Week 3

All I can say is WHEW!

I've made it this far. And I still look forward to my calls each day. The combination of compressed work week and the call shortly after I get home is difficult. I think I've touched on this so I won't go on about it again.

I'm impressed once again that the lessons incorporate words from previous lessons providing a great system of review and expansion. For instance I had lessons separated by a week and a half that included the word 经常 (jing1chang2). I need as much of this as I can get.

It's also helping me realize I just can't learn it all at once. My goal before was to have a lesson memorized, to be able to pick it apart, and translate it without a transcript while listening. I have only been able to do this with Newbie lessons and was constantly disappointed that I could not do the same with Elementary lessons like this one. I could listen all day till I was sick and STILL not be able to translate all of it.

I still can't do it but I don't care either. I'm convinced I need repetitive and broad exposure to the language. It's too early in the game to determine how effective this will be in the long run but I have a good feeling about it and it keeps the experience fresh.

In the mean time I will direct you here to read about John Pasden's fascinating and humbling experience learning Chinese.

再见