much easier. 

I'm glad to see you joined in, I no longer feel alone on here. I swear i felt like I was in a ghost town when I posted something on here, and then I seemed to be the only one participating. I'm so glad you are here, you sound like such an amicable and easy going person, I really like that!  What is your level in Dutch right now?  Mine is A1, I am studying for the basisexamen Inburgering.  I'm moving to the Netherlands    I'm learning dutch for love  

 Over here most people don't even know about this language,  most people confuse it with German    To be honest I think most people here don't know where the Netherlands is or that the Netherlands and Holland are the same country. Most people think I am crazy when I tell them I am learning dutch    Is your boyfriend polish? 

Hi Ana !

I'm now 6 weeks close, going into 5!   I'm going to take whole month off to focus on studying.  I hope I pass, I feel time has gone by too fast D:  And to be honest I wasn't very diligent the whole time.  I hope I pass 

Then you are waaaaaaaay stronger than I am or ever be!  xD I am a very indulgent person, when I am done with work I personally love to indulge in some gaming!  Sometimes something as simple as ''Build-a-lot'' but sometimes I go a bit more complex, deeper and scarier and go for games like ''Amnesia''.  I admire those who are strong enough to study languages instead of playing or hanging out on Facebook.  I no longer use Facebook by the way, but I love gaming and checking out sites like the oatmeal...  kudos to you! 

It's been a while since I posted this, to be honest I wasn't trying hard at all to learn Dutch back then    It wasn't until January of this year I officially started.   I was lacking a lot motivation back then ( I wasn't sure about so many things, specially my relationship with my then boyfriend and the only reason I was learning dutch).  This year I finally did some progress, but I am ashamed to admit I haven't dedicated enough time to Dutch   So.... eeeek!  Will let you know how it goes in 6 weeks (my basisexamen inburgering)!!

You are so motivated and dedicated  !   I really admire you have the energy to study a language (by reading or listening) after a long day of work.  By the end of the day all I want to do is just lie down and sleep.    I wish I had that level of motivation!  You do good by not sacrificing sleep     I had heard about that before, but I thought they were just joking.  I'm glad I do most of my study at night before bed, I've noticed that is the best time of the day for me to study (too hyper during the morning).  What about you? 

Yes, I often heard people in the Netherlands seem so eager to practice English, but in reality most of them tried to speak dutch to me when my level was still 0    I'd have tried to answer back in dutch, but I hadn't even started studying the language back then.  So I stick to English and oh boy... was I happy!  Now that I speak some dutch I hope they don't try to pull that on me again... when they hear my dutch is not so good!  It's the worst thing ever!

This info graph is supposed to be taken as a simple estimation, a very veeery generous one... one that supposes the learner is very very dedicated, motivated and good at languages in general. Is not supposed to be taken 100% seriously.  And it's only valid for English speakers.  And yes,  I know it takes a lot practice to learn a language, that is how I learn English on my own   Don't take things too literally. 

Please read right below the top of the info graph, there states clearly those languages go from easy to hard for ENGLISH speakers.  Native English speakers. The info graph never generalized things that broadly.  Jesus, what's up with that fascination with trying to find error where there is none? or taking things too literally?  And no, this info graph is not supposed to be taken 100% seriously, obviously, it's just an estimation    Just read well before posting, isn't that hard, it aids in keeping a good discussion going, and keeping things cordial and flowing, not stagnant thanks to small details.  We are all adults and  at this point we should already know what estimations really mean. 

I haven't really stopped to really think about it, but I think most of the time I am thinking in English, mostly when I am using it though (almost the entire day), but the rest of the time I think in my mother language.  I also dream in Spanish most of the time, just the other day I was having a very intense dream and I woke up shutting cuz words in Spanish, lol.  It was both hilarious and scary D:   I guess once I learn dutch well and use it on a daily basis in the Netherlands I will be thinking in dutch as much as I do now in English.