Turkish

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dklinker
White Belt
Posts: 33
Joined: Mon Nov 09, 2020 6:26 pm
Languages: English (N), Turkish (maintaining) Spanish (learning)
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Re: Turkish

Postby dklinker » Wed Mar 10, 2021 2:41 am

Lately it's been hard to find time for Turkish. I'm still plugging away but focusing mostly on listening.

For intensive listening I've been using traditional fairytales on youtube, keeping to videos with subtitles. I try not to read the subtitles for the most part but it's nice to have them when I get stuck. It's funny how even when they are bad subtitles can be helpful. I'll be glad to be done with fairytales eventually, but for now they are working. And because they are familiar they aren't so much work on days when I'm tired. Here are links to the youtube channels/playlists I've been using.

https://www.youtube.com/c/adisebabaanimasyon/videos
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=P ... mu6k0XpRvs

I've also started listening to a travel vlog on youtube for extensive listening practice. It's pretty difficult for my level, but there are subtitles and if I slow the speed to 0.75 it's manageable. The plan is to come back to it in several months and see how much easier it is then. If it isn't any easier, I'm not sure what the new plan will be - maybe take up the guitar.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Z0q5mBsD3U
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dklinker
White Belt
Posts: 33
Joined: Mon Nov 09, 2020 6:26 pm
Languages: English (N), Turkish (maintaining) Spanish (learning)
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Re: Turkish

Postby dklinker » Wed Mar 31, 2021 1:17 am

There isn't too much to report since my last log entry. I've continued to listen to the kids' stories on the youtube channel "Adisebaba" and to read issues of the magazine "Bilim Cocuk". Here is a link to a site where issues can be read online without opening a PDF. https://services.tubitak.gov.tr/edergi/ ... eArsiv.htm

For extensive listening I've been using another travel vlog on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nV83dKN7Qug
It's a bit difficult for me at this point, but I'm following along with the subtitles and it's working okay. The narrator often makes a brief pause between clauses/phrases, which makes it easier to follow.

Finally, out of curiosity, I took an online test to gauge the size of my vocabulary. No telling if the test is accurate but it was a fun diversion. The test consists of choosing synonyms and antonyms, without the option of selecting "I don't know", so a few lucky guesses probably skew the results. If the test is to be believed, I have the vocabulary of a 10-year-old Turkish speaker (5800 words). That seems low if I want to be able to use Turkish media comfortably, so it's probably time to come up with a plan to work methodically on vocabulary, but I haven't come up with one yet. https://www.arealme.com/kelime-dagarcigi-testi/en/
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dklinker
White Belt
Posts: 33
Joined: Mon Nov 09, 2020 6:26 pm
Languages: English (N), Turkish (maintaining) Spanish (learning)
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Re: Turkish

Postby dklinker » Thu Apr 29, 2021 1:18 am

I've been working steadily since the last post but don't have much to report.

Although I'm still doing some reading, about 90% of my time is now being spent on intensive listening and vocabulary. As a result I've changed my goals - the new goal is to reach a high B2/low C1 level in listening by the end of 2021. If I miss the goal (which is a good possibility), that's okay but I plan to work hard at reaching it. I'm not planning to take an exam to verify my level, but there are a couple of sample exams online - if they are relatively easy by the end of the year, I'll be happy.

By late 2021, if it looks like I might meet the goal, then I'll spend two or three months doing lots of reading to try to bring reading up to the same level as listening. And then? Maybe a new language or maybe see how far I can push speaking and writing skills with two or three months of study. But to be honest, productive skills don't appeal that much unless it's possible to visit Turkey again sometime soon. Or unless by some quirk of fate some Turkish speakers move to the isolated little mountain town I'm living in.
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dklinker
White Belt
Posts: 33
Joined: Mon Nov 09, 2020 6:26 pm
Languages: English (N), Turkish (maintaining) Spanish (learning)
x 81

Re: Turkish

Postby dklinker » Fri Jun 11, 2021 1:43 am

I've been doing lots of work with flashcards - mostly individual words, collocations and phrases but also some sentences. It's time-consuming but probably worth the effort.

Other than that. my focus has been on intensive listening, using short audios (2 to 6 minutes) with subtitles. Here are some links to materials that have been useful:

- Lingq - Baha Stories and Nur's Turkish Coffee

- Jehovah's Witness site - Kutsal Kitaptan Degerli Dersler https://www.jw.org/tr/kutuphane/kitapla ... r-dersler/

- Sabanci Museum ekitaplar - https://www.sakipsabancimuzesi.org/en/p ... udio-books

- Youtube Turkishpod intermediate - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=P ... D-ss1PvFxI

- Youtube Turkishpod advanced - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=P ... 0LHLiOBNXO

- Youtube Turkishaholic Listening Text - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=P ... iylWI9zoKl

- Youtube HepTurkce Tavsiyeler - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=P ... l7UOCCSahn
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jimmy
Green Belt
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Re: Turkish

Postby jimmy » Sun Jun 13, 2021 10:27 am

Hi,I can recommend that you come/visit Turkey.
Turkishes are highly warm people ,They are especially keen on their language.
(But some sweet jokes may be very dense and I am not sure that you would be affected by that. But you can think like: (My personal idea)

if you have not been negatively affected at commencement point of arrival Turkey (start time of meeting them),then I think you would not have so much problems later.
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Self Taught - Autodidactic

dklinker
White Belt
Posts: 33
Joined: Mon Nov 09, 2020 6:26 pm
Languages: English (N), Turkish (maintaining) Spanish (learning)
x 81

Re: Turkish

Postby dklinker » Tue Aug 03, 2021 9:37 pm

The small town where I live has seen temperatures gradually creep up over the past years. Until this year the biggest changes were less frigid winter nights and warmer spring days. This year, however, while spring was a bit more like it used to be, summer has been much hotter. So ten days ago, when the weather reverted to what it should be at an altitude of 2400 meters, with temperatures in the 70s and sporadic rain, I temporarily abandoned language learning and have been spending all my time outdoors. The break has probably been good for my language learning. Today I am stuck at home so it seemed like a good idea to update my log before resuming my Turkish project.

Listening is advancing painfully slowly, but it is advancing. I've finally found a youtube channel pitched just at my level, which has been motivating. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8jG38 ... 1Jw/videos

I've also started using clozemaster. It's supposed to be for vocabulary but so far it's been useful mostly for grammar review. I'll keep with it for a while longer and hope that it will start feeding me new vocabulary.
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dklinker
White Belt
Posts: 33
Joined: Mon Nov 09, 2020 6:26 pm
Languages: English (N), Turkish (maintaining) Spanish (learning)
x 81

Re: Turkish

Postby dklinker » Mon Nov 15, 2021 4:08 am

I had hoped that by the end of this year I would be at a good enough level to just start listening and reading without really studying, but that is not going to happen - so I will continue with listen-and-repeat, intensive listening, and some grammar into the new year.

I have been watching videos on this youtube channel from Azerbaijan. They are no help with Turkish, but I enjoy them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1nwRo59GOA
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dklinker
White Belt
Posts: 33
Joined: Mon Nov 09, 2020 6:26 pm
Languages: English (N), Turkish (maintaining) Spanish (learning)
x 81

Re: Turkish

Postby dklinker » Sun Apr 17, 2022 9:33 pm

I am no longer studying Turkish but am managing to do a bit of reading and listening most days.

For anyone learning Turkish here is a link to a youtube channel presented by a couple who have moved with their children from the city to the countryside outside Izmir. The main reasons I listen to the channel are that the couple are easy to understand (especially the man) and the videos are conversational. It's also a continuing story of them renovating their property, which makes it easier to understand.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcXAb2m6JOA

I also listen to videos from this channel every now and then. It's not exactly the most interesting material on the internet but the man is very easy to understand. This is a video in English, in which he explains how persistence, immersion and music have played an important role in his language learning. His English is pretty impressive.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZYtBsMEtoYc

And here is a video that kept popping up in the side bar, so I finally watched it. This is a young Turkish woman who explains how she learned several languages - she also stresses immersion and music. It doesn't seem like she was that interested in becoming a polyglot, she just did things that interested her. The video is in Turkish, English, Korean, Spanish and German with English subtitles.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrmAGJU58QI
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