Black Jade
Brilliant_Rock
- Joined
- Aug 21, 2008
- Messages
- 1,242
I speak totally fluent English (obviously) and totally fluent French, and read and write both.
I speak very very good Mandarin Chinese, and read it very fluently. I translate modern Chinese poetry sometimes and publish it.
I can read the New Testament in Greek. Koine Greek is not a spoken language, so I don''t ''speak'' it.
I can function in Spanish--I can''t hold a real conversation, but I can ask for and understand directions and I can do my grocery shopping. I can read Spanish very fluently though. I can read the newspaper and I can read novels, which I do for fun sometimes.
I messed around with a lot of other languages, but don''t know them. I tried to teach myself Russian for about three years. I think it is the world''s most beautiful sounding language. It certainly has some of the world''s most beautiful literature. I can read some things sometimes but not very well and I can''t hold a conversation. I apparently have an authentic sounding accent, but since I can''t say anymore than hello, how much does it cost, I love you and where''s the bathroom, the accent is not that useful!
I don''t think its true that only children learn languages well. I didn''t speak any of these languages before I was 11. I didn''t even speak good English until I was five! I''m from a country where they theoretically speak English, but its a very broken dialect. I went to public school and was speaking this dialect and since this was years ago, before political correctness, they sent me right to speech therapy and made me stay there until I sounded like a middle American, which I still do. I learned some stuff in speech therapy which I think helps me to learn other languages and I know it helps me to teach them (I taught French and I taught Mandarin Chinese at college level for many years). The key things with learning another language are to listen, listen, listen and repeat, repeat, repeat. Find a native speaker and repeat stuff after them, and watch their mouth and lips when they talk and make your mouth move the same way. Even if you think you sound funny! Go places where the native speakers are and keep speaking to them. It''s best if you find people that can''t speak any English, or you will end up switching to that (especially because most native speakers are anxious to learn English. This is what keeps happening to me with Spanish. Spanish people in this country are so anxious to learn English that they won''t speak Spanish with me for more than 2 seconds.) And most of all, don''t think you have no gift for languages because your only experience with language study was in a classroom of 30 people that met for an hour a week taught by someone with a strong American accent themselves! Nobody could learn a language under those circumstances, it has nothing to do with your age or your talent. Try again now!
I speak very very good Mandarin Chinese, and read it very fluently. I translate modern Chinese poetry sometimes and publish it.
I can read the New Testament in Greek. Koine Greek is not a spoken language, so I don''t ''speak'' it.
I can function in Spanish--I can''t hold a real conversation, but I can ask for and understand directions and I can do my grocery shopping. I can read Spanish very fluently though. I can read the newspaper and I can read novels, which I do for fun sometimes.
I messed around with a lot of other languages, but don''t know them. I tried to teach myself Russian for about three years. I think it is the world''s most beautiful sounding language. It certainly has some of the world''s most beautiful literature. I can read some things sometimes but not very well and I can''t hold a conversation. I apparently have an authentic sounding accent, but since I can''t say anymore than hello, how much does it cost, I love you and where''s the bathroom, the accent is not that useful!
I don''t think its true that only children learn languages well. I didn''t speak any of these languages before I was 11. I didn''t even speak good English until I was five! I''m from a country where they theoretically speak English, but its a very broken dialect. I went to public school and was speaking this dialect and since this was years ago, before political correctness, they sent me right to speech therapy and made me stay there until I sounded like a middle American, which I still do. I learned some stuff in speech therapy which I think helps me to learn other languages and I know it helps me to teach them (I taught French and I taught Mandarin Chinese at college level for many years). The key things with learning another language are to listen, listen, listen and repeat, repeat, repeat. Find a native speaker and repeat stuff after them, and watch their mouth and lips when they talk and make your mouth move the same way. Even if you think you sound funny! Go places where the native speakers are and keep speaking to them. It''s best if you find people that can''t speak any English, or you will end up switching to that (especially because most native speakers are anxious to learn English. This is what keeps happening to me with Spanish. Spanish people in this country are so anxious to learn English that they won''t speak Spanish with me for more than 2 seconds.) And most of all, don''t think you have no gift for languages because your only experience with language study was in a classroom of 30 people that met for an hour a week taught by someone with a strong American accent themselves! Nobody could learn a language under those circumstances, it has nothing to do with your age or your talent. Try again now!
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