This past week, I had the opportunity to sit down with Maya Tatro. Maya is my learning partner for Hebrew and she is a senior at UR as well. She is a native of Isreal and is fluent in Hebrew. Her kind and relaxed nature makes the tutoring sessions much more enjoyable since she creates the setting of a peer to peer helping session instead of a student, teacher relationship. JT and myself are both beggining speakers so we were just starting off with the basics of Hebrew like hello and what's up. By the end of our hour session JT and I both felt comfortable enough to record an artifact ourselves doing a Hebrew introduction. The words I learned were as follows:
Shalom=hello/goodbye, peace
Moneshma= slang for what's up?
Tove=good
lo tove= not good
lo= no
ken= yes
Metsweon= excellent
Sabbaba= awesome
Bayvackshaw= Please
Bokertove= good morning
Leye Trot= see you later
Shem Shayle= My name is
Eh Karem lay ha= what is your name? for a male
Aknee= I am
Efo= where is
Efozay=where is this?
ata= you (boy)
aut= you (girl)
Toe da la ba= thank you very much
I consider that pretty good progress in learning Hebrew words. Now I just need to be able to pronunciate them correctly which can be a challenge when you have to roll R's and make a huh sound with the back of your throat.
We were also able to set aside three additional goals besides the one's already required for beginners. The three additional goals are to talk about sports, the weather, and to ask for directions. Each week we plan on achieving one goal, so by the end of the semester we have achieved what we had previously set for ourselves.
From this week’s reading we learned of how we decipher language when interacting with others. The understanding of language is a multifaceted approach of the visual and sound senses that human’s experience. For the most part the majority of communication can be understood through non verbal communication. That means only the visual is necessary in understanding what one person is really trying to express. So even though I do not know Hebrew, as long as I can read another person’s body language, and they can read mine, then I will be all right in at least having an idea of what is going on. That explains why there is a saying of “actions speak louder than words” because they really do.
As for the sounds part of listening and language, it seems very difficult. Sound and what it means is deciphered upon the energy with which it is produced, the depths of the lungs from which the air comes to make the noise, the pitch of the sounds, and whether it is in a consonant or vowel format. Those are just a few of the characteristics that are necessary in understanding the vocal undertones of communication.
The resources that I have found most helpful in my understanding of language are my interactions with my tutor. Maya is able to immediately correct my language pronunciation and give me the essentials towards reaching the goals I have set forth. Unlike Rosetta Stone, in which you have to learn words not necessary towards reaching my goals, Maya is able to directly address the wants and needs of myself. In addition to the beginner goals, JT and I have set the goal to learn to talk about weather, sports, and ask for directions. We feel that these three things added on with the beginner requirements will help us understand the Hebrew language.
Comments