#free language learning

[pado-lyn]

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DYuJ-EmOiKn/?igsh=eTZ0Ymc5a2p2enk3

같이 먹을래요? Wanna eat together? 🍜

in Korean, from Korean_through_Kdramas on Instagram

This one of my favorite ways to practice Korean. With k-dramas and films, there are thousands of hours of Koreans speaking Korean with subtitles available through Viki, Tubi, Pluto TV, YouTube, Prime Video, Hulu, and Netflix.

[asplashoftea-n-mildliners]

Is TTMIK free? And do you think it’s enough for an absolute beginner?

Talk To Me in Korean aka TTMIK has a lot of free resources available on their website! (They do have a lot of content you can even purchase from their website as well if anyone wanted more books.)

In addition to their website, they also have a YouTube channel where they provide a lot of resources as well with short video clips, tips, word distinguishing, answering questions that they receive on other social media platforms and more!

Furthermore, they also have PDFs of their lessons on their website and podcasts for most of their lessons (on Spotify, SoundCloud, and probably other platforms).

Also, sometimes they have their textbooks in the library! So, if you can ever request it.. you should! They have a lot of information and I see a lot of people actually learn a lot from them.

I would say, for the most part I don’t think they have the pronunciation guide for the Korean alphabet hangeul (hangul) there.

Check out videos online, sites, or even apps that provide the help-

Sites:

1. HowToStudyKorean (this site is full with tons of grammar related things but also really big on vocabulary) check out their 0 chapter I believe it should have the letters and a pronunciation chart somewhere.

2. KoreanClass101 (a week trial free)

3. YouTube (There are many resources available on YouTube for pronunciation and alphabets)

-> Korean Unnie

-> Korean Class 101

-> (I’ve heard things about GO! Billy Korean, Miss Vicky, etc. )

Apps:

There are also many apps that also help with alphabets and pronunciation-

-> Drops (5 minutes free everyday anything above that you have to pay for.. you can also get bonus time if you invite people and they actually try it out)

-> LingoDeer (has a certain amount of free resources but a lot of it you have to pay for)

Aside from pronunciation and introduction to the letters,

I would say that TTMIK courses that are free so far have been really helpful!

As a beginner myself I’ve went through a lot of trial and error for speed but it’s really important to take your time with learning a language.

So, as I restart my journey for the 2-3 time, this time around with TTMIK.. I have improved greatly (in my opinion). So yes, if you get the alphabet down and it’s pronunciation you will definitely be able to follow through as an absolute beginner✨✨

I hope this wasn’t too wordy and I hope it helps you and anyone else who might of had this question! ✨

(Also, hehe hi thank you for being my first ask! 🦋🙊)

[learnit4free]

Community Apps for Mandarin

I am really interested in trying out my newly acquired Mandarin skills. I looked into a couple different apps that could connect me with native or fluent Mandarin speakers, with some mixed results. 

HelloTalk and HiNative are on the top of every Google search (remember it’s gotta be free for me). Sadly my phone is too crappy for HelloTalk so I downloaded HiNative to see what it’s all about. Short answer, not much. HiNative is a question and answer platform. It’s designed so that the learner can ask a question and receive feedback from anyone native or fluent in that language, not a conversation. On a positive note, I asked one simple question and received four answers within 10 minutes. That’s pretty impressive for a hive mind platform. I could see it being useful for learning technical jargon or deciphering nuanced sayings. Still without the ability to carry on a national conversation, HiNative feels like a niche app for well thought-out questions only.

Then I came across Tandem. Tandem never appeared in my google searches. That’s a huge let down because I am already really digging the layout. First, users apply to join the Tandem community. Upon acceptance it’s made clear users who attempt to romance on the platform, sell products and services to the other users, or those from the biggis assholis tribe are not welcome. Users can practice their convo skills by video chatting or texting another user. 

What’s really impressive is most of my matches were people in my target language learning my native language. That’s hugely beneficial because both users can take turns being teachers :). What a great idea! Also a user can list multiple target languages to find different chat buddies. That’s clever. I mean who wants to learn one language ;). Updates later!

What apps do you like for learning Mandarin?

[onceuponawildflower]

Any Duolingo users who have a French, Spanish, or Italian club looking for new members?

[learnit4free]

Loving Chinese Skill

I’ve been using Chinese Skill for a couple weeks now. It’s a fantastic app for learning Mandarin! At first I wasn’t sure about it because the lessons seemed really dull. Then I started exploring the apps “reviews” and “challenges” tabs. Wow! 

Flashcards, games for vocabulary and grammar. What really impressed me was the games on tone :). I am struggling with tones and usually rely on the accent marks to tell me what I am reading. Working on just identifying the tone from an audio file is huge. 

I’m excited to see what happens when I feel a little more comfortable to try HelloTalk or HiNative!

[onceuponawildflower]

Is anyone else giddy with excitement of how many languages are available to learn on Duolingo? I told myself I'd stick to the ones I'm already working on (French, German, Italian, and Spanish), but it's hard to resist the temptation. Look how many there are at my fingertips!!

[polytheistpolyglot]

Language Resources: Polish

Websites:

Digital Dialects

 Forvo

FSI Languages Courses

Omniglot

Mówić po polsku

Linguanaut

Free Language 

Languages101

iPolish 

Youtube:

Course of Polish

Polish For Beginners

Learn Polish

Tumblr:

http://learningpolish.tumblr.com/

http://epolishenglish.tumblr.com/

http://learning-polish.tumblr.com/

Other:

Lalka-Movie

Radio

Audio Books

Flash Cards

[onceuponawildflower]

Duolingo has finally hatched Welsh! So now I can work on my Irish and Welsh. They need to get Scottish up there too. Welsh I find much easier to pronounce than Irish, and I feel like I might have a better go with Welsh, but I’m going to be working on both of them still, regardless of difficulty.