#challenge participation

[indigostudies]

continuing the 20 day langblr challenge :)

day three: are there any apps you use to learn languages?

i actually have a massive post i made.........last year? rounding up all the apps (and websites) i used at the time to keep up with my chinese studies. now i'm at the point with reading and writing, finally, that i don't need it, since i can just read things and text my friends, but i still stand by (most of) those apps (still deeply sad that dot languages started charging a subscription though :/)

for korean, i've used lingory and busuu, and i think they're both pretty good. my busuu subscription ends soon and i'm not planning on paying for it again (i hate spending money), but lingory, even though it has ads, is very solid, so i don't think i'll have a problem there. there's also the TOPIK prep app, which i'm planning on using once i hit probably ~A2 level, and i need to look for some graded reader apps as well.

for kazakh, i've been (on and off) using mango (since i had access through one of my libraries), and i have the app soyle downloaded but have yet to use it, though it looks promising.

[indigostudies]

2023.06.10 | day 33/100 days of productivity

pink and purple blossoms | tgcf

completed today:

- commencement for my associate’s—about three hours under the blazing sun, but i made it! i’m very excited to start in the autumn after i transfer without having to do all my distribution requirements—i can jump directly into major classes.

- mongolian notes—only did a tiny bit today, but i was very busy, so that was all i had the energy for, and i’m very proud of myself.

- two pages of tgcf—reading chinese novels is something i’ve wanted to be able to do since i was little, and i’m very excited to finally be realising this desire!

- dot units—i managed two today even with how busy i was! i think my written retention is improving, which is nice.

- TOFU, anki, and duolingo maintenance.

to do:

- kurmanji notes.

- two dot units.

- get back to reading zdzb.

[indigostudies]

2023.05.28 | day 20/100 days of productivity common pigeons | 《找得着北》

completed today:

- finished the first chapter of 《找得着北》—very very happy about this! it's a really low-stakes story, and i really appreciate that—it's nice to come back at the end of a stressful day and get to read a little slice of life :) - cracked open my iraqi arabic textbook—i should probably learn msa, but, hey, i'll study that officially some time within the coming academic year. plus, iraqi arabic is the most personally relevant given where i'm from. - did a couple dot units! i'm 23/31 parts through the first unit/page of the hsk 4 module—and i'm already noticing dramatic increases in my reading speed. - wrote my first chinese journal entry—it probably helped a lot that one of my finals for my last chinese class was a monologue/diary entry presentation, so even though i've literally never kept a journal in my life, i at least had some idea of what to write.

to do:

- finish at least two more dot units—i'm aiming to be done with the first page of the module within the next couple days. - get back to novel outlining—i was going at it pretty steadily, but then life happened, and it took the back burner. but now i have time again, i really want to make some progress! - continue interview prep.

[indigostudies]

2023.05.19 | day 11/100 days of productivity

pink blossoms | the orchid boat: women poets of china

completed today:

- finally got around to starting with the heavenly path method—very happy about this! i always have a hard time figuring out a plan by myself, and the guide has a lot of resources. i’ve downloaded readibu and bookmarked a few pages i think will be useful to me.

- read more short pieces—i think making it a part of my daily schedule was a good idea; i can already see improvements in my reading, both in speed and vocabulary retention.

- did a quick exercise from my kurmanji textbook—i feel much more prepared now than when i was first using it a while back, haha

to do:

- reading reading, reading!! i’m aiming to read at least 3k words worth of chinese media every day by the time classes start up again.

- familiarise myself with the thai alphabet—this is a more long term goal, since i know it’ll take a while, but darn it, i want to get it down!

[indigostudies]

2023.06.28 | day 51/100 days of productivity n/a | 谁动了我的骨灰坛

completed today:

- took kmj notes—mainly vocab and a small exercise based on the chapter's reading, but at least i got something done. - kr notes—reviewed this/that/etc when used as pronouns, negation, and took notes on the usage of topic particles. - mng drills on the formation of present continuous. - dot, duolingo, and TOFU maintenance. - finished chapter two of sdl—every time i read more i have to use the pop-up dictionary less, which is really pleasing. - went over the next chapter in my cn textbook.

to do:

- print out worksheets for my cn and kr textbook. - record vocab prompts for my cn quiz.

[indigostudies]

2023.06.19 | day 42/100 days of productivity blueberries and snapdragons | 谁动了我的骨灰坛

completed today:

- started reading 《谁动了我的骨灰坛》—i wasn't able to focus on tgcf, so i thought i may as well start on another cnovel on my to be read list, and i was pleasantly surprised at how little i needed to use my pop-up dictionary starting the novel in comparison to when i was reading 《找得着北》, which indicates i've picked up a decent amount in just the few weeks i spent reading zdzb. - read a couple of dot articles—again with minimal dictionary use, which i feel like is becoming a common refrain for me, but it's very exciting to me! i'm making progress in my reading comprehension much faster than i was expecting. - anki, TOFU, and duolingo maintenance. - ordered my transcripts to be sent to the university i'm transfering to—i kept forgetting about this, so i'm very happy i finally got around to doing it.

to do:

- start on the next chapter in my cn textbook. - continue kr and kmj study. - read some more 《谁动了我的骨灰坛》. - prepare for my mandatory advising and orientation next week.

[indigostudies]

2023.05.16 | day 8/100 days of productivity sunset | the goblin emperor

completed today:

- finished one reading today—from the hsk reading site, but i plan to move on to the more challenging heaven's path regimen once i finish some more shorter readings. - i got mixed up yesterday—today was kurmanji, not mongolian. regardless, i took some grammar notes—things i vaguely remember from last time i studied it, but which i was glad to review. - took grammar notes for chinese—i'm working off the second volume of the integrated chinese series, which is very helpful for structure now that i'm not in class over the summer. the notes were all review, but it doesn't hurt to make sure you know things in full. - started brainstorming for my conlang—decided the sounds the alphabet will have, and sketched some ideas for a script. relatedly, made some more novel outline progress!

to do:

- actually mongolian tomorrow—though i did decide which textbook i'm going to use today, so that should mean it's less stressful tomorrow when i take a stab at it. - add more vocab to my anki deck—i always forget to add flashcards, even though i know that it's a really good way for me to make sure i remember things. - on that note, study the thai alphabet!—i've got the tones down, now i just need to be able to actually read things in the thai script.