Super Challenge: questions and discussion

Ongoing language-learning challenges, and team challenge logs (but not individual logs)
jeffers
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Re: Super Challenge: questions and discussion

Postby jeffers » Thu Jan 28, 2021 8:12 pm

jmar257 wrote:Does French in Action count for TV shows? It's a TV show that's all in French from what I remember, but it's not for natives.

Edit: How about YouTube videos?


I used FIA during the first ever Super Challenge, and it was acceptable because it is 100% in French. YouTube videos are fine as long as they meet the criteria: 100% in your target language and the minimum duration.
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Le mieux est l'ennemi du bien (roughly, the perfect is the enemy of the good)

French SC Books: 0 / 5000 (0/5000 pp)
French SC Films: 0 / 9000 (0/9000 mins)

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JohannaNYC
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Re: Super Challenge: questions and discussion

Postby JohannaNYC » Thu Feb 11, 2021 7:14 am

Since there's no bot for this year's Super Challenge, is it possible to restore the website for the 2018-2019 SC?
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rdearman
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Re: Super Challenge: questions and discussion

Postby rdearman » Thu Feb 11, 2021 9:44 am

JohannaNYC wrote:Since there's no bot for this year's Super Challenge, is it possible to restore the website for the 2018-2019 SC?

No, if I could get to the website to do that, I'd setup the website for this year!
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: 0 / 150 Read 150 books in 2024

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JohannaNYC
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Re: Super Challenge: questions and discussion

Postby JohannaNYC » Fri Feb 12, 2021 6:53 pm

rdearman wrote:
JohannaNYC wrote:Since there's no bot for this year's Super Challenge, is it possible to restore the website for the 2018-2019 SC?

No, if I could get to the website to do that, I'd setup the website for this year!


:(
Thanks, for all your hard work
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Re: Super Challenge: questions and discussion

Postby rdearman » Sat Feb 13, 2021 1:05 am

JohannaNYC wrote:
rdearman wrote:
JohannaNYC wrote:Since there's no bot for this year's Super Challenge, is it possible to restore the website for the 2018-2019 SC?

No, if I could get to the website to do that, I'd setup the website for this year!


:(
Thanks, for all your hard work

I have access to the database, i will see what I can do.
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: 0 / 150 Read 150 books in 2024

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Re: Super Challenge: questions and discussion

Postby rpg » Sat Mar 13, 2021 10:02 am

I believe we just crossed the halfway mark. How's everyone doing? Are you on track? How's it been going?

Me, I signed up for a full challenge in both French and Spanish and then promptly dropped language learning from my routine for the rest of 2020, focusing on other hobbies and on finding a new job. Around Christmas time I came back to languages (as I always do sooner or later) and I've almost caught up on the film portion of my Spanish challenge. I think I can still do the film portion for both languages but I don't think I'll manage the book portion for either, though I'll see what I can do for Spanish. While 150 hours of films/TV feels very much doable (at 1h/day you'll get there in 5 months), 5000 pages is some serious reading!

What about you? I know I'm not the only one to be behind--if you are too, how are you coping? If you're not, what's your secret? :lol:
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Super challenge 2020/21
French reading: 4534 / 5000      Spanish reading: 81 / 5000
French movies: 115 / 150       Spanish movies: 98 / 150

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Re: Super Challenge: questions and discussion

Postby coldrainwater » Sun Mar 14, 2021 1:12 am

I threw my hat in for German, mainly with an eye for increasing film viewing. Out of 150 hours, I have viewed more than 100 hours of qualifying media, so am on track. The benefit has summed to more than the hours invested.

The task and related tracking is helping me branch out into other language circles and the watching aspect has contributed beyond what other techniques like reading parallel text and listening to podcasts could have provided. The visuals are very complementary and can be helpfully added to a variety of learning styles, preferences and circumstance (hi, covid). I knew for a long time it was something I was missing but needed the motivation boost to get it in the routine. The films encourage the seeking out of new material sources and with it a broader awareness. The impact of having so many new sources is that I am learning to balance more at once and the inevitable necessity of making tradeoffs due to limited time.

I found that tracking works so well for me and is so motivating that I applied it to several other language areas briefly with success including reading periodicals periodically (die Zeit), participation in the polyglot fitness challenge (counting burpees but hey...it worked), and even [very limited] grammar participation. Watching films go against a TV habit that I gave up in 1999 and am slowly reacquainting myself with for language purposes.

I completed the reading part mainly by finding a single author (Steven Erikson) and reading material from one long fantasy series (Malazan Book of the Fallen) that alone accounted for more than the 10k pages required. Extreme interest in the material and a desire to read each successive book is what drove the habit. It also did not hurt that the work includes far more pages than necessary, so it was like a shot at Mars that landed on the moon. I read all books as a parallel text, and even though that doubled the pages (to 20k+), it made up for itself in pace and high comprehension. The only thing I wouldn't do for those behind on the reading portion is to give up simply due to the high amount 'left to do'. Reading skills, at least for myself may be tough to acquire, but they fade slowly and x thousand pages read give benefit way into the future, even if x < 10k (or x < 5k, depending on what you signed up for).
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Re: Super Challenge: questions and discussion

Postby lingua » Sun Mar 14, 2021 10:46 pm

I've completed Italian reading though I switched from a double to single challenge. I will easily complete the film side of Italian, German and Romance Family. Also I should be able to complete the Romance Family reading which is primarily Portuguese or dual language w/Italian & Portuguese or Italian & Piedmontese. German reading will most likely not get very far. That will end up being next years project.

No secret. I'm a reader and would be reading a lot of English if I weren't studying languages. I rarely read English books anymore.
7 x
Super Challenge 2022-23:
DE: books: 0 / 2500 film: 1654 / 4500
IT: books: 3065 / 5000 film: 5031 / 9000
PT: books: 2921 / 5000 film: 5010 / 9000

Output Challenge 2023:
IT: write: 0 / 50000 record: 84 / 3000
PT: write: 0 / 50000 record: 0 / 3000

PT: Read 100 books: 28 / 100

Chupito
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Re: Super Challenge: questions and discussion

Postby Chupito » Tue Mar 16, 2021 2:55 pm

rpg wrote:I believe we just crossed the halfway mark. How's everyone doing? Are you on track? How's it been going?


I'm super behind but I'm fine with it. It's been a tough year and I have other priorities. If I fail, I will still have progressed, enjoyed myself, and done more than in previous years.

At the halfway mark, I had read 22 books and watched 27 movies. About 50% behind.

Catching up would require reading a little under 13 pages and watching a little under 22 mn a day, instead of a little over 8 and a little under 15. It's doable but we will see.

Kudos to those of you who are on track or have completed the challenge already.
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Corrections welcome in any language.

Super challenge:
listening: 3 / 100 reading: 1 / 100

podcasts: 3 / 100

jmar257
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Re: Super Challenge: questions and discussion

Postby jmar257 » Wed Mar 24, 2021 12:54 pm

rpg wrote:I believe we just crossed the halfway mark. How's everyone doing? Are you on track? How's it been going?

I signed up for a full SC in Spanish and half in French. I'm behind on everything but French reading--I'm 47% and 42% of the total goal for Spanish reading and films, respectively (88% and 78% of where I should be at now), and 56% and 29% on French reading and films(104% and 54% of where I should be at now). This doesn't bother me, as the daily amounts to catch up aren't bad, but I need to be more diligent about the films portion. Not too long ago my Spanish film % was closer to the French film % (in the 50s overall), but thanks to listening to a bunch of Spanish podcasts while driving/doing chores and getting back to watching an episode of TV a day it has been catching up. I still have yet to watch actual French TV, but I have been delving more into YouTube (only logging >10 min videos), but I do look forward to checking out some of the French series. Honestly, the biggest roadblock was for a bit recently I didn't really feel like reading--in any language, even English. I knew going in the film portion would be tough and I'd rely on podcasts because I don't want much TV in English, much less other languages.

Now that the quantitative side is done, the qualitative: reading and listening are much easier. Duh, how could they not be? Especially in Spanish, since I've done more (and it was better in the first place). I really don't have hesitation going into Spanish books now, maybe if I were to read something very academic or literary I'd struggle, but I don't plan on doing that soon anyway. I realized last night while watching Ingobernable that I really didn't need the subtitles, although for something like La Casa de Papel I would because their accents are pretty nonstandard, from what I understand. But regular Castilian Spanish on YouTube hasn't posed a problem, and beyond slang-heavy talk Mexican Spanish doesn't either. French is still pretty tough if they're talking fast, but I imagine by the time I'm done with that half challenge and have acquired more vocabulary and listened more I'll be a bit better--but we'll see. The podcast InnerFrench is very comprehensible to me, although if I zone out even slightly it all washes over me and I don't really absorb any of it.
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