We have begun working on our very first task which is to set the structure of the classroom and how to build self-discipline in Urdu. We discussed the schedules that work best for us which is one day out of the week and one day out of the weekend. We discussed the ways I can strengthen my reading and writing skills on my own outside of the class. We also selected our main reading for the course which is Pakistan: A Hard Country by Anatoly Lieven. For each week, we will select different parts of the book to read trying to align to the language tasks set out for each week. Our lessons will integrate short riddles, news channels, discussions, brief TV serials, and articles. For the first week, we had a conversation about how informal and formal greetings are exchanged. We discussed how it is quite normal to stay past the time you have said you would leave before saying your farewells. Similarly, it was also quite normal to arrive past the time set. We worked on the second language task more through discussions by discussing how men and women greet each other differently. Men and women rarely shake hands when greeting each other whereas men will either embrace each other or shake hands with each other in greeting.
One resource that we have found to be very useful is Diigo to document and record the articles, news channels, and riddles that we will be doing throughout the weeks. This resource will help us go back to our lessons especially when we need to review certain phrases that repeat throughout the news or articles. I can also go back to these resources through Diigo.
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