rfnsoares' log PT, EN, FR, ES, IT, RO, RU, PL, GR, DE and much more

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rfnsoares
Orange Belt
Posts: 123
Joined: Mon Sep 14, 2015 12:39 am
Location: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Languages: Native: Portuguese
B2/C1: English, French, Italian, Spanish and Russian
A2/B1: Romanian, German
A2: Polish, Greek, Hungarian
Dabbling: Croatian, Czech, Swedish, Norwegian, Lithuanian, Finnish, Turkish, Hebrew...
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Re: rfnsoares' log PT, EN, FR, ES, IT, RO, RU, PL, GR, DE and much more

Postby rfnsoares » Tue Mar 06, 2018 3:38 pm

As for my languages I have been studying only French and Russian. Not much to report actually. As for French, I continue working on Anna Karenina and reading articles on LeMonde daily. Yes, LeMonde has good editorials and I have been following the news on the Italian elections with keen interest.

As for Russian, I continue reading extensively The Girl on the Train and reading about two or three articles on newspapers intensively and then adding the new words to my Excel sheet. I still did not managed to review all of them properly. But I should say that the change in my approach turns out to be something really useful. Of course, my approach changes according to the circumstances, it is not something that is fixed. I am flexible and always lurking on everyone else’s log. :D
I am reading quite fast now. I am reading about 20 pages a day, ten in the morning and ten in the evening. I am not tracking how many minutes I read a single page but I have noticed that I am reading faster. And most importantly, I have not been getting lost in the plot. I am starting to understand the unknown words by context. I do not know whether this book is easy or not. I will find out when I finish this one and start another one, probably Harry Potter.
I am still figuring out the usage of prefix in some Russian verbs. It is quite interesting. One example that intrigued me was the verb “to hug” and its prefixes. I searched for this verb on google images and it came up with many examples and all of them extremely helpful to understand the context. I prefer to look at and use the google images firstly, because right off the bat it gives a good and a visual usage of the word. ;)
That’s all for today! :)
4 x
100 Russian novels : 33 / 100

rfnsoares
Orange Belt
Posts: 123
Joined: Mon Sep 14, 2015 12:39 am
Location: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Languages: Native: Portuguese
B2/C1: English, French, Italian, Spanish and Russian
A2/B1: Romanian, German
A2: Polish, Greek, Hungarian
Dabbling: Croatian, Czech, Swedish, Norwegian, Lithuanian, Finnish, Turkish, Hebrew...
x 266

Re: rfnsoares' log PT, EN, FR, ES, IT, RO, RU, PL, GR, DE and much more

Postby rfnsoares » Wed Mar 07, 2018 2:57 pm

Today I spent this morning reading French and Russian. I forgot to mention on my previous post that I am doing Clozemaster for Russian 15-20 minutes. I started doing this a few days ago. I do not know whether it will be useful, but I got hooked on it. I confess that this game is quite addicting. :)

As for French, I believe my Anna Karenina reading is very delayed. I will never finish it. Actually I was putting my efforts on reading the newspapers.... Once my vocab and my level of comprehension have improved a lot lately, I decided to start paying more attention to pronounciation and speaking. Therefore I recorded myself reading a small extract of Anna Karenina. I put the link below. I haven't tried to do something like this before. I am not used to read aloud and it was quite challenging. I need more practice, of course, and I will be recording my voice again in a few weeks to come. I would appreciate if you leave a comment about the record. :)

https://vocaroo.com/i/s0xmzDYFRki3
0 x
100 Russian novels : 33 / 100

rfnsoares
Orange Belt
Posts: 123
Joined: Mon Sep 14, 2015 12:39 am
Location: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Languages: Native: Portuguese
B2/C1: English, French, Italian, Spanish and Russian
A2/B1: Romanian, German
A2: Polish, Greek, Hungarian
Dabbling: Croatian, Czech, Swedish, Norwegian, Lithuanian, Finnish, Turkish, Hebrew...
x 266

Re: rfnsoares' log PT, EN, FR, ES, IT, RO, RU, PL, GR, DE and much more

Postby rfnsoares » Mon Mar 12, 2018 12:55 pm

This morning, I took the test for Russian (receptive vocabulary) on itt-leipzig.de. My scores are down bellow. It seems that having a vocabulary of 3000 words is more than enough to read newspapers without many issues, but it is not enough to follow a novel with ease.
This week I will be doing the test for other languages. Besides I will repeat this test in 3-4 months.
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1 x
100 Russian novels : 33 / 100

rfnsoares
Orange Belt
Posts: 123
Joined: Mon Sep 14, 2015 12:39 am
Location: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Languages: Native: Portuguese
B2/C1: English, French, Italian, Spanish and Russian
A2/B1: Romanian, German
A2: Polish, Greek, Hungarian
Dabbling: Croatian, Czech, Swedish, Norwegian, Lithuanian, Finnish, Turkish, Hebrew...
x 266

Re: rfnsoares' log PT, EN, FR, ES, IT, RO, RU, PL, GR, DE and much more

Postby rfnsoares » Fri Mar 16, 2018 2:00 pm

I have been a little bit busy lately. Concerning my languages studies, I finished Anna Karennina in French. I will be writing a review to this book as soon I find some time. I need to practice my English writing skills and I think writing book reviews are an excelent practice.
I have started reading Harry Potter in Russian extensively. I truely believe that extensive reading can take me far in this language.
Today I took a test to access my receptive skills in English as I did for Russian. Here are the results:



That's all for today! :)
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2 x
100 Russian novels : 33 / 100

rfnsoares
Orange Belt
Posts: 123
Joined: Mon Sep 14, 2015 12:39 am
Location: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Languages: Native: Portuguese
B2/C1: English, French, Italian, Spanish and Russian
A2/B1: Romanian, German
A2: Polish, Greek, Hungarian
Dabbling: Croatian, Czech, Swedish, Norwegian, Lithuanian, Finnish, Turkish, Hebrew...
x 266

Re: rfnsoares' log PT, EN, FR, ES, IT, RO, RU, PL, GR, DE and much more

Postby rfnsoares » Mon Mar 26, 2018 12:49 pm

Hi everyone!
Of course I have been neglecting my writing lately. It is so time consuming, but it should not be an excuse to not do so. So, I have some new updates.

EN: What am I doing regarding my English skills? Well, I have been following the forum posts, reading a few articles on blogs and newspapers, watching youtube videos and most importantly I took an Italki session on Saturday morning. It was my first class in 7-8 months. It was so cool to chat in English again... :D ... but on the other hand I believe I did not work on things I had planned to. I had written to the teacher that I would like to have a conversation in English and also I would like to work on two grammar points that It still confuses me, which are Present Perfect x Simple Past and the usage of if/whether. In theory, I know when to use them, but in real life it is a completely disaster. Well, I also told the tutor that we would not have communication problems because my level of comprehension is fairly high. In fact, I had a great conversation with a funny and opined tutor about tourism but I ended up not working on the topics that I should be working on. :? .... I am thinking of taking more sessions, but on the other hand I have to work with more focus on my needs. I was so exciting to speak that I ended up forgeting about my weak points. In short, I still need to learn how to work with a tutor. :o

IT and FR: I read a couple of articles on online newspapers, i.e., not much to report.

RO: I am back with Romanian, I guess, at least for a while. I have been reviewing the Colloquial course that I have at home. I am reviewing a lesson everyday or so. Nothing serious, I just read and shadow the dialogue and read the grammar explanations. I took me 15-20 minutes every morning or evening after dinner. I did not want to lose everything I have learnt in the past. Two years ago I dedicated many hours of studying Romanian. Romanian is a language that it is not that easy, even for those who have knowledge of Romance languages. Like in the others Romance languages the Indicative Present Tense is the most difficult one to master.

RU: I continue reading Harry Potter I. Currently I am in the chapter 10. My reading speed and vocab are improving the expected way. Probably after finishing this one I will take the second one. I am reading extensively, but is not a "pure" extensive reading. I am looking up a few words along the way. ;)

Well, that's all. I still want to write a review to Anna Karennina, which I read in French. :)
2 x
100 Russian novels : 33 / 100

rfnsoares
Orange Belt
Posts: 123
Joined: Mon Sep 14, 2015 12:39 am
Location: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Languages: Native: Portuguese
B2/C1: English, French, Italian, Spanish and Russian
A2/B1: Romanian, German
A2: Polish, Greek, Hungarian
Dabbling: Croatian, Czech, Swedish, Norwegian, Lithuanian, Finnish, Turkish, Hebrew...
x 266

Re: rfnsoares' log PT, EN, FR, ES, IT, RO, RU, PL, GR, DE and much more

Postby rfnsoares » Thu Mar 29, 2018 5:38 pm

It is time for another update... :)

EN: Nothing really. I am reading the forum, writing on the forum and participating in discussions on Italki and on Verbling. I am planning to read a book in English, but my Harry Potter adventures in Russian take most of my time... :?

IT, FR, ES: reading a newspaper article almost everyday.

RU: I continue reading Harry Potter I. Currently I am finishing the chapter 12 and tomorrow I will read the 13th. After my last update, I believe that my reading skills have increased loads, like overnight. If someone ask me which method is the best one for increasing any skills in a language, I would say that it is the extensive reading, because I also noticed progress in my listening skills. But I admit that I look up some words. Besides, I also realised many gaps in my vocabulary, for example, with descriptive adjetives and "verbs of action" (to wave, to knock, to turn, etc). This is the kind of vocab that it is not acquired reading newspapers. I have experienced extensive reading in past, in Italian, French and Spanish, but this is the first time with a completely different language.

I also have been doing some Clozemaster (7-8 rounds a day), influenced by another members of the forum :D ... In my opinion, I do not think Clozemaster is very useful and I may add Duolingo to it too :? ... I am thinking of dropping Clozemaster, after 25 days streak, it brokes my heart, but I do not consider it useaful anymore. This is the fun of Clozemaster, the idea of a game, getting points, advancing to another level. But the way the sentences are played is completely disconnected with a story, with something that makes sense. I do not feel learning when sentences come up randomly. My thoughts about it are a lit bit confused. I should write something in Portuguese about it. Maybe it could make sense at least. :?

RO: I continue reviewing the Colloquial course. Today I reviewed the lesson 11.
2 x
100 Russian novels : 33 / 100

User avatar
Teango
Blue Belt
Posts: 769
Joined: Mon Jul 06, 2015 4:55 am
Location: Honolulu, Hawaiʻi
Languages: en (n)
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 9&p=235545
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Re: rfnsoares' log PT, EN, FR, ES, IT, RO, RU, PL, GR, DE and much more

Postby Teango » Thu Mar 29, 2018 6:24 pm

Pōmaikaʻi (haw: good luck) with your goals for all of these languages, rfnsoares! I look forward to reading how you get along with Harry Potter in Russian and following your progress. :)
1 x

rfnsoares
Orange Belt
Posts: 123
Joined: Mon Sep 14, 2015 12:39 am
Location: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Languages: Native: Portuguese
B2/C1: English, French, Italian, Spanish and Russian
A2/B1: Romanian, German
A2: Polish, Greek, Hungarian
Dabbling: Croatian, Czech, Swedish, Norwegian, Lithuanian, Finnish, Turkish, Hebrew...
x 266

Re: rfnsoares' log PT, EN, FR, ES, IT, RO, RU, PL, GR, DE and much more

Postby rfnsoares » Thu Mar 29, 2018 7:51 pm

Teango wrote:Pōmaikaʻi (haw: good luck) with your goals for all of these languages, rfnsoares! I look forward to reading how you get along with Harry Potter in Russian and following your progress. :)


Thank you, Teango! :)
I will try to go through the whole series this year.
0 x
100 Russian novels : 33 / 100

User avatar
Expugnator
Black Belt - 1st Dan
Posts: 1728
Joined: Sat Jul 18, 2015 9:45 pm
Location: Belo Horizonte
Languages: Native Brazilian Portuguese#advanced fluency English, French, Papiamento#basic fluency Italian, Norwegian#intermediate Spanish, German, Georgian and Chinese (Mandarin)#basic Russian, Estonian, Greek (Modern)#just started Indonesian, Hebrew (Modern), Guarani
Language Log: https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... =15&t=9931
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Re: rfnsoares' log PT, EN, FR, ES, IT, RO, RU, PL, GR, DE and much more

Postby Expugnator » Fri Mar 30, 2018 10:59 am

A ideia do Clozemaster é ser só um complemento. Não tem problema se as frases parecerem sem contexto. Se você conseguir seguir a sequência de níveis de dificuldade de acordo com seu próprio nível, ele vai funcionar como uma revisão durante o próprio aprendizado.

Não sei pra quais línguas você está usando, mas tem umas que têm frases demais, aí complica porque mesmo fazendo por níveis você acaba tendo umas 1000 frases só pra treinar a palavra хорошо por exemplo. Nesse caso, se seu nível já for mais alto, pode ser mais interessante usar a fluency fast track e ignorar os que são absurdamente fáceis.
4 x
Corrections welcome for any language.

rfnsoares
Orange Belt
Posts: 123
Joined: Mon Sep 14, 2015 12:39 am
Location: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Languages: Native: Portuguese
B2/C1: English, French, Italian, Spanish and Russian
A2/B1: Romanian, German
A2: Polish, Greek, Hungarian
Dabbling: Croatian, Czech, Swedish, Norwegian, Lithuanian, Finnish, Turkish, Hebrew...
x 266

Re: rfnsoares' log PT, EN, FR, ES, IT, RO, RU, PL, GR, DE and much more

Postby rfnsoares » Fri Mar 30, 2018 7:12 pm

Expugnator wrote:A ideia do Clozemaster é ser só um complemento. Não tem problema se as frases parecerem sem contexto. Se você conseguir seguir a sequência de níveis de dificuldade de acordo com seu próprio nível, ele vai funcionar como uma revisão durante o próprio aprendizado.

Não sei pra quais línguas você está usando, mas tem umas que têm frases demais, aí complica porque mesmo fazendo por níveis você acaba tendo umas 1000 frases só pra treinar a palavra хорошо por exemplo. Nesse caso, se seu nível já for mais alto, pode ser mais interessante usar a fluency fast track e ignorar os que são absurdamente fáceis.


Oi, Expugnator!
Estou usando o Clozemaster somente para o russo mesmo.
Eu concordo que é só um complemento. Eu provavelmente devo continuar fazendo, só que vou ter que fazer algumas alterações para dar mais certo. Na verdade, eu estava seguindo a sequencia, começando de baixo. Talvez se eu pular para as "3000-4000 palavras mais frequentes" pode ser que eu aprenda mais. Pensei nessa alternativa. Devo continuar usando apenas para um aquecimento e motivação. A ideia de "jogo" continua sendo interessante.
De qualquer forma, obrigado pela ajuda. Vc me ajudou a me posicionar e traçar um plano!
3 x
100 Russian novels : 33 / 100


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