Items of Interest

Spring 2026 SDLC 105 Syllabus

Spring 2026 SDLC 105 Calendar of Activities, Assignments, and Deadlines

Spring 2026 SDLC 110, 111, 112, 113 General Syllabus

Weekly log for language partners

Global Studio Catalog of Learning Materials and Resources

 

Self-Directed Language Acquisition Program

Sept. 3- Recorded Presentation by Derek Miller, UR Bonner Center for Civic Engagement, Guidelines and Resources for Community-Based Language Learning

Sept. 3- Bonner Guidelines for Community-Based Language Learning, PPT.

 

Benny Lewis: TEDx Talk on Rapid Language Hacking

https://youtu.be/HZqUeWshwMs

 

ACTFL Inverted Pyramid Proficiency Scale

 

New Electronic Catalog of Global Studio Language-Learning Materials

Over the last few weeks, our fantastic team of Global Studio Fellows have been creating an electronic catalog of language learning materials on reserve in INTC 226. There are interesting resources for Korean, Turkish, Hindi, Hebrew, and Portuguese See the ongoing collection, here. Use the tag list to focus your search.

 

Vocaroo for sharing audio files with language partners

Vocaroo is a great free tool to share audio recording files with your language partners. Check it out! https://vocaroo.com/

 

Open-Source Repository of Grammar Reference Textbooks

In internet searches, I came across an open-source repository of grammar reference books pertaining to a wide variety of different languages. Feel free to peruse the collection, here

 

Lang-8 and HiNative Communities for Native Speaker Feedback

This is a great free resource to get free feedback from native speakers of your target language. On the site, you can receive commentary on submit writing samples, or address questions of grammar and usage to an active online community. You can access the site, here. **Note: Lang-8 stopped accepting new members, but you can still access similar networking resources for writing feedback on their new site, HiNative

 

WikiTongues

Library of recordings from endangered languages.

https://www.youtube.com/user/WikiTongues

https://wikitongues.org/

 

International News Resources

Check out this curated list on interesting foreign-language news resources!

 

World Atlas of Language Structures

http://wals.info/

 

Endangered Languages Project

http://www.endangeredlanguages.com/

 

Which languages are the hardest to learn?

Here's a chart! What is difficult about the language you're learning?

 

Try Mango Languages 

Just starting a language?  The University now provides Mango Languages, which offers beginning or 'survival' language lessons in many languages.  To try Mango, go the Boatwright Library web, click Research Databases > M, and look for Mango Languages.  Once you have created an account through the Library site, you can download the Mango Languages app and use it on your mobile device.

 

Infographic on word etymologies and historical trade routes

https://www.visualcapitalist.com/mapping-words-along-trade-routes/?fbclid=IwAR2IQRiSW3KqaFGi_kjkrSbkjXUri_PZI7tAMEB4iKH5W0DPrp_yQj1OzuE

 

 

Articulatory Phonetics Memes

https://goo.gl/bzVfCL

 

Preserving Regional German Dialects

This article from Deutsche Welle discusses what is lost when regional variants of a language are lost. It also discusses the difference between a language and a dialect and why 'dialects' are losing ground in Germany.

 

Radio Segment on North Koreans on South Korean TV

On Sunday, January 31, 2016, NPR had a radio feature on the appearance of North Koreans on South Korean reality TV.  You can listen to the segment here: http://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2016/01/31/464798910/south-koreas-newest-tv-stars-are-north-korean-defectors .

 

An Interview with Linguist K. David Harrison on When Languages Die

 

 

Slate article:  Photos of Women Who Could Go to Prison for Singing for Men


A series of photographs and a very brief discussion of things women in Iran are forbidden to do, including singing for me and studying English literature.

 

The 'Halal Internet'


A Deutsche Welle article about the 'Halal Internet' coming to Iran has been posted as a discussion item in the Persian group.  Join the discussion!

 

The Free Dictionaries Project


Looking for a free dictionary?  Check out the Free Dictionaries Project!  Especially interesting are the picture dictionaries.

  

Alphabet Blocks for Hebrew, Korean, and Arabic

The Global Studio now has alphabet blocks for Hebrew, Korean, and Arabic.  (The Arabic may be useful for the Persian learners.)  There are also magnetic letters for Hebrew.

What can you do with alphabet blocks and magnetic letters?  Quiz yourself on the letters, put them together to form words, and learn the names of the animals pictured on one side of the blocks.  The Korean blocks seem to have a puzzle, too.  Want to try?  Ask at the Global Studio desk!

 

Visit the Conflict Kitchen, a take-out restaurant that serves food from countries with which the US is in conflict.

 

__________________________________________________________________

 

Finding Books in Your Language


A number of people have asked about finding children's books, 'easy readers', and popular fiction in the SDLAP languages.  The Global Studio has children's books in Swahili and Turkish (thanks to Professor Grove), and I'm willing to buy more.  However, I prefer to buy books that are culturally authentic, i.e., not translated from English.

 

I have found the following online bookstores that seem to have a good selection.  Please send me (Prof. Scinicariello) a list of things you…

Read more…

What is Social Bookmarking? (That's Diigo)

Wikipedia: A Short Explanation

YouTube: Social Bookmarking in Plain English--This is about Delicious, but the theory is the same.

YouTube: Diigo V.3--This video has information about Diigo groups.

Latest Activity

Sydney Vermeeren posted a discussion
Tuesday’s presentation provided helpful direction by allowing me to use my reactions to the beginning of my language learning to guide the structure I wanted to create, and by reminding me how important it was to be specific and set goals to stay on track. I realized that, while I had a decent idea of how beginning my sessions would work (and how I could apply the brief introduction I had given myself over the summer and on breaks), it was important to have set concepts to understand how I…
yesterday
Myanna Hightower posted a discussion
I just finished my first ASL lesson with Kimmi Kraus on iTalki. Immediately it was clear she has been teaching ASL for years, as we spent the first 30 minutes of our lesson creating a collaborative lesson plan and organizing the structure of our future lessons which included making intentional space to talk about audism and the compounded oppression deaf women and people of color face. After establishing our plan Kimmi administered a fingerspelling assessment and a comprehension assesment to…
Wednesday
Emma Butcher posted a discussion
I am quite excited to have my first meeting with my language teacher and my partner; it is something I am truly looking forward to. In 105, we just completed our learning plan and the tasks that go with it. Even though my main goals are focused on speaking and listening to improve my conversation skills, I have still created multiple tasks that focus on my reading and writing skills as well.While creating my learning plan, I made sure to include many auditory activities since I am an auditory…
Tuesday
Luke Orris posted a discussion
This week I have really begun my Indonesian instruction, meeting with my tutor and starting to think about my project. First, my goals for Indonesian are crystalizing a bit more: I would like to focus much of this semester on topics of economics and geopolitics, relating the content of my language learning to my PPEL and Global Studies majors. I would also like to expand my everyday vocabulary in order to watch movies without having to pause to try to break down what the Indonesian subtitles…
Tuesday
Luke Orris replied to Luke Orris's discussion Kalimantan Pole Houses
"Cultural Artifact #1"
Tuesday
Grayson Charlton posted a discussion
I found both readings engaging, though certain sections left me slightly confused, particularly the reading on how the brain handles language. The basic concept was clear enough: distinct brain regions handle different linguistic functions, with Wernicke's and Broca's areas being used for comprehension and speech production. However it was harder for me to picture how all of these processes actually work together in real time during an actual conversation. This made me wonder why identical…
Tuesday
Sydney Vermeeren posted a discussion
For my first cultural artifact post, I decided to research the Chinese civil service exams. I had often heard them referenced in various history classes or discussions of education and government structure, and I was curious to learn more. It was somewhat difficult to find images or artifacts, but the painting I show here is described as an image of Song dynasty imperial exams. Several sources describe the examination system as lasting from 606 to 1905 and undergoing numerous reforms and…
Tuesday
Tal Sheleg posted a discussion
For my first authentic cultural article, I want to focus on the Ketef Hinnom scrolls. These are two extremely small scrolls made completely out of silver, and they contain the oldest passages of scripture ever discovered. I have attached an image of them below. Even though they are tiny, their historical and cultural importance is huge.The Ketef Hinnom scrolls were discovered in 1979 in Jerusalem’s Old City. They were found in a burial cave, which helped preserve them for thousands of years.…
Tuesday
More…

A network of participants in and friends of Richmond's Self-Directed Language Acquisition Program.

Diigo: Persian Learners

Diigo: Turkish Learners

Diigo: Asian Language Learners

Diigo: SDLAP at UR