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This week my learning goal has been improved comprehension trough interpretation of readings. I read several news articles in Greek with my language partner at my side. I would first read the articles with him silently and then I would explain the article in English to see if I understood what the article was conveying. It was important in the activity to not simply summarize the article but explain the meaning of each sentence to show complete comprehension. I also continued my reading of the book of Constantine Palaiologos and I am reaching the time period of his campaigns in the Peloponnese.
Below are the links for articles used:
Time is an approximate calculation, or better put an estimation in Greece. It is common for people to be a few minutes late to appointments and meetings, while set times for leisurely activities like dates and parties are regarded as a suggestion. In such occasions it is not uncommon for people to show up an hour after the proposed time.
An interesting aspect of time in Greece is how it is described. When the clock shows that the time is 1:10 you would say "the time is one and ten" to describe the time. This of course is normal. When time shows 1:55 the normal inclination of any logical human being is to say "the time is one and fifty-five" based on the previous rule, but this is not the case. When the minute-hand passes the thirty minute mark time is reported in respect of the next hour. So 1:55 would be stated as "the time is five before two o'clock." Also, anytime the minute hand is on the thirty minute mark time is reported as "a half." So 1:30 is "one and a half" in Greek.
I based this week's learning goals on the suggestion on the calendar to work on a learning activity to teach someone an aspect of your language. The goal was to use teaching to work and showcase my presentational and comprehension skills. I decided to teach my language partner what I have been learning in my new book on Emperor Constantine Palaiologos. I provided historical context and used vocabulary that I found challenging in order to possibly catch my language partner off guard. The only word he didn't know was Πορφυρογέννητος which means the 'purple-born' in a literal sense but actually indicates birth in a noble bloodline. I concluded my lesson by discussing with my language partner in Greek his perspective on Byzantine history and the relationship between the Byzantine and modern Greek state. Other activities with my partner included simple conversation on our other meeting of the week and discussion of current events developing in Greece.
I have made considerable progress since the beginning of the year in my comprehension and reading skills of advanced Greek texts. I have developed my speaking presentation skills, but I still need progress to prevent the common mental blocks I get when speaking for long periods of time. I have decided to abandon my writing goals all together because of the overwhelming pressure that will put on me if I have to work on my comprehension, reading, speaking, along with writing. The reading of books have been very effective in reaching my goals for the semester and so I will be starting my second book which is on Constantine Palaiologos, the last Emperor of the Byzantine Empire.
Conversation on Economic Situation in Greece: (I will play both individuals in the conversation) I have attached an MP3 file recording of the conversation.Vocaroo Recording of Conversation
Record and upload voice >>
Person A: Unfortunately, Greece is getting worse and worse.
Person B: How Come?
Person A: Are you blind!? The economy is horrendous and we are going blindly from debt deal to debt deal.
Person B: What do you think about returning to the drachma?
Person A: It will be our undoing. As much as we might not like it we need the euro right now.
Person B: I think a return to the drachma will be bad at first but it will help us rebound faster.
Person A: I disagree.
My learning goals for this week are based around conversation and political awareness. I worked on my capability of speaking to someone about a serious topic in Greek politics or the Greek economic situation for an extended period of time. So far I have been reading to work on my comprehension and vocabulary but I haven't done too many activities on my own that challenge my presentation skills, besides my meetings with my language partner and the last artifact activity. In order to reach my goal of improving conversation skills I brushed up on my current events and wrote down conversation points that can help me showcase awareness of the topic in question. I also created a strategy on how to approach delicate subjects like politics since the economy and the political situation are sensitive topics in Greece.
Three Step Strategy:
-First speak generally about events like the μνημόνιο to gage on what side of the issue the other person sides with.
-Ask the other person their feelings once they feel comfortable that I will not judge their opinion.
-Listen and respond whenever possible so as to seem engaged and also pay attention for words used and opinions on the topic.
The writing system of the Greek language is as ancient as its history. Proto-Greek writing was based on a system of lines that alternated length and pattern in what is known as Linear B. The influence of the Phoenicians and their alphabet though helped develop a writing system based on letters. The Greek alphabet consists of 24 letters, but it also maintains an array of letter combinations that create a variety of sounds, such as the combination of omicron which makes the sound "oh" and giota "which makes an "ee" sound. The "οί" combination of the two letters makes the sound "ee" as well, instead of "oee." This is why in the yogurt commercials for Oikos yogurt, the correct pronunciation should be "Eekos" not "Oeekos."
Another unique aspect of the Greek writing system is the amount of letters that produce the same sound. There are 5 variations of "ee," two variations of "oh," as well as two variations of "eh." Furthermore, Greek letters have their own names rather then just being called by the sound they make since that would cause a lot of confusion. For example the letter "A" is called Alpha not "A" or "Ah."
My first artifact translation went far better than I expected. I found the brief paragraph I used from an article on the ERT Greek news channel website. It took me a few minutes to understand and translate the document (probably around 6 or 7 minutes). My language partner scolded me that I should have been able to understand and translate the article far quicker but I was personally impressed by my the clarity of my translation. This is because I was able to check my accuracy in the translation since the original English blog of European representative Pierre Moskovici was at the bottom of the article. When I read the article to my language partner I did make a few mistakes in pronunciation, especially with the word συνομιλητές just because of its odd location of the accent due to context in the sentence. I am progressing rapidly towards my goal of finishing my first Greek book and should be done very soon.
For my Artifact activity I will translate a Greek online news article from Greek to English. Since I am doing advanced Greek I thought that simple greetings and introductions would be insufficient for an activity that will be helpful to the development of my Greek language skills. Link to article below.
http://www.ert.gr/moskovisi-i-ellada-krata-tin-tichi-sta-cheria-tis/
"Οι σχέσεις της Ελλάδας με τους δανειστές βρίσκονται σε κρίσιμη φάση και η χώρα θα πρέπει να επιβεβαιώσει την δέσμευσή της για την υλοποίηση των μεταρρυθμίσεων που περιλαμβάνονται στο μνημόνιο για να παραμείνει σε τροχιά και να μην χαθεί ο στόχος τονίζει ο ευρωπαίος επίτροπος Πιέρ Μοσκοβισί στο προσωπικό blog του με αφορμή την διήμερη επίσκεψή του στην Ελλάδα." -ERT
The relations between Greece and the country's lenders are at a crucial stage and the country will have to confirm its commitment on the application of reforms which are part of the debt deal that will help keep Greece on the right track stated European representative Pierre Moskovici in his personal blog in regard to his two day long visit to Greece.
This week I have really been taking advantage of my language partner Bishan and my friend Adil. Although I have gotten pretty good at using the Mango Language App I have been discovering that it is hard for me to improvise a conversation. I can say phrases if I am first prompted with the phrase in English but I get a little bit confused when faced with questions in Hindi. I have been asking (and possibly annoying) Adil to talk to me in Hindi as much as possible even if I can only say simple questions. I have found it helpful when he throws questions at me that I am not used to but that include words that I know. I feel like this is the best way to learn. I have found that when I am speaking in this manner I tend to mix up the order of words in the sentence. This is likely because Hindi word order is much different than English. When I was learning French this was much less of a problem because the only difference there is really in the adjective placement. However, in Hindi the question words change around and oftentimes you have to add additional words that do not directly translate into English. Overall practice is definitely helping but I think it was important for me to have some sort of basis of vocabulary before jumping right into conversations. I will be sure to try and speak more with Bishan instead of using my time with him to ask general questions and learn vocabulary.
I can introduce myself, my friends, and my family.
I can ask for and give simple directions.
I can name different parts of the body and state that I have been injured/have a head/stomach ache.
I can count to 10 and then to 100 by 10s.
I can ask for the price of something.
I can order at a restaurant.
For my learning activity I created a work sheet where you have to label the body parts. I included things like: arm, leg, ears, eyes, etc. I used this sheet with my friend Avery to teach her the respective body parts. First we went through all of them together, I told her the names and had her repeat them. Next I provided her with a word bank to see if she could match the words to the different body parts. I think this worked pretty well. Although she did sometimes get mixed up on things when we went through the words together it definitely helped her. Even if she did not retain the knowledge, making this activity and teaching Avery actually helped my learning. I feel much more comfortable with naming the body parts now.
Here is the worksheet: body%20parts.docx
Here is the transcript and audioArtifact%202.mp3 for my second artifact.
Where are you from?- Ap kahan say hai?
I am from America and where are you from?- May America say hoon, aur ap?
I am from India- May India say hoon.
Good-Achaa
What do you do?- Ap kya krte hain
I study in college. And what do you do?-May college may purti hoon, aur ap kya krte hain?
I also study in college. How old are you?- Muhjay bhee. Ap kitnay sal kay hain?
I am 21 years old. And how old are you? Ek kees sal key hoon , aur ap?
18. Where do you live?- Utarah. Ap kaha rehetti hain?
I live in Virginia- May Virginia may rehetti hoon
I can briefly introduce myself, including my name, my hobbies, where I come from.
I can read and pounce most of the words in the food menu, including noodles, fried rice, soup, etc.
I can understand and know how to aegyo (Korean girls acting cute)
