| Author |
Message |
Russian Fanatic
Guest
|
 Posted: Tue Jan 13, 2004 8:31 am Post subject: Teaching Yourself Russian.... Is There an Easier Way? |
 |
|
Hello everybody!
I am having a bit of trouble, and I was hoping someone could help me out. I am only 14 years old, and I have taken a HUGE interest in everything Russian; Russian culture, Russian music, Russian movies....I am already saving my money to go visit Russia sometime soon for an extended period. I am currently trying to teach myself Russian, the only problem is that no one will learn it with me and I know no one who is Russian. I have been using tapes and Russian Translation sites to help me, but it is really slow going, and I am starting to get discouraged. I have looked for classes on teaching Russian, but so far no luck.
If anyone could suggest a really good website, or just explain to me how Russians change the endings of words from first person to third person, that would be great!
-Russian Fanatic |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
Brent
Lounge Lizard
Joined: 05 Jul 2003
Posts: 91
|
| Posted: Tue Jan 13, 2004 1:19 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| A good website to use as a resource is masterrussian.com. If you are serious about learning Russian language, I would recommend obtaining a copy of "Голоса" text and lab books. Use them in combination with audio aids. I'm learning using that method, but I also have sessions with a tutor that helps out immensely. You can buy the books online from Amazon. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
w2
Just Starting
Joined: 12 Sep 2003
Posts: 6
Location: Kansas City
|
| Posted: Wed Jan 28, 2004 6:36 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Brent, good advice. I am currently taking a class and the professor highly recommends the text you mentioned. www.masterrussian.com is also an excellent site. Prior to this class, I spent quite some time listening to the a tape series available at www.learnables.com. For auditory learning, the tapes have been great. I think spending some time listening first has helped me be able to more properly pronounce the words. Fanatic, it you have a basic knowledge of the language before going there, it will help you learn more naturally in conversation with others. Keep at it! ~W2 |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Erik
Guest
|
| Posted: Mon Feb 02, 2004 3:14 am Post subject: teach yourself russian |
|
|
| You could also try, and this is what I am doing. I bought the computer cd "Golden Russian" you could just do a search on google since more than one place has it and find the best deal. It is written by russians so it is good. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
David-M-Rowell
Frequent Guest
Joined: 19 Jul 2003
Posts: 29
Location: Seattle, WA USA
|
| Posted: Wed Feb 04, 2004 8:20 am Post subject: |
|
|
Hi, Russian Fanatic
Good news and bad news.... 
The good news is that learning the different endings to verbs between first and third person is really very easy.
The bad news is that the nouns have different endings, too. Lots of them. And if your native language is English or French (where the nouns don't change endings) you'll find this rather difficult, I'm afraid!
I highly recommend the Pimsleur language tapes (or CDs). They're expensive, but the make learning the language almost automatic and instinctive. By far the best way of learning.
Hope this helps
Cheers (Poka = Пока)
David. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
www.com
Frequent Guest
Joined: 01 Apr 2005
Posts: 11
|
| Posted: Fri Apr 01, 2005 4:22 pm Post subject: pimsleur |
|
|
| i also used pimsleur and it helped a lot with the grammer. although the best way is to have someone to speak to who not only knows russian but is patient. good luck. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
MrSpice
Lounge Wizard
Joined: 14 Jul 2003
Posts: 3431
|
| Posted: Mon Apr 04, 2005 6:27 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| I don't know where you live, but if you lived somewhere in New York City, it would be quite easy for you to find someone who would help you learn Russian (there are over 600 thousand russians speakers in this city). There are large Russian-speaking comminities in many other North American cities. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Intourist
Talk Show Host
Joined: 21 Dec 2004
Posts: 245
Location: Moscow
|
| Posted: Mon Apr 04, 2005 6:42 pm Post subject: |
|
|
I hope this doesn't come off sounding the wrong way, because all the effort you put in through internet sites and/or publications is obviously one good source, but it's really only a small part.
Speaking from my personal experience (which is granted, subjective, and only what worked for me) I would say that the most important part to learning Russian is actually being here. Immersion.
I had 6 years of Russian language instruction in some very good schools and universities in the US, but I was completely unprepared conversationally when I first arrived for an extended amount of time. The studying grammar and taking classes is good insofar as it gives you a solid base on which to build your conversation skills, but you need the practice of associating with native speakers 24/7.
It's not easy, obviously. It takes a lot of time and notivation and adpatation to spend an extended period away from home, but if you're serious, it should pay off well.
You're 14, so I suspect that you're beginning high school. Look for academic exchanges that will send you over for a semester. At the university level, you might want to try a whole year. Daunting ? Most certainly, but if you're truly dedicated, I think it's the only way.
One place you might want to look up is ACTR (American Council of Teachers of Russian). They have a number of exchange programs and they should be able to point you in the right direction. Do a google search and see what you come up with.
Hope that helps.
Intourist |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
sputnik
Lounge Lizard
Joined: 02 Jan 2005
Posts: 141
|
| Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2005 9:32 am Post subject: |
|
|
found my teacher in russian language 'accidentally' when applying for a visa. the consulate wasn't open yet and the girl i talked to on the sidewalk there turned out to be not only russian, but also a teacher 
it works to be open for things coming your way as well, next to active search.. good luck! |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
wavetossed
WayToRussified
Joined: 27 Jun 2004
Posts: 339
|
| Posted: Sat Apr 09, 2005 3:19 pm Post subject: |
|
|
Learning Russian is quite easy. It is a more logical language than English and it is spelled mostly phonetically. All you have to do to learn is to immerse yourself in the language.
Of course, immersion is easiest in Russia where you are surrounded by it. But since you are not in Russia you have to do everything to create an environment in which you are exposed to Russian *EVERY* *DAY*. That means 365 days a year.
You can find all kinds of Russian music on the net. For $100 you can download dozens of albums from http://www.allofmp3.com. Russian musicians believe that lyrics are important and they generally sing the words clearly which is good for learning. And numerous websites post the lyrics to popular songs so you can read as well as hear. There are mailorder book shops online that sell Russian videos (and books). Buy some films and watch them over and over again. Or you could go to someplace like http://www.ozon.ru which is in Russia and can get you just about anything. The films and MP3s help you with listening and with colloquial Russian.
Now, for reading, you should read the news every day at http:www.1tv.ru. This is the Russian equivalent of BBC news so you get all the highlights with a Russian viewpoint. At first it is hard to understand anything but over time you will understand more and more. Of course it helps if you know what is going on in the world because then you will be reading about a topic that you already know, i.e. the funeral of John Paul II.
But you also must write in Russian. Either get a steno notebook or some index cards and every time you run across an unknown word in your reading, write it down. Leave room to write the translation. I suggest that you leave the dictionary until after you have tried reading for at least a page or two. Then look up all the words and write down the translation. Then re-read the passage. Every few weeks, look through the old cards/notes and see if you have remembered them all. You should print some of the time and write in cyrillic script some of the time.
Find a Russian penpal and write emails in Russian. This will help you learn the keyboard layout. You can use http://translation1.paralink.com to help you translate letters, but do not trust the translations. Always read through the Russian and correct all the errors that it makes. After all, you are the master, not the machine.
Get graded Russian readers. When you are alone, read them out loud to yourself to practice speaking Russian. And when you are walking down the street or sitting on the bus, have an imaginary conversation in Russian with an imaginary friend. When you get stuck because you can't think of the right word, write it down to lookup up later in the day. This is good practice in ordinary conversation and it helps you to discover your own natural vocabulary and to learn that vocabulary in Russian. You will also learn how to talk around problem words by saying what you mean in different ways. When you finally visit Russia, you will be able to have conversations with ordinary Russians from your very first day while all the people with university bachelor's degree in Russian will be floundering.
Good luck! |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
st599
Frequent Guest
Joined: 01 Apr 2005
Posts: 13
|
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Usergroups
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
