auntie mildred wrote:I am so impressed by this - well done! I had downloaded Clozemaster for Arabic last year but stopped using it/forgot it existed a few months ago - sounds like I should add it back into the routine.
Allow me to assure you that is probably only with Harry Potter that I could do this. ;) And the first paragraphs in particular are easier than most as it is descriptions of a neighborhood and people, descriptions which are strongly etched into my memory. Still, I'm pretty pleased about it.
In Arabic news, my Levantine Arabic teacher was a no-show for both of our lessons. I'm more than a little grumpy. Dare I say that I am غاضبة? Though really I'm mostly annoyed. I am hesitant to call him out on it as his situation is a bit complicated and I am sympathetic, but... I have also paid for lessons and would actually like to have them.
Both of my Moroccan Arabic classes this week were excellent. It would be unfair to compare any other teacher to her, but, man, my Levantine Arabic teacher does not remotely measure up. My Moroccan teacher generally sends me a clip from a tv show or documentary or news report before our lesson that I then listen to (repeatedly). At the start of our lesson, she asks me what new words I heard or have questions about. She then directs me to words/passages that I might have missed before asking me questions about the videos. I find this extremely effective and am hoping (if my Levantine teacher ever shows up for a lesson again...) that I'll be able to do something similar with him.
Here's a clip from a Syrian tv-show that I've been watching on repeat in the hopes that I'll begin to figure it out:
I'll make my habib watch it later and give me some hints. Having context would help a lot. In the meantime, I'm happy to have picked out some of the Syrian Arabic words I read in Team Maha's Fusha to Shami pdf: http://teammaha.com/wp-content/uploads/ ... -Shami.pdf