How long did it take you to do "Free Flow Reading" without dictionary in your TL?

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german2k01
Green Belt
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Joined: Mon Aug 09, 2021 8:16 pm
Location: Germany
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Re: How long did it take you to do "Free Flow Reading" without dictionary in your TL?

Postby german2k01 » Fri Oct 15, 2021 3:51 pm

I would recommend measuring how many conversations you can start each day. Give yourself a target and go for it.


Thanks. Today I started my day with such a mindset. I at least started 2 conversations with shopkeepers. Whatever sentences were popping inside my head I spit them out. "Engaging with water" comment is showing its effects. :D
Nevertheless, I will do my best.
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Le Baron
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Re: How long did it take you to do "Free Flow Reading" without dictionary in your TL?

Postby Le Baron » Fri Oct 15, 2021 7:12 pm

I reckon in 3-6-8 months you'll look back and think: 'I can't believe I wasn't talking before!' The more you talk the more people will feed stuff to you in the give and take. What lawyerandmom said about working around your limitations seems to me to be exactly what happens. You might not end up exactly speaking like all the Germans around you, but you'll fit everything you need to into a method that works for you and from there it'll get closer to what other people sound like around you.

When I was in Germany and trying to speak and I couldn't think how to formulate sentences I used fillers like 'und alles' when I ran out of steam trying to describe things...Ich war in der Stadt und ich ging zum Dom und alles (I was in Cologne). It was less than stellar and I really overused it, but it got the job done and faded away as I improved..mostly copying other people's formulations. How else do we learn?
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