Jmar257's Language Log (ES, FR, DE) - Super Challenge, Assimil, and more

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jmar257
Green Belt
Posts: 268
Joined: Tue Apr 07, 2020 2:41 pm
Location: USA
Languages: English (N), español (Intermediate), français (Lower Intermediate), deutsch (beginner)
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... hp?t=15645
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Re: Jmar257's Language Log (ES, FR, eventually DE)

Postby jmar257 » Sat Mar 06, 2021 5:46 pm

ES: Sigo leyendo Africanus: El Hijo del Consul y este libro me gusta mucho. Leí alrededor 200 páginas (casi 30 %) del libro hasta ahora y creo que voy a leer los otros volúmenes en esta trilogía. Como para la televisión, me está aburriendo Ingobernable así que probé ver El Chema y no me gusta. Quizás me vuelvo a Ingobernable o encontraré otra serie. Me lastimé el pie anoche haciendo sparring de muay thai, así que hoy voy a leer la mayor parte del día en lugar de hacer cosas activas como he planeado. Ay, también tengo que hacer mis impuestos pronto...

FR: Writing this in English for hopefully more feedback (and to express myself better). I just finished Unit 7 of FSI French (man, these lessons are getting long!) and I don't really feel like I'm getting a ton out of it so far. It feels like all the drills are the same from unit to unit and we're barely covering grammar, but that may just be because most things were basic thus far so I don't really remember them? I think I had the same issue with Spanish, but that was a year or more ago so I don't remember exactly how bad it was. At least I get practice speaking and it is helping with automaticity, although I've been zoning out during the tapes more lately. I took a peak at DLI French and am somewhat tempted to switch, but I think I'm going to stay the course here and at least finish out through Unit 12 and reassess. I definitely need the active French practice, but this course is so much drier than Spanish and I don't feel as if I'm learning much at this point. But if I recall (having a log back then would help!) I felt this way with Spanish and getting through to a more challenging portion of the course + more reading really made it click at a certain point. It doesn't help that I'm in the middle of a large Spanish book so I'm not getting French exposure outside of this course. Maybe once I finish Africanus I'll read several French books in a row and start a TV show...


German and Portguese are tempting me quite hard nowadays. Very close to giving in and starting German with Ease. I need to start putting more entries in here for writing practice but like before, a lot of the stuff is similar day to day...30 minutes or so of FSI, maybe a bit of reading and Spanish YouTube. I guess that's a sign maybe I should mix it up...

Edit: Got a burst of motivation this afternoon and did some more FSI French (and...enjoyed it? Maybe I need to post about how I hate it every day and I'll end up loving it). Did the first two tapes of Unit 8, in addition to the last of Unit 7 earlier which equates to ~1.25 hours on French today. Plus whatever time on Anki, and then my Spanish reading and watching some YouTube. Not bad. Going to finish up this tape and probably try to read more, whenever I get tired of that I will go play Skyrim then watch UFC fights. Let's go Izzy!
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jmar257
Green Belt
Posts: 268
Joined: Tue Apr 07, 2020 2:41 pm
Location: USA
Languages: English (N), español (Intermediate), français (Lower Intermediate), deutsch (beginner)
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... hp?t=15645
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Re: Jmar257's Language Log (ES, FR, occasional LA, eventually DE)

Postby jmar257 » Thu Apr 15, 2021 1:38 pm

Yo debería postear aquí más a menudo. Al menos sería buena práctica escribiendo español. Anoche terminé con Africanus: Hijo del Consul y me gustó mucho, quiero leer el resto de la serie pero el próximo libro consiste en casi mil páginas (984) y el tercero más de mil. No quiero comenzar algo así ahora ni en el futuro cercano. El próximo libro que voy a leer será Napoleon: Le Chant du Depart, escrito en francés, pero el próximo libro en español será más probablemente Historia de la lengua española. Ya lo tengo y, inspirado por Pfifltrigg Pi, quiero leerlo (y también me gusta leer todo sobre la historia de lenguaje y varias lenguas). Antes de todo esto, sin embargo, quiero progresar un poco en The Life of Andrew Jackson (inglés).

No ahora, sino pronto voy a dar una actualización sobre el Super Challenge. I'm behind in everything except French reading at the moment, although I'm barely behind in Spanish reading. As far as films/listening...not close at all. I need to up my podcast game.

Edit: I found the Bilingue Blogs YouTube channel last night, and have been watching that a bit. It's pretty interesting, he's an American dude he speaks Spanish very well (to my ears) and switches between Spanish and English in his videos, which are generally related to learning Spanish. Fun stuff, especially considering he's a dude of no Latino heritage who just learned it on his own because he was interested. Also in general seems like a chill guy, which always makes videos more fun to watch.
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jmar257
Green Belt
Posts: 268
Joined: Tue Apr 07, 2020 2:41 pm
Location: USA
Languages: English (N), español (Intermediate), français (Lower Intermediate), deutsch (beginner)
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... hp?t=15645
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Re: Jmar257's Language Log (ES, FR, occasional LA, eventually DE)

Postby jmar257 » Sun Apr 25, 2021 7:00 pm

A more thorough update this go around:

ES: I took the new iTalki language test and posted about it here. Results were about what I expected, although I was a bit disappointed in how I struggled with the "listen and repeat" portion towards the end. I started Historia de la Lengua Española yesterday, only about 30 pages in and thus far (besides the various prologues to the various editions--I have the 9th, I believe) it's talking about pre-Roman languages in Spain. Not the most interesting chapter as it largely relies on place names, but I figure once we get into Latin I'll be more interested. Have continued watching Ingobernable and listening to various podcasts, although not at the pace I should be. I also had an iTalki lesson yesterday, and I think it went pretty well--some stumbles and a couple times I had to ask for simple words, but I also used some higher level vocabulary and in general felt good about expressing my ideas, even if I had to use circumlocutions or bailed on a more complicated sentence to get the same idea across a bit more simply. Took a couple minutes to get into the flow and there were times where my thoughts started forming in English and it pushed me to translating, but other times I felt really good and like my brain went from idea to Spanish without even thinking about how to say it in English. I need to do this more, but I don't know when, as several of my weekends in the next month or so are busy.

FR: I started Unit 11 of FSI French Basic today, as well as read more in Napoleon: Chant du Depart. I'm about 18% of the way through according to my Kindle, and it took a bit to get into the flow of reading French again but it's picking up. I'm still highlighting portions to be turned into flashcards when I'm done, but I've noticed once I got going that my comprehension is a bit better. I just need to keep reading--I'm just under 2k words read of French books, vs. 6.5k in Spanish, so it makes sense my reading is a lot slower and requires more effort. I've also been listening to French podcasts but not as much as a should--listened to one InnerFrench episode doing chores this morning and I'll listen to another while going for a run in a bit. I need to start putting on FIA again while working.

DE: Still heavily considering starting German once I hit the midway point of FSI French. I'm probably going to take a break from that course no matter what, but I think it'd be fun (and useful?) to go ahead and dive into German. I'll get more out of the second half of FSI if I improve my French a bit before delving in, i.e., reading a thousand pages more so so, I think. The (tentative) gameplan would just be working through Assimil's NGWE and turning sentences into flashcards, and to introduce GWT a bit later. That also might be a bit much to take on...we'll see.
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Cavesa
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Re: Jmar257's Language Log (ES, FR, occasional LA, eventually DE)

Postby Cavesa » Mon Apr 26, 2021 10:05 am

jmar257 wrote:A more thorough update this go around:

ES: I took the new iTalki language test and posted about it here. Results were about what I expected, although I was a bit disappointed in how I struggled with the "listen and repeat" portion towards the end.


Thanks for sharing the experience, I've read it. I had expected the test to be more differently perceived by different learners. Perhaps you are not at sufficienly lower level (what a weird expression, I know, but I think you understand what I mean) to really get a different grammar test version.

Don't feel disappointed about the repeating portion! I ended up with a slightly higher result of the exam, but I still struggled at the end of "listen and repeat". I think it is designed that way, and this feeling of hours just means it works! If we didn't struggle at all, I'd say the test was too easy and not realiable at all.
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jmar257
Green Belt
Posts: 268
Joined: Tue Apr 07, 2020 2:41 pm
Location: USA
Languages: English (N), español (Intermediate), français (Lower Intermediate), deutsch (beginner)
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... hp?t=15645
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Re: Jmar257's Language Log (ES, FR, occasional LA, eventually DE)

Postby jmar257 » Mon Apr 26, 2021 1:29 pm

Cavesa wrote:Thanks for sharing the experience, I've read it. I had expected the test to be more differently perceived by different learners. Perhaps you are not at sufficienly lower level (what a weird expression, I know, but I think you understand what I mean) to really get a different grammar test version.

Don't feel disappointed about the repeating portion! I ended up with a slightly higher result of the exam, but I still struggled at the end of "listen and repeat". I think it is designed that way, and this feeling of hours just means it works! If we didn't struggle at all, I'd say the test was too easy and not realiable at all.

Yeah, you mentioned you would be interested in someone at a lower level taking the test and I agree. I could do that for French but I honestly don't feel like spending $30 to learn that I need to work on everything :lol: I know some people like having tests to zero in on and I get that at a certain level of advancement, but for the lower levels it's not my thing. I'd be sitting in the middle of the test demoralized because I feel like I'm getting everything wrong, wondering why I'm spending the time and money on it when I could've just been studying regularly instead lol.

That's a very good point re: not struggling at all, and as I went through the test (and felt better about the open response + grammar sections) it kind of dawned on me that the test was probably designed to be that way. I imagine it's one of those adaptive tests that gets harder as you get stuff right up until you start getting things wrong, then focuses on material at that level.
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Cavesa
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Re: Jmar257's Language Log (ES, FR, occasional LA, eventually DE)

Postby Cavesa » Mon Apr 26, 2021 2:56 pm

I totally share your fellings about the low level exams (yeah, I know my German is a tragedy already and for free). Well, we'll just wait for someone, who sees some value in trying Italki test at A2-B1 and we'll see how it goes. It's probably just a matter of time, someone will eventually satisfy our curiosity :-).

The adaptiveness of the speaking test really impressed me. So, I don't really understand why the grammar one is so much worse. Even if you needed 10 minutes, it is still a rather short test to be adaptive, and I don't know what does it adapt to right from the start.
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jmar257
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Posts: 268
Joined: Tue Apr 07, 2020 2:41 pm
Location: USA
Languages: English (N), español (Intermediate), français (Lower Intermediate), deutsch (beginner)
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... hp?t=15645
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Re: Jmar257's Language Log (ES, FR, occasional LA, eventually DE)

Postby jmar257 » Mon May 17, 2021 2:05 pm

Update time. I swear I always say I'll do these more regularly, but then I feel like I have nothing interesting to post. That may change when I start German and am actually going through a course, though.

FR: I've been slacking a bit with my French study of late, I'm only halfway through FSI Unit 12 (and there's only 4 parts, as it's a review lesson). Didn't do anything this morning because I slept like garbage last night and took some extra time to sleep in before work. That said, I've done well on the exposure front--I was getting bored with the Napoleon book I'm reading (about 40% of the way through) so I started Tom Clancy's Les Dents du Tigre, which I'm enjoying. I was really feeling something lighter and action-focused, and it fits the bill. Already 100 pages or so in out of 600 total or something. I've read the 3rd and 4th entries in this series in Spanish, and have the first (the one I'm reading now) and the second in French. Nothing after the 4th has been translated into my languages, although German has plenty of translations of the newer entries (and seems to have more translations of thrillers in general, at least ones I like). This is also the first physical copy (i.e., without Kindle dictionary) book I've read in French, and it's going well, although there's plenty of unknown words and turns of phrase. I've been listening to podcasts trying to catch up for the Super Challenge, but on a whim last night checked out Lupin and am really enjoying it. I watched 3 of the 5 episodes last night, stopping solely because I needed to go to bed (although I ended up having trouble falling asleep). I really do not like watching TV much, so the fact that I watched 3 episodes straight says something about this show I think. If you enjoyed the Sherlock Holmes movies involving RDJ recently, you'll like this series, and it has part 2 coming out in June I believe. Unfortunately I don't find shows I like this much too often, but if anyone has any series in Spanish or French similar to this or Club de Cuervos, I'd really like to know. I may just rewatch these--I detest rereading books unless they're really good, but even in English I rewatch the same TV shows rather than find new ones (I think because I have trouble finding ones I like).

ES: Haven't done a ton on the Spanish front--I have been listening to podcasts, although slacking on TV. Ingobernable has started to bore me. I have been working my way through La Historia de la Lengua Española and am enjoying it. Not sure what next book is, but it'll probably be a fiction book.

DE: I'm pretty sure I'll stick with my original plan of taking a break from FSI French at the halfway point and picking up German. I've been wanderlusting hard for it and the fact that a lot of the books I look for translation for in my languages have it in German but not French or Spanish doesn't help. I think I'll start with German with Ease, then go through German without Toil--maybe I'll overlap these two, maybe not depending on how everything is going. I also having the advanced German book with the French base I'll use in the future. That's the plan for now, and I'll keep using Spanish and French to maintain/improve them. I feel like getting a better base in French before moving to the last half of FSI would make that course more profitable for me, so a couple more thousand pages while I work on something else seems to be in order. I'll try to be more assiduous about documenting German if and when I get started down that path.
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jmar257
Green Belt
Posts: 268
Joined: Tue Apr 07, 2020 2:41 pm
Location: USA
Languages: English (N), español (Intermediate), français (Lower Intermediate), deutsch (beginner)
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... hp?t=15645
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Re: Jmar257's Language Log (ES, FR, occasional LA, eventually DE)

Postby jmar257 » Sat May 22, 2021 4:23 pm

Actual update! I think. At least for German.

ES: Hoy tuve una lección de iTalki para practicar charlar en español, pero el profesor no apareciera. Primero me enfadé, pero después de unos momentos me di cuenta que él probablemente ha ocurrido algo importante para olvidarse de la lección. Pero espero que no fuera tan mal, como una emergencia familiar o algo así. Me envía un mensaje de Skype hace unos minutos para pedir disculpas y le dije que no había problema, podemos hacer la lección más tarde hoy pero no tengo tiempo mañana, así que quizás tenga que pedir reembolso de iTalki. In other news, I have started even more books. I wanted something in a foreign language I could read a little mindlessly, i.e., something that's genre fiction. I'm reading such a book in French, but my French isn't good enough so I do have to engage my brain a bit there so it's not really relaxing. I started El Camino Difícil, a Jack Reacher book that I read ~4 years ago in English. Already about 15% of the way through that (and it's pretty easy), and I'm still chugging along with Historia de la Lengua Española as well (on the chapter about Arabic influence). I also started rewatching Club de Cuervos. I'm going to post it here because otherwise I won't do it, but I will give a Super Challenge update tomorrow. Spoiler: I'm behind on watching for both French and Spanish, a little ahead on French reading, and a little behind on Spanish reading. Not really shocking.

FR: I've finished half of FSI French...man, what a slog. I'm going to return and finish it at a later point in time, I think reading a couple thousand pages, watching some TV, and maybe even some conversation practice will put me in a better place for the second half. That said, I will be revisiting lesson 9 (object pronouns) and may just redo 9-12 whenever I resume...if I can bring myself to. Watched some more Lupin, only one more episode, and I've been reading Les Dents du Tigre. I have more French books to read after that, and still need to finish the Napoleon book.

DE: I've officially started! Okay, so I've done some German before--20 some lessons of Assimil years ago (and they're still in Anki, getting repped), in addition to MT and LT a few years back as well, so some very, very basic knowledge is there. I did the first lesson in Assimil German with Ease last night, and the second a little bit ago, going to do a few more today. I'm following the famed Dutch With Ease instructions, but cutting it short for the first few since they are incredibly easy. I think I'll try to reach lesson 7 this weekend then slow it down to a lesson or two per day, and whenever that gets difficult do only one each morning (and I expect multiple lessons per day to not last long). I want to run German Without Toil simultaneously but haven't decided when to delve into that, maybe around lesson 15 in GWE depending on how everything is going. I'll try to log more in-depth on this, because I know I'll be interested into how everything progresses. Once I hit the point where I'm doing lessons that aren't in Anki, I'll be inputting new ones into my deck for both Assimils, and will keep the hard copy by my desk to inspire me to leaf through and reread things from time to time. Grand plans, all in addition to 1.5 Super Challenges going on, so we'll see how everything goes, but I should at the very least keep up to a lesson every morning + inputting into Anki. I have some German graded readers somewhere that I'll start later down the road, probably near the end of the SC.
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jmar257
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Languages: English (N), español (Intermediate), français (Lower Intermediate), deutsch (beginner)
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Re: Jmar257's Language Log (ES, FR, DE)

Postby jmar257 » Mon May 24, 2021 8:06 pm

Quick update time.

ES: Read quite a bit of El Camino Difícil over the weekend, for no other reason than I was feeling it. It's quite an easy read for me, which is pretty heartening. I'm something like 45% of the way through the Kindle version, and I believe the paperback Spanish was ~450 pages according to Amazon.

FR: Nothing

DE: Dang this language is fun. Well, for now. I did the review lesson this morning, #7, then went through #8. Just a bit ago in the afternoon I went through 9, and that'll probably be it for today. I've extended each lesson, listening to the audio and reading more times over as they are picking up in difficulty, but still nothing near difficult yet. I did notice this afternoon that my old Anki deck for GWE had more lessons then I remembered, then searching through it I realized it was missing a few and probably didn't have all the notes I want anyway. So I've started over inputting lessons into Anki, and I'm through lesson 3 right now. Hopefully will get another couple in today and get close to where I'm actually at. Don't see a problem continuing with two lessons a day* at least for now (i.e., that may change by the end of the week) and once I decide to cut back on that I will introduce German Without Toil.

*Yes, I did 3 today but one was a quick review lesson, as it was the first review in the book
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jmar257
Green Belt
Posts: 268
Joined: Tue Apr 07, 2020 2:41 pm
Location: USA
Languages: English (N), español (Intermediate), français (Lower Intermediate), deutsch (beginner)
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... hp?t=15645
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Re: Jmar257's Language Log (ES, FR, DE) - Super Challenge, Assimil, and more

Postby jmar257 » Thu Jun 03, 2021 7:23 pm

Update time. A bit longer between updates than I was aiming for but I was out of town for the weekend, so nothing language-wise got done beyond listening to podcasts a bit on the drive. Only real update is for German, although I've listened and read in both French and Spanish since my last update.

DE: Did lesson 16 in GWE this morning. I have slowed down to one lesson a day, and I'm only a few behind as far as inputting into Assimil is concerned. One thing that occurred to me is I am going to be inputting GWOT (which I'll be starting any day now) into Assimil as well, so I'll have a ton of German cards...fun. Anyway, as far as GWE goes, nothing has been that difficult thus far, and I think being a few days behind on typing the lessons out for Anki is a bonus because it gives me a review a few days later, by which point the lessons seem super easy. I'm not saying I could produce them yet, and there's sometimes a word or two I've forgotten, but I have no problem going back and understanding what the lesson was and have been feeling good about the lessons the first time over when learning them as well.

Weird thought: So I had an idea...I'm currently Anki-ing Assimil lessons, with one line or sentence per card. Many people have done this (or something similar). Has anyone ever just taken a screenshot of the entire lesson (e.g., with the Windows snipping tool) to be a card? So each day you'd just have to review one card with the entire lesson, basically ensuring you're not that far behind where you're at in the book but going through an entire lesson review each day instead of a handful of sentences?
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