Decoding the Riddle, Mystery, and Enigma (Language Learning Log) Language Learning Forum

Decoding the Riddle, Mystery, and Enigma
Tags: Russian
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Language Learning Forum : Language Learning Log

92 messages over 12 pages: << Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 ... 11 12

jedimindtrick Diglot Groupie United States 8monthsinukrain Joined 5221 days ago 90 posts - 119 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish Studies: Russian	Message 89 of 92 30 September 2013 at 4:14pm \| IP Logged
	And, wow.... 10 months later, here we are again. To be quite open, I've really lost my motivation for language learning this year. What happens next? What do you do when you've fallen off the horse and your books are covered in dust? When the most you can offer is some weak halting answer to something you could answer confidently before? Any ideas? It's not like language learning has lost its relevance. I'm still living in Ukraine, just sounding more ignorant than ever on its streets ; ) If anyone's offering a good kick in the pants, I'm waiting for you! 1 person has voted this message useful
Vos Diglot Senior Member Australia Joined 5568 days ago 766 posts - 1020 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish Studies: Dutch, Polish	Message 90 of 92 30 September 2013 at 4:44pm \| IP Logged
	Jesus man, you're in the best situation possible, living in the Ukraine, amazing opportunity to learn Russian and/or Ukrainian, immersion conditions, so pick those books up, hit the streets and get stuck into it!! You'll thank yourself in the long run. But I should ask, what's demotivated you? Anything in particular? Also remember loss of motivation is a normal thing which happens to all of us so don't get yourself down about that, just keep at it and sooner or later you'll have another opportunity to speak the language with a native, you'll do really well due to your perseverance which will give you a nice feeling of joy and satisfaction and boom! Motivation back again. So dust off those books and get back into it! 3 persons have voted this message useful
jedimindtrick Diglot Groupie United States 8monthsinukrain Joined 5221 days ago 90 posts - 119 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish Studies: Russian	Message 91 of 92 30 September 2013 at 5:53pm \| IP Logged
	Hi Vos, thanks for push! Yeah, it does sound perfect, everyone around me back home always said the immersion method is the way to go. It's definitely helped in some ways, but it hasn't been the magic potion it was described as. Or maybe it's just me. Anyway, I guess the demotivation comes from my job... working a lot of hours as an English teacher and finding it hard to balance learning my native language better (you'd think it'd be a piece of cake but there are always new grammar concepts to practice explaining, lessons to plan, etc) and finding the energy for actually learning a new language. Ugh, I don't know what's stopping me. But I'm opening a book. Right now! : ) 1 person has voted this message useful
jedimindtrick Diglot Groupie United States 8monthsinukrain Joined 5221 days ago 90 posts - 119 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish Studies: Russian	Message 92 of 92 06 October 2013 at 9:51pm \| IP Logged
	Like they say: nothing changes if nothing changes, so here's something new: Thoughts and Notes After 30 years of dabbling, an English teacher in Spain recently got fed up with his lack of progress. He's created The (De-)Fossilization Diaries to "crank up his Spanish". I've really been enjoying the opportunity to follow him on his language quest. His most recent post, Formulae for success?, really resonated with me. It's what I've been doing too, learning a language via phrases instead of words. Thankfully about a year ago my Russian got to the point where I could use this tactic. Anki got mysteriously wiped from my phone after installing a second SIM card, but hooray, it's back now! How to Learn 50 Vocab a Day presents a intriguing way of memorizing new vocab. Anyone tried this? One new idea to mull over: what makes the difference between a good student and a good teacher? Can a person be both? One comment on The (De-)Fossilization Diaries addressed this: "I’m not sure if being a teacher myself has ever helped me as a learner." Is there any benefit to teaching one language and learning another at the same time? I'm very curious about this, because I want to find a way to translate my success as a teacher to success as a student. How is it possible to do well at one but not the other? My guess is it involves planning. Those who plan, succeed. Those who just show up (in either case) aren't as prepared for success. But I'm not sure, need to think about this issue some more... Happy studies, everyone! 1 person has voted this message useful

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