My Favorite Bangla Bengali Resources and Learning Methods

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Yunus39
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My Favorite Bangla Bengali Resources and Learning Methods

Postby Yunus39 » Fri Sep 10, 2021 2:17 pm

I am finishing up two years learning Bangla in Bangladesh. I was learning part-time to full-time over those two years. I did waste a lot of time in language school, and of course, Corona interrupted things.

Here are my favorite resources:

METHOD:
GPA (Growing Participator Approach) and Greg Thompson's material:
https://growingparticipatorapproach.wor ... strations/

This method applies to any language where you can get access to native speakers, but after Phase 3 you probably need to be in country. Highly social method. Not for everyone. I love to read, and it discourages reading up front. I did not follow it to the letter, and was interrupted after Phase 1 by 6-9 months of formal classes which I regret. I am currently in Phase 5. I also had 3 months of studying for content specific exams for an NGO that did not fit with the GPA method.

BOOKS:
Complete Bengali by William Radice (Teach Yourself)

The Bangladeshi Government provides the textbooks they use for free online. I went through several of these:
https://kolorob.com.bd/nctb-book-download/

I bought a lot of children's books and Comic Books from Dhaka Comics. You can find both on RokoMari.com or in country at the annual Boi Mela or some of the bigger bookstores.

The Complete Adventures of Feluda Vol 1 and 2 by Satyajit Ray (These are mystery novels and stories written for a young adult audience, but immensely popular. Penguin English Translations are available as well as high quality audiobook productions available free from public radio).

Ekattorer Dinguli by Jahanara Imam, the English translation is titled Of Blood and Fire. You can find a homemade audiobook version.

TELEVISION:
Sisimpur is the official, licensed Bangladeshi version of Sesame Street. Most if not all of it is free on Youtube. I love it.

Hoichoi is a relatively cheap high quality streaming service. My favorite series were:

Taqdeer (Bangladeshi)
Money Honey (Bangladeshi)
Byomkesh (Kolkata)
My favorite films were written and directed by Mostafa Sarwar Farooki

There are a lot of serials for free on Youtube, but they usually feature heavy regional dialect (Bangladesh has about 60 and several of them could be considered their own languages)

TYPING:
Avro Keyboard is free, phonetic, and pretty great (though the spellchecker is far from perfect)
https://www.omicronlab.com/avro-keyboard.html

RELIGIOUS MATERIAL
If you are familiar with the Bible, the Kitabbul Muqaddus is a 4-5th grade Musselmani Bangla translation. There's a free app of the same name that has the full text, audiobook, and spiritual songs. You can also find religious material for children, which works well as "third-culture" material for bridging contexts.

OTHER EXERCISES:

Language Learning Activities
To be used in conjunction with GPA
These methods are to be used after your first 500 hours of language learning, and can continue to be useful in your language learning all the way into the life-long learner stage.

30 Minute Speaking Exercises
Record yourself speaking in front of your computer. Rewatch the video and write down any words you didn’t know how to say and any phrases or sentences that you didn’t know how to structure. Add these words to your vocab list, and work on these sentences with your language partner. Get recordings for both from your language partner.
Exercise 1:
Freely speak about any subject.
Exercise 2:
Tell a story from your life.
Exercise 3:
Read an article in Bangla and verbally summarize after every two paragraphs.
Exercise 4:
Watch a video in Bangla and speak and summarize what it was about.
Learn more: https://youtu.be/hin1HGhbGdo

Accent Exercise

Read an article out loud in Bangla. If you run into a word you don’t know, pull it up on google translate and spend some time mimicking the pronunciation. After every three paragraphs, pull up a clip of a native speaker whose accent you want. Listen for 2 or 3 minutes, then continue reading out loud. Using the Audio Injil is great for this as you have a recording of the exact same text you are reading.

Shadowing

This involves choosing about one page of content that you have both as text and audio from a native speaker. Include a translation in your native language.

1. Listen to the audio on repeat.
2. Then listen while attempting to say the audio along with the track.
3. Once you can recite the audio along with the track, recite it while looking at the text translation. (i. e. You are listening to and speaking Bangla, but you are reading English).
4. Recite the audio along with the track while looking at a paper that has both the Bangla text and the English text side by side. Use your thumbs to keep track of which sentence you are on in both languages. Focus on Bangla, but you can look at the English for reference.
5. Recite the audio while reading along in Bangla. You should have at least a fuzzy understanding of the meaning of the sentences.
6. Compare the text of Bangla and English. Try to figure out what words mean what.
7. Read the Bangla text aloud without the audio.
8. Write the Bangla text down.

Learn more: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VdheWK7u11w
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHYDBYHi2bc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=130bOvRpt24

Chunking
Pick a very short audio clip of a native speaker. It may be best to use a single sentence. Listen to that clip 100-1000 times over the course of 2 or 3 days, stopping to practice saying that sentence and playing with it as your ability allows.
Learn more: https://youtu.be/1Hadoun7S80
https://youtu.be/RBQiZo-wbFc

Reading

Method 1:
Pick a book that you can read and understand the broad story. Read a chapter once without looking up a single word. Read the chapter again, highlighting any words you don’t know. If there are any words that show up five times or more in the chapter, look them up. Read the chapter again (3rd time).
Method 2:
Pick a book that you can also find as an audio book read by a native speaker. Read along with the audio and/or use the audio book as an audio track to “massage” according to GPA. If you have a translation of the same book, you can read the translation later. You can also use the Shadow technique above.
Learn more: https://youtu.be/1OhINq_ok04

Watching TV

Method 1:
Pick a show that you find entertaining. Watch each episode 2-3 times in a row, in the same sitting.
Do not to use English subtitles. If you cannot understand the broad plot of what you are watching without subtitles it is too hard. If you have subtitles in the language you are trying to learn, you can use those (in fact its preferable).
Method 2:
You can also “massage” and “shadow” TV which will be even more effective. If you “Shadow” the episode, then English subtitles will be beneficial. This will include watching the episode several times without subtitles. Attempt to repeat the dialogue along with the characters. Watch the episode several times with English subtitles.
Method 3:
Pick 5 videos about 10 min apiece. Watch them every single day for 30 days. It helps if you have a transcript in Bangla to read along with the videos. The vocabulary from these 5 videos will be your base vocabulary for the next 30 days.
Method 4: 10 x 10
Pick ten videos on ten different subjects that are about ten minutes long. If you can read transcripts while watching that would be best. Watch all ten videos every day for 30 days. After watching, pick one video and record yourself summarizing the video (see the speaking exercises above).
6 x
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alexkuki
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Joined: Thu Oct 05, 2023 4:44 pm
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Re: My Favorite Bangla Bengali Resources and Learning Methods

Postby alexkuki » Thu Oct 05, 2023 4:52 pm

My Favorite Bangla Bengali typing

The "best" Bangla typing method can vary depending on your familiarity, comfort, and specific typing needs. Here are two common methods for typing in Bangla:

Phonetic Typing:

Phonetic typing is one of the most popular methods for typing in Bangla. It allows you to type in Bengali using the phonetic pronunciation of words in English. This method is user-friendly and often used by people who are comfortable with the English keyboard layout.
Avro Keyboard is a widely used software that supports phonetic typing for Bangla. It offers an intuitive interface and customizable options.
Traditional Typing (Bijoy):

Traditional typing methods like the Bijoy keyboard layout are also prevalent in Bangladesh. These layouts have their own specific key mappings for each Bengali character.
Bijoy is known for its accuracy in typing complex conjunct characters, and it's preferred by some users who are accustomed to it.
You can use Bijoy software or other similar keyboard layouts for traditional typing.
Ultimately, the "best" method for Bangla typing depends on your personal preference, familiarity with keyboard layouts, and typing habits. Many people find phonetic typing to be more accessible and user-friendly, especially if they are already comfortable with the English keyboard layout. However, if you have experience with traditional layouts like Bijoy and prefer their accuracy, you may choose to stick with those.

It's a good idea to try out both methods and see which one suits your needs and typing style better. Additionally, the software you use for typing, such as Avro Keyboard or Bijoy, can also influence your typing experience, so consider trying different software options to find the one that works best for you.
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