Zelda's French Log (+ Modern Greek)

[MamaPata]

Depending on when you want to take it (I.e. If you're thinking December rather than February!), I wouldn't bother taking the B1. I definitely think you could pass B2 with just a little more work. Do you need the exam for anything or is it for you?

[zjones]

Depending on when you want to take it (I.e. If you're thinking December rather than February!), I wouldn't bother taking the B1. I definitely think you could pass B2 with just a little more work. Do you need the exam for anything or is it for you?

Thanks. I have issues with test anxiety, so I think it would be better to take the B1 and pass, rather than take the B2 and not pass. Later I can take the B2, and I'll know what taking the DELF is like.

The test is for me, because I would like to have a certification to show what I've achieved with French. If/When I look for a job, I want to be able to put a certified French level on my resume -- even if the job does not require French in any way, I think it shows that I have the discipline to apply myself to something fairly difficult.

And also, I really want a certification because I would feel proud to have it.

[MamaPata]

Depending on when you want to take it (I.e. If you're thinking December rather than February!), I wouldn't bother taking the B1. I definitely think you could pass B2 with just a little more work. Do you need the exam for anything or is it for you?

Thanks. I have issues with test anxiety, so I think it would be better to take the B1 and pass, rather than take the B2 and not pass. Later I can take the B2, and I'll know what taking the DELF is like.

The test is for me, because I would like to have a certification to show what I've achieved with French. If/When I look for a job, I want to be able to put a certified French level on my resume -- even if the job does not require French in any way, I think it shows that I have the discipline to apply myself to something fairly difficult.

And also, I really want a certification because I would feel proud to have it.

That's totally understandable and fair. You have to do what will be best for you.

But as you're doing the test for you, I would recommend doing the B1 soon (you definitely don't need a year of practice for that) and maybe aim for the B2 in a December 2019 or February 2020.

[avalon]

In Modern Greek, I am reading a short story meant for beginners (A1+) that is available as an app through Deltos Publishing. I would have preferred a physical copy or ebook, but the app is fine too. It cost $4.99 on the App Store. I've spent a couple hours getting through the first few paragraphs because I'm looking up every third word.

I'm happy you posted this! I was completely unaware of Deltos and of these readers! I see that the publishers rank the difficulty from "Stage 1" through "Stage 5." I plan to buy one today, but do you have a feel for how their Stages might correlate to the CEFR? I took the A1 level of the Ελλινομάθεια in May, and passed all four sections with an "Excellent." I plan to go for A2 this coming spring.

[zjones]

In Modern Greek, I am reading a short story meant for beginners (A1+) that is available as an app through Deltos Publishing. I would have preferred a physical copy or ebook, but the app is fine too. It cost $4.99 on the App Store. I've spent a couple hours getting through the first few paragraphs because I'm looking up every third word.

I'm happy you posted this! I was completely unaware of Deltos and of these readers! I see that the publishers rank the difficulty from "Stage 1" through "Stage 5." I plan to buy one today, but do you have a feel for how their Stages might correlate to the CEFR? I took the A1 level of the Ελλινομάθεια in May, and passed all four sections with an "Excellent." I plan to go for A2 this coming spring.

Hi Avalon!

I'm not aware of how the levels stack up to the CEFR, but if I were you I'd recommend starting with one of the Stage 2 apps, since you are still a beginner but are moving up into A2. I'll send you a private message with a very snippet of the story I'm reading, so you can see the difficulty of Stage 1 and if it's right for you.

By the way, if you haven't yet you should join our Modern Greek Study Group! It's fairly quiet but I'm hoping other learners will join so we can discuss resources instead of needing to pick through people's logs.

Edit: Congrats on your great scores on the Ελλινομάθεια!

[avalon]

Thank you so much for the snippet! That plus the short excerpt Deltos provides on Google Play show me that there is still some value for me at Stage 1. I think I'll download the same reader ("Ξενοδοχείο Ατλαντίς, παρακαλώ"); that way you and I can bounce questions or comments off of each other. Maybe I'll pick up a Stage 2 as well.

I would have responded to your private message, but I sheepishly admit I see no way to reply

[zjones]

Thank you so much for the snippet! That plus the short excerpt Deltos provides on Google Play show me that there is still some value for me at Stage 1. I think I'll download the same reader ("Ξενοδοχείο Ατλαντίς, παρακαλώ"); that way you and I can bounce questions or comments off of each other. Maybe I'll pick up a Stage 2 as well.

I would have responded to your private message, but I sheepishly admit I see no way to reply

I think the reply button is at the bottom of the message, but I don't send a lot of PMs either, so it's no big deal. The reason I bought Ξενοδοχείο Ατλαντίς, παρακαλώ (it shows up as "atlantis" on my phone) is because I saw reviews for it on Goodreads, of all places. The reviewers said that Ξενοδοχείο Ατλαντίς, παρακαλώ is the best of the Stage 1 readers.

At the moment, I'm taking a break from the story because my Greek vocabulary is so tiny that I got exhausted looking up words. (I wasn't kidding when I said I was looking up every second or third word. ) But it's still something I want to work on in the near future, and I'm increasing my vocabulary every day with my courses. I'll try it again in a month.

If you end up starting a language log here, please let me know. I'd be very happy to follow your progress in Greek and other languages!

[Cavesa]

Depending on when you want to take it (I.e. If you're thinking December rather than February!), I wouldn't bother taking the B1. I definitely think you could pass B2 with just a little more work. Do you need the exam for anything or is it for you?

Thanks. I have issues with test anxiety, so I think it would be better to take the B1 and pass, rather than take the B2 and not pass. Later I can take the B2, and I'll know what taking the DELF is like.

The test is for me, because I would like to have a certification to show what I've achieved with French. If/When I look for a job, I want to be able to put a certified French level on my resume -- even if the job does not require French in any way, I think it shows that I have the discipline to apply myself to something fairly difficult.

And also, I really want a certification because I would feel proud to have it.

That is a valid strategy and sounds to be the best for you. If neither money nor time are an issue, going from B1 to the other levels progressively sounds like the right course of action. Skipping levels is more needed, if you need to economise or have a deadline. Truth be told, I am now beating myself over not having tried that with Spanish. Had I taken B1 sometime around my C2 French exam, I could have better directed my studies, climbed to C1, and applied to the Spanish residency exam this year. Nope, instead, I've been waiting for the moment of feeling ready for C1 and it might just never come. And I certainly don't have time to push myself in this area this year.

The older I am, the more I am convinced these tests should be taken as soon as you can, as you never know when you'll need them and there will never be more time. Also, they can be very motivational, which is the best thing about them.

It can also be very educative, as the DELF/DALF exams are not basically the same thing, just with a different level of awesomeness being expected from you. A1-B1 are rather similar in form and in what kinds of stuff are you expected to do. But B2 is already different, C1 and C2 as well. If I may try a metaphore. I think it's like being asked to write a YA book at A1-B1, just a better one at each step, then a good fantasy at B2, an ok high literature novel at C1, and a really good high literature at C2. While the high literature is the end goal, learning the fantasy and YA on the way there can be beneficial too.

[avalon]

I would have responded to your private message, but I sheepishly admit I see no way to reply

I think the reply button is at the bottom of the message, ....

Sorry to butt in here! I think a user needs a minimum of 3 posts before they are given PM privileges, so that might be avalon’s issue.

You're not "butting in" at all! Thanks for pointing this out. I've now gone back to review the forum rules.

[zjones]

I just became aware of the ne littéraire. I remember being confused by some uses of the ne littéraire when I was reading Harry Potter, but I must have ignored them. Maybe I thought it was a typo. I'm not sure how I could go this long without being aware of this negation.

Ne littéraire - Formal French Negation - Ne without Pas.