#duolingo English test practice

[gurully]

7 Day DUOLINGO Preparation Tips

Get ready for the Duolingo English Test with our 7-day Duolingo preparation Tips! Follow these daily practice tips and strategies to boost your skills and confidence for a high score.

[gt-prep]

7 errors to avoid when taking the Duolingo English test.

Introduction

Duolingo is a free online language learning platform that offers courses in a variety of languages, including English. The Duolingo English Test (DET) is a computer-based assessment that measures your ability to use and understand English.

The DET is a great way to assess your English skills and to see how you would perform in an English-speaking environment. However, it is important to avoid making mistakes on the DET, as these can impact your score.

Mistakes to Avoid:  

Not Practicing Enough

The first mistake that you should avoid on the Duolingo English Test is not practicing enough. The DET is a timed test, so it is important to be familiar with the format and the types of questions that you will be asked.

The best way to practice for the DET is to take practice tests. There are many practice tests available online and also, you can get top coaching for Duolingo exam which is very beneficial. When you take practice tests, be sure to time yourself and to review your answers. This will help you to identify areas where you need to improve.

Not Understanding the Instructions

The second mistake that you should avoid on the Duolingo English Test does not understand the instructions. The instructions are clear and concise, but it is important to read them carefully before you start each section.

If you do not understand the instructions, you may not be able to answer the questions correctly. So, be sure to read the instructions carefully and to ask for help if you need it.

Making Grammatical Errors

The third mistake that you should avoid on the Duolingo English Test is making grammatical errors. The DET is a test of your ability to use and understand English grammar. So, it is important to make sure that your grammar is correct when you answer the questions.  

Using Incorrect Vocabulary

The fourth mistake that you should avoid on the Duolingo English Test is using incorrect vocabulary. The DET is a test of your ability to use and understand English vocabulary. So, it is important to make sure that you are using the correct vocabulary when you answer the questions. If you are not sure about a particular word, you can always look it up online.

[Learn more: What You Should Know About the Duolingo English Test]

Not Listening Carefully

The fifth mistake that you should avoid on the Duolingo English Test is not listening carefully. The DET includes a listening section, and you will need to be able to understand what you are hearing in order to answer the questions correctly. It is important to listen carefully to the audio recordings and to take notes if necessary. This will help you to understand the questions and to answer them correctly.

Rushing through the Test

The sixth mistake that you should avoid on the Duolingo English Test is rushing through the test. The DET is a timed test, but it is important to take your time and to answer the questions carefully. If you rush through the test, you may make careless mistakes. So, it is important to pace yourself and to give you enough time to answer each question correctly.

Not Reviewing Your Answers

The seventh and final mistake that you should avoid on the Duolingo English Test is not reviewing your answers. After you have finished answering the questions, you will have a chance to review your answers. This is a very important step, as you may be able to identify mistakes that you made. So, be sure to review your answers carefully before you submit your test.

Conclusion

By avoiding these 7 mistakes, you can improve your Duolingo score easily. Just remember to practice, to understand the instructions, to use correct grammar and vocabulary, to listen carefully, to take your time, and to review your answers.

[english-proficiency-learning]

 10+ Duolingo Writing Topics with Sample Answers

The Duolingo English Test (DET) has become a popular choice for those looking to prove their English language proficiency quickly and affordably. One of the essential sections of this exam is the writing part, which evaluates your ability to construct clear, grammatically correct responses. Understanding the types of questions you may encounter can help you prepare effectively and boost your confidence on test day.

In this blog, we will explore 10+ writing topics, discuss the types of questions you may face, and provide sample answers to help guide your Duolingo English test preparation.

1. Describe a Situation (50 Words)

In this question type, you are asked to describe a specific situation or event using 50 words. This tests your ability to provide concise and clear descriptions.

Sample Question: Describe a time when you worked in a team to achieve a common goal.

Sample Answer: During a school project, my team and I collaborated to create a presentation on climate change. I focused on research while others handled visuals. We communicated well, dividing tasks efficiently. In the end, our efforts paid off with an excellent grade.

2. Respond to an Argument (50 Words)

You may need to respond to a particular argument or statement. This question tests your critical thinking and ability to articulate your views.

Sample Question: Some people believe online education is more effective than traditional classroom learning. Do you agree?

Sample Answer: I believe online education offers more flexibility, especially for working professionals. However, traditional classroom learning provides better interaction and focus, which some students need. Both have advantages, but a blend of both seems the most effective approach.

3. Write About a Picture (75 Words)

In this task, you will be given an image and asked to describe it. This tests your observational skills and ability to express what you see.

Sample Question: Describe the picture below.

Sample Answer: The image shows a family sitting in a park. The parents are smiling, enjoying a picnic under a large tree, while two children play with a ball nearby. A bright sun shines in the background, creating a cheerful and peaceful scene.

4. Express Your Opinion (100 Words)

Here, you are required to share your opinion on a given topic, explaining your viewpoint clearly.

Sample Question: Should governments invest more in healthcare or education?

Sample Answer: Both healthcare and education are vital sectors, but I believe education should be prioritized. A well-educated population contributes to economic growth and better decision-making. However, without proper healthcare, people cannot fully benefit from education. Balancing investment in both sectors is essential for overall development.

5. Creative Writing (50-100 Words)

This task allows for creativity, where you can imagine scenarios or create fictional content.

Sample Question: Write a story about a person who found a hidden treasure.

Sample Answer: While hiking in the mountains, John stumbled upon an old wooden box buried beneath a tree. Curiosity piqued, he opened it and found golden coins, jewels, and an ancient map. Unsure of its origin, he decided to embark on an adventure to uncover the mystery behind the treasure.

6. Compare Two Concepts (50 Words)

In this question type, you will need to compare two ideas or concepts, highlighting their similarities and differences.

Sample Question: Compare traditional books and e-books.

Sample Answer: Traditional books offer a tangible reading experience with no need for power. E-books, however, are portable and allow you to store thousands of books on a single device. While e-books are convenient, many still prefer the feeling of holding a real book.

7. Write a Letter (75-100 Words)

You might be asked to write a formal or informal letter, testing your ability to address different audiences appropriately.

Sample Question: Write a letter to your friend, inviting them to your birthday party.

Sample Answer: Hi Sarah, I hope you’re doing well! I’m writing to invite you to my birthday party next Saturday at my place. It’ll be a fun evening with games, good food, and music. I really hope you can make it! Let me know if you can come. Best, Anna

8. Describe a Process (75 Words)

In this task, you will need to explain a specific process, such as how to do something.

Sample Question: Describe the process of making a cup of tea.

Sample Answer: First, boil water in a kettle. Once boiled, pour it into a cup containing a tea bag. Let the tea steep for 2-3 minutes. Add sugar, milk, or lemon according to your preference. Stir well and enjoy your freshly brewed tea!

9. Summarize a Paragraph (50 Words)

This question asks you to read a short paragraph and summarize the main points.

Sample Question: Summarize the following: “Exercise is essential for maintaining good health. It helps to reduce the risk of chronic diseases, improves mental well-being, and promotes better sleep.”

Sample Answer: Exercise is crucial for health, reducing disease risks, improving mental health, and enhancing sleep quality.

10. Explain a Trend (100 Words)

You may be asked to explain a current trend or phenomenon, showing your awareness of contemporary issues.

Sample Question: Explain the rise of remote work in recent years.

Sample Answer: Remote work has become increasingly popular due to advances in technology and the flexibility it offers employees. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated this trend as businesses shifted to home-based work. Today, many companies continue offering remote work options, citing increased productivity, lower costs, and better work-life balance for employees.

Conclusion

The Duolingo English Test writing section may seem daunting, but understanding the different types of questions and practicing your responses can significantly improve your performance. From describing situations to summarizing ideas, the range of writing tasks tests various skills. By familiarizing yourself with these question types and practicing sample answers, you can feel more confident and prepared for the writing section of the Duolingo English Test.

Start practicing with these examples to enhance your writing skills and achieve your desired score on the test. 

Good luck!

[allthingslinguistic]

Summer 2024 travel plans and Language Guinea Pig Diaries

In August and September, I'm doing a bunch of travel to various European countries. In order, they are:

Glasgow, Scotland for World Science Fiction Convention (WorldCon), where I'll be on a panel about Languages as World-Building and doing assorted meetups

Helsinki, Finland for the Societas Linguistica Europea annual meeting

Tartu, Estonia for a colloquium talk on Applying Linguistic Methods to Linguistic Communication at the University of Tartu and a two-part workshop on lingcomm for participants of Methodological Excellence in Data-Driven Approaches to Linguistics (MEDAL)

Nijmegen, Netherlands for some meetings with linguists

Florence, Italy to visit friends

Madrid, Spain for the publication of the Spanish translation of Because Internet by Pie de Página

I hope to run into lots of interesting people at these events! If you're already in one of these places and I know you, including from the interent, feel free to reach out and see if we can fit something in!

This whirlwind list of events and places has also gotten me thinking: this trip is going to be a fun chance to learn some more about some languages! I'm already fairly familiar with Spanish and Scottish English (I doubt people will speak much Broad Scots to me with my Canadian accent), and I'm confident on my ability to brush up on them by a bit of exposure and possibly watching a relevant movie on the way there, but the other four languages are going to take a bit more doing. Here's my initial situation, in order of familiarity:

Italian - I studied it for two years in undergrad and spent about a week in Italy shortly thereafter, and by the end of the week I was finally beginning to feel like it was starting to "click" but then I haven't really touched it since then. So I feel like it would come back with exposure but I wonder if there's something I could do in advance to help it come back sooner/faster rather than taking the whole week of being there again

Dutch - I went through the whole Duolingo tree on rapid-speed back when you could skip through lessons for new material only and not practice drills over about a year in 2019-ish just for fun and as an excuse to look up lots of Germanic roots (I studied German before I knew any linguistics so it was fun to triangulate there). Never actually been anywhere Dutch was being spoken but I did find I could get the gist of youtube videos about linguistics in Dutch so it probably needs "activation" similar to Italian

Finnish - No background except for a few linguistics factoids (case! vowel harmony!), and that it's a Uralic language (related to Hungarian but not to any of the Indo-European languages, so this is a fun chance to learn some things about a language family that's unfamiliar to me)

Estonian - Also no background, also Uralic, clearly the fun thing to do would be to learn enough bits of Estonian and Finnish that I could compare them with each other (also since I'm meeting with linguists in both countries, this would be a fun topic for small talk conversation)

At the same time, there are a lot of language learning strategies floating around out there, and I have two nearly matched pairs of languages on this list: Italian and Dutch, both of which I am pretty good at cognate languages for and have studied some a while back, so I could test two activation strategies, and Finnish and Estonian, both of which I have essentially zero familiarity with, so I could test two strategies for getting somewhere near a basic functional ability.

I have about a month until I start this cycle with a flight to Helsinki. One month, four languages. What could possibly go wrong?

Here's my tentative plan so far:

Activation, Italian and Dutch - I'm pretty sure what I need for these languages is largely as much audio imput as possible (given what's feasible around like, all the other things going on in my life). I've decided to aim to watch one or two youtube videos in Italian per day, focusing on relatively concrete, daily life topics (such as gelato making) and to listen to one episode of a podcast in Dutch per day, aiming to get through the back catalogue of Kletsheads, a podcast about multilingual children.

Why these strategies? Well, I'm meeting up with linguists in the Netherlands but not in Italy, so it makes sense to try to learn more linguistics vocab there. Also, I'm curious about the effect of medium between video and podcast: will being able to see people talking and what they're talking about have much of an effect on how much I can understand? Will I find it easier to integrate one or the other of watching videos vs listening to podcasts into my life at a practical level? Plus, will concentrating on a single, more academic topic vs watching a scattered, unsystematic list of videos have effects on my vocabulary?

Basic function, Finnish and Estonian - I'm probably looking for some phrases to say to people in shops and restaurants and the ability to pronounce things written on menus adequately and match heard words/placenames to written versions on signs. I started doing a very minimal one lesson a day on Duolingo for Finnish in January, when planning for this trip started, for the very simple reason that I was already familiar with Duolingo and it doesn't have Estonian, so I decided to just start by doing a thing I was familiar with until I got around to doing more research. I've been casting around trying to figure out a source of basic Estonian phrases online when a friend mentioned learning French on tiktok, so I searched for "learn estonian" and voila! I think I'll also aim for a video or two of Estonian phrases per day but I want to do more rewatching than with Italian or Dutch, since I'm aiming to remember specific common phrases. So maybe one rewatched video and one new video, per day? They're shorter on tiktok than on youtube.

Why these strategies? This is a comparison of Duolingo's more systematic approach with lots of repetition and gamification and word-by-word translation in a relatively sterile environment versus a more organic and free-styling approach with more grounding in real people and faces and full phrases where I'm not really trying to understand the individual words. There are lots of factors to compare and it's not a completely fair comparison since I started Duolingo in January and I only thought to start the TikTok idea this week, but hey, learning anything still counts as progress.

Summary: I have four languages, each focused on a different app: YouTube, my podcast app, Duolingo, and TikTok. Hopefully for the video apps, this will help their algorithms kick in and start recommending me further useful videos. The difference between the two video strategies is that for Italian, I'm watching monolingual videos that are aimed at people who already speak Italian and just want to learn something about the topic, whereas for Estonian, I'm watching bilingual videos aimed at English speakers who want to learn some words or phrases in Estonian.

Am I going to get these four languages mixed up? Probably! I'm hoping that choosing a different app/strategy for each is a little bit helpful on that front.

Do I think these strategies are optimal? Probably not! But I'm aiming to choose things that feel relatively clear to implement consistently, rather than getting bogged down in researching language learning methods instead of actually getting exposure to the languages. I'll probably do a basic "look up some key phrases and try to learn them" a day or two before entering each place too. And maybe shift other aspects depending on how things are going, stay tuned!

At any rate, I figured it would be more fun to blog about my attempts to use myself as a guinea pig for a few different language learning strategies here than to just do it in my own head (and hopefully help me with staying motivated). And maybe people will have tips of either language learning strategies that have worked for you in general or specific ideas for these particular languages, so this is the beginning of a series that I'm calling #Language Guinea Pig Diaries and future posts will also be posted under that tag!

[ramblingsfromthytruly]

the pages are turning~

a months old pic of my desk

29th august 2024

day 4/50 - productivity challenge

🕒 6:00 a.m.

sleep deprivation is hitting. eating leftovers and coffee for breakfast.

checked notifs

actually ate some goddamn breakfast

not me realizing that i barely eat 2 meals every school day..

revised psychology: ch-1: what is psychology

here's a (self) reminder to actually go study instead of procrastinating 30 mins by watching study motivation videos.

also i recommend listening to non-lyrical music while studying. i personally listen to classical piano music. this is what i was listening to today morning.

showered

morning skincare

extended duolingo streak

aaand off to school. thought i would be late but honestly i've been reaching at the correct time all these days. if i leave my house by 8:05 then i'm good.

at school i first had physics and then 2 continuous chemistry classes (the teacher is good but her classes are so draining ugh).

completed physics classwork (the stuff i missed when i was absent on tuesday)

did the OCEAN test in psychology class! idk why but i love personality tests. i'll discuss my results with my teacher tmr hopefully but what i gathered is that i'm an ambivert leaning to introversion and ok emotional regulation & stability. my other classmate was very much an extrovert with higher tendency to take others' words to heart. we bunked the last 2 english classes together in the library lol. also want to say that i'm so ashamed for having formed an image in my mind of her, without really knowing her that well. i cruelly judged her prematurely and though we didn't really talk about our lives and stuff, we did get closer (maybe even friends?) today and i regret my judgments. ik i would be crushed if someone thought up an image of me in their head like that and i try not to do the same but sometimes i make mistakes. i'm trying to be more aware of that.

studied psychology ch-6: human memory (in the library when i skipped english)

lightly rained the entire trip home and got much louder as i ate a hearty lunch 😋

started a word doc for biology investigatory project

started a word doc for chemistry investigatory project

me and my bestfriend have been much more honest with our feelings recently. the saying "distance makes the heart grow fonder" was actually made for us. she's in a new college all popular with new pretty friends and boys probably crushing on her and she says i'm her favourite person. i'm at a new school slowly making new friends and she's my favourite person. i told her i love her. she deserves to know that. and i meant it totally platonically and that doesn't make it any less. if anyone ever asks, "who's your first love?" i'll say her name. it'll always be her.

practiced playing keyboard 🎹

read newspaper 📰 (some of those cases make me feel sick)

post for studyblr weekly prompt

dinner. yum. noodles and cake.

made notes psychology ch-1: what is psychology?

night skincare

🕒 nope! pulled an all-nighter.. yes i have school tmr 😃 listen i do not recommend doing this shit at all. why did i do it you may ask? i don't really have any crushing deadlines as such, but i've tricked my mind into thinking my own plans are deadlines. this week my sleep has been astronomically fucked up. the weekend will be a reset (i have school on saturday 😭) and i will prioritze sleep. i need to at least manage 6-7 hours everyday.

edit: actually i fell asleep around 2 a.m. and did no other studying..

🎧 i love you, i'm sorry by gracie abrams

her songs are actually just excerpts from my journal but minus the romance unfortunately like where's my gf ugh we're wasting time

a months old pic of my desk

[indigostudies]

What are those apps you usually post in your productivity updates?

hi! here's a breakdown of apps i use, as well as websites and other resources i've used/use for my learning (mainly chinese, though some of these resources can be used for other languages as well).

apps i use every day:

dot languages: this is a chinese-specific app where you select your hsk level, and then read articles at that level. there's a pop-up dictionary, an option to show pinyin, post-article vocab practice (audio, matching, translation, and writing), and the option to have your articles either in simplified or traditional.

TOFU learn: a blend between flashcards and writing, you can find decks for various things, including hsk level-specific decks, and you learn new vocab with the stroke order and then write each new term three times—once with an overlay (so the term is visible), and then two times from memory. there's also a review function, which helps you practice terms you've already learnt, and each term has audio that goes with it. i use it for chinese, but there's decks for esperanto, french, german, italian, japanese, korean, norweigian, portuguese, russian, spanish, swedish, and turkish.

the pleco dictionary app: my favourite chinese dictionary app; allows you to translate from english to chinese or chinese to english, has options for writing, radical, vocal, and keyboard entry, and has both traditional and simplified characters.

ankiapp: this one's not particularly complicated; it's a flashcard app, where you can make your own decks or download decks other people have made. it uses a spaced repetition system to help you remember terms—you rate yourself from worst to best on how well you remembered the term, and that determines how many times it'll pop up afterwards. it also gives you an overall grade for each deck, which is a nice way to measure your progress.

duolingo: probably my least favourite of all of the apps i use; the chinese course isn't the best, and now that they've removed the notes/grammar information option, there's no way for people who aren't already fairly familiar with the language and its inner workings to learn them if they exclusively use duolingo. it's okay for maintenance practice, though, but i'm already almost finished with the entire course and i would say it barely reaches to lower hsk 4, so i wouldn't say it's a good tool if you're more advanced.

apps i have but use less often:

readibu: this is sort of like dot in that it's an app for reading in chinese with a pop-up dictionary. however, that's where the similarities end; readibu has novels, short stories, and articles aimed at children, and each of those are further split into genres. readibu also lets you add your own web-pages and read them on the app, so you can use its pop-up dictionary with them. it's aimed more to intermediate and upper intermediate learners, with hsk levels ranging from hsk 4 to hsk 6. the only reason i rate dot above readibu is because dot has a larger range of levels (hsk 1 through hsk 6 i believe? but it may go higher) and exercises built in to help you learn the vocab.

the chairman's bao: also a chinese reading app, though if you use the free version, you only get one sample article per hsk level (hsk 1 - hsk 6). i believe that every so often you get a new sample article for each level, but i'm not sure what the interval on that is. it also has a pop-up dictionary and a flashcard option for saved vocab.

du chinese: another chinese reading app; it has articles divided into newbie through master (six levels in total, though they don't line up perfectly with the hsk in my experience), and new articles are free for a certain period of time before becoming locked behind a paywall. there's a pop-up dictionary and a vocab review/test option for vocab you save.

memrise: flashcards with audio, depending on whether you're using an official course or a user-generated deck. decent, but it can get repetitive.

hellotalk: not exclusively chinese, but i believe it started off mainly aimed that way. you set your language, and then your target language, and then you can talk to native speakers who have your language as their target language. potentially incredibly useful, but if you're like me and extremely introverted you may have a hard time using this app, since it requires a lot of one-on-one interaction.

slowly: i haven't actually gotten around to using this, but it's sort of like a digital penpal app, as i understand it. you can learn more about it here.

websites and other miscellanea:

this massive mega drive by @salvadorbonaparte (languages, linguistics, translation studies, and more).

this masterpost by @loveletter2you (linguistics, languages, and language learning books/textbooks).

this masterpost on chinese minority literature by @zaobitouguang

the integrated chinese textbooks by cheng and tsui, which are the textbooks i use for self-study—there's textbooks and workbooks, as well as character workbooks (though these can easily be cut out without suffering from the loss).

mandarinbean: graded readers, hsk 1 - hsk 6, with a pop-up dictionary and the option to read in traditional or simplified

chinese reading practice: reading, beginner through advanced (three levels), with a pop-up dictionary and some additional notes included on vocab and language-specific things non-native speakers might struggle with or not know.

hsk reading: graded readers, hsk 1 - hsk 6, divided into three sections (beginner, intermediate, advanced). does not have a pop-up dictionary, but does have an option to translate the text, post-reading quizzes, and notes on important vocab with example sentences.

my chinese reading: reading from beginner to advanced (four levels); has a pop-up dictionary, the option to play an audio recording of the passage you're reading, notes on key words, things that are difficult to translate, grammar, and post-reading comprehension questions.

the heavenly path notion website, which i would say is one of the best resources i've ever found, with a massive number of guides, lists of chinese media in a variety of forms, and general resources.

chinese character stroke order dictionary: what it says on the tin; will show you the stroke order for a given character.

hanzigrids: allows you to generate your own character worksheets. i use this very frequently, and can recommend it. the only downside is if you want to create multiple pages at once, you have to pay; however this can easily be circumnavigated by creating only one sheet at a time. you can download the sheet as a pdf and print it out for personal use.

21st century chinese poety: a resource i only came across recently; has a massive collection of contemporary chinese poetry, including translations; much more approachable than classical poetry, which can often be incredibly dense and hard to parse due to the writing style.

zhongwen pop-up dictionary: if you're reading something in chinese on a website that doesn't have a pop-up dictionary, this is a must. i've never encountered any words that it doesn't have a translation for so far, including colloquialisms/slang. i use it to read webnovels, and it's been a fantastic tool. you can also save vocab by hitting the r key when you're hovering over a word/phrase, making it easy to go back and add terms to your flashcard deck(s).

chinese reading world: a website put together by the university of iowa; split into three levels (beginner, intermediate, and advanced), with thirty units per level, and ten modules per unit, as well as multiple proficiency tests per level. each module is split into three parts: a pre-reading vocab quiz, the reading with a number of comprehension questions based on it, and a post-vocab reading quiz. it also rates you in relation to someone with a native proficiency based on how quickly you read and answer the comprehension questions, and how many vocab questions you get right.

jiaoyu baike: an extensive chinese-to-chinese dictionary, put out by the taiwanese ministry of education. you can find an extensive write-up on it here, by @linghxr.

social media etc: see this post by @rongzhi.

qianpian: another chinese-to-chinese dictionary; @ruhua-langblr has a write-up on it here.

this writeup on zero to hero by @meichenxi; initially aimed at chinese learning, but now has expanded greatly.

music rec's: this masterpost by @linghxr.

tv/film: youtube is a great place to find chinese tv shows and films, and they often have english subtitles. if you can't find something on there, though, you can probably find it either on iqiyi or asianvote, which have both chinese and other asian shows and films (though you'll want an adblock if you're going to use the latter). i use these a lot to watch things, and have discovered a lot of media through these, and then novels through those when i went searching to see what they were adapted from.

polylogger: a website for logging the amount of time/type of language study you do. has a wide variety of languages, and the option to follow other people. still, it's a fairly basic site.

[the---hermit]

22|09|2023

Happy hobbit day!! Today I have been pretty tired. I slept very well, but my I guess having to commute is draning a lot of energy from me. I did struggle a bit to stay focused in class, but we touched interesting subjects, and I can confirm I like the way this professor carries the lectures. He did finish a bit later than usual which for me meant missing my bus and having to wait an additional 50 minutes. I phoned my mom to have a chat and pass the time and walked around, and I ended up buying this amazing ghost mug. It's smaller than what I would normally go for, but it's a great addition to my small collection. When I got home I also went to my herbalitst's shop to get a couple of teas i had run out of (and there of course I saw a bunch of other beautiful mugs and I want them all).

Cozy hobbit activities and productivity:

Read first thing in the morning

Packed some lunch before leaving the house

Listened to podcasts during my commute

Had a walk to go to uni and back

3 hour English lit lecture

Got my new beloved mug (i was also looking for a ghost themed tote bag but unfortunately I couldn't find it)

Daily duolingo Irish practice

Highlighted today and yesterday's notes

Crocheting my mushroom cardigan (I am considering packing a ball of yarn in my school bag to crochet a bit on the bus but I haven't tested yet)

Drinking a tea (as I write this) in my new mug under a blanket because my room is freezing

📖: A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

[notayamichan]

🌟 Learning Japanese 🇯🇵

🔔　あたしのガイドは、人が英語を話す向けー　(⁠◔⁠‿⁠◔⁠)

The following guide is based on my personal experience. I am not an authority on the matter and I am still barely a beginner regarding Japanese.

What am I doing?

Learning languages seems non-lienar and that's partly true (at an intermediate level). But, when you're first starting out, there's generally clear goals to work toward.

Your Beginner Goals

Study and master kana

Japanese employs hiragana and katakana in conjunction with kanji. Together, hiragana and katakana make up kana.

Learn the kana (hiragana and katakana)

Learn the difference between kunyomi and onyomi (kanji)

Delve into grammar and establish some foundational vocab

Immerse yourself with input content (movies, shows, etc)

Study and practice a basic form of "pitch accent"

Continue developing your vocab and particle knowledge

Learn about polite versus casual talk and social culture

Use the language (letters, blog, diary, etc)

Seek conversations to apply the language properly

Find and study tests like JLPT to gauge your progress

What can I use?

Duolingo

If this was your first pick, you're naive but not foolish. It'll teach you enough to get help if you're lost in Japan. But it won't be enough to hold a conversation. Give it a try and see if it works for you. Duolingo is free.

I recommend using Duolingo as a supplementary learning tool rather than your primary learning tool

Textbooks and Guides

Many learners and even classes praise numerous textbooks. I for one received a recommendation for Tae Kim's Japanese Guide. So, I'll recommend it to you. Don't be afraid to see out other guides or attempt some textbooks. However, one should always remember that the textbook is NOT demonstrative of naturalistic Japanese.

For example, 「私は猫が好きです」 is what a textbook correctly teaches, though 「猫好きだよ」 is acceptable and more natural in casual Japanese

Building vocabulary

If you want to develop your vocabulary, you can use JLPT anki decks. Anki is a flashcard program for desktop and mobile. You can also use anki in conjunction with a dictionary like Jisho to create new flashcards decks (suited to the words you'd like to learn). You may also pick up vocab from Japanese media (i.e, anime, manga, books, content creators, music, etc).

If you're using Jisho and want to find a word you only know in English, search for it using quotation marks. For example, "school" or, if you want a verb "to learn" ~ it should help. You can spell out Japanese words normally by just typing... i.e, watashi.

Good input versus Bad input

Immersing yourself in Japanese media and culture is good but you need to be mindful of the content you're consuming— take note of the context behind events, interactions, or the relationship of speakers. Be especially mindful of anime and manga— both are known to use hyperbolic language or phrases that aren't commonly used in day to day conversation. Fortunately, some anime and manga do use everyday language, and you can usually find lists.

I recommend using the Tofugu blog to learn about both Japanese language and culture. But if you don't like reading, there are many YT channels like Kaname Naito and NihongoDekita with Sayaka. For general immersion though, here's a sweet vlog channel, a JP Warframe creator, and a natural born otaku.

[18shadesofmay]

dont ask how i know pt2, give me tips to learn german.

ok so ive completed C1.1 level german so i have tons of material if you (or anyone reading this) ever wants any.

duolingo/similar apps could get you off the ground, but that’s basically all they do. when i started, i was doing duolingo and although it helped, it couldnt really get me too far. so basically, apps like those are crap. just my opinion, it has worked for people, but i find it too repetitive, and honestly not a feasible option if it's your primary teacher. you need other forms of instruction.

if you’re serious then a good language course would be amazing, BUT you can get close to fluency even with just youtube.

some thoughts:

youtube channel: easy german (they have readymade playlists for each language level from A1 (absolute beginner) to C1 (advanced learner). they also have english subs, so that helps :)

BEST RESOURCE OUT THERE: DW learn german with Nicos Weg. It's fun, it's informative, and it plunges you into german culture in a way no other site i've seen does. basically you follow the story of a spanish guy that goes to germany to find his aunt and makes new friends. there's tests, practice and stuff after every chapter. it's very real-life oriented and great for day-to-day umgangssprache (conversational comprehension).

if you're just starting out, one very important point to note (one that helped me pick up some pace along my journey) is to have comprehensible input. you need to be consuming the language as much as possible, BUT still at your own comprehension level. if you can't understand a word then it's a waste of time.

youtube channel: Natürlich German is a super channel that focuses more on "acquiring" the language than learning it. it's straight countless hours of pure consumption. highly rec.

what's just as crucial, if not more, than consumption is good and consistent producing. keep writing. if possible, speaking. without an outlet, you'll be great at understanding stuff but will struggle to form basic sentences, because structure and grammar can't be mastered without formation. i could GLADLY help you out here, reach out to me anytime.

for building vocabulary: seedlang is THE BEST. it follows a flashcard-system and it's works wonders, i dont even know how i built so much of my day-to-day vocabulary with just a couple lessons on seedlang.

lastly, watch german films, shows, listen to german music, just try to expose yourself to the language as much as possible. starting off is the hardest bit. uske baad you're just building on what you already understand about the language. it'll be hard and it'll be rewarding.

you'll do great, dm me if you ever need anything ;)

[gurully]

Sharpen Your Language Skills with Duolingo Practice Test

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[habshihalwa]

Surviving GCSES: The Ultimate Guide

~ HOW TO REVISE ~

NB; some 'specific subjects' may not be included

WHEN:

- revision should be 'little and often' - meaning you should be revising a few hours every week, whether it's recapping the material, quizzing yourself, or doing homework. By doing little and often revision, it's more likely to become embedded in your long term memory

- if you cram the day before an exam, do effective cramming. Use this time to go over anything you don't know or understand. Blurting is a good method to use- try reading a page or a topic and writing down as much as you can remember from it. Fill in the gaps and identify your weak spots

REVISION METHODS

ACTIVE RECALL should be the main way you revise. It's forcing your brain to actively remember what it can about what you've learned, bringing it to the front of your memory

- blurting: blurting is a great way for you to find out what you know and what you don't. Write down as much as you can remember, and fill in the bits you can't with a different colour. You can repeat the process until it's embedded in your memory and until you're confident that you know everything you need to know

- flashcards: when writing flashcards, do NOT just copy notes onto there. Write questions on one side, and answers on the other then use it to quiz yourself. ALTERNATIVELY for memorising quotes, you could also write half of it on one side and half on the other. You could also write notes on one side and questions on the other, so you have to look in the text to find the answers

- past papers: I cannot stress this enough. Once you've revised and learned everything you think you've learned, test yourself by doing past papers. Research has shown that the top students do more past papers and questions than anyone else. Mark these yourself using the mark scheme so you can identify where you went wrong and how to improve it. Pay extra attention to the mark scheme so in an exam you can quit the waffle and identify where your marks are at

- pretend to 'teach' the content to someone younger or dumber than you. Try and explain it the best you can in simple words - this shows you understand it enough

- there are LOADS of videos out there about how to revise- watch them and use them!

- sleep: sleep is also a revision technique after you've learnt something, as sleeping gives your brain time to process the information and store it in your memory. but only sleep AFTER you've revised a bit

TEACHERS

- teachers are your best tool. Use them

- teachers know what they're doing, and are specialised in their subject for a REASON

- request revision materials,

- if you don't understand anything, simply ask. That's what they're there for. At the end of the day, your grades are gonna matter more than the time you bothered them

- listen in lessons!!! This is so important and many people don't realise. Pay attention in lessons like you're listening to the latest gossip or hot celeb talk or whatever you're into. Give it 110% and actively participate. It won't be embarrassing when you get those good grades.

WEBSITES

Here are some websites I like to use that are FREE and I use constantly to aid me with revision

• Quizlet

• anki

• StudySmarter

• seneca

• tassomai

• gcsepod

• hegarty maths

• Corbett maths

• maths genie

• YouTube and tiktok (they have some good shi on there ngl)

• Duolingo

SPECIFIC SUBJECT REVISION

MATHS

practice papers and questions. Memorise formulas and how to use them. Just keep doing practice questions. If you like puzzles and games, you like maths- think of it as another piece to solve, and like a game. At the end of the day, maths it's just problem solving. There's only one right answer.

ENGLISH LIT:

blurting, mind-maps, flashcards to learn quotes. Look at the AOs to figure out where your marks are, and try and do as much work as you can because at the end of the day, over the year or two years your classwork is gonna be what you've done the most. Plan essays and write them. Talk to your teachers about where to improve and where you've gone wrong. Read more to help with developing your language and writing style. Try writing something unrelated to school- maybe a story, a poem, a speech. Repeat it to help develop what you're doing. English lit is just memorising quotes and explains them- don't overthink it. Make sure you know your text back to front and know how to answer questions. Write practice essays and get your teachers to mark them, and later ask them to explain what you can do to get more marks. Especially in gcse, these examiners are marking abt 50-100 essays. What makes YOURS stand out. Why do YOU deserve that grade amongst everyone? YouTubers I like to use include Mr Bruff, Mr Salles, Mr Everything English

RS:

it depends on how you like revising. I like copying out my notes and making my mind-maps, and then using flashcards to help memorise quotes. Answer practice questions regularly and ask your teacher about the mark scheme and HOW to answer questions if you're struggling. Think of it as learning about yourself and your religion, and many others - help it bring you closer to God if you're religious

SCIENCE

science is mostly fact based and about how well you apply these facts to questions and practical examples. I very strongly recommend using flashcards and paying attention in lessons. Watch YouTube videos and actively and constantly recall your notes. Answer LOTS of past papers and practice questions - every year they use 3-4 of the exact same questions in the exam. There's only so many questions they can ask. Also, print off the specification (this can be found on the exam board's website) and use this to make sure you haven't missed any content out. Use this specification to make flashcards - also, use the questions at the end of each lesson in cgp textbooks as practice questions for flashcards!!! Science is quite flexible to revise from, you can watch videos and make notes, or make mind-maps, or do blurting. Just make sure it's active and that you're reviewing the content regularly!! I also recommend using Seneca to sort of make sure you know everything the day before an exam. Science is an explanation for everything, think of it as something interest as it can make quite a lot of interesting conversation topics.

LANGUAGES:

think of languages as something essential to your identity and helping you live in today's everchanging world. Language is a way to communicate with people - honestly just think about that for a sec. Use duolingo, Quizlet and other language apps!! Be consistent and the night before ur exam, do the biggest and fattest Quizlet you can revise. Test yourself on flashcards when memorising chunks for speaking exams. Also think of everything in ur designated language like when ur drinking water translate that. Or when ur speaking at home or to someone speak with what u know in that language.

HISTORY:

there's a lot of dates and factual knowledge in this, so your best option is to constantly review and actively recall everything. Try doing some practice questions and planning essays. Blurting is SUPER useful for this subject especially too!!! History is super interesting - we learn from the past to improve the future. History builds us and moulds us into where we are today!

HOW TO MOTIVATE YOURSELF

- find out what you want to do in life: medicine? law? art? finding a passion and knowing what you want to do after school can really help motivate you

- if you're unsure of you're career, start by listing what you like and what you're good at. Ask people what career they think you'd be suited to and why. Research these careers and about life beyond school

- a reminder that school is SO much more than just listening to teachers about useless stuff. When you think about, it's teaching you everything about the world you are living in RIGHT NOW

- knowledge is power

- make your parents and your family proud. If they can spend thousands of pounds on you and spend 15+ years raising you up, im pretty sure you can do this

- think about everyone who's ever told you you can't do it or thought you're useless. Imagine the look on their face when you make it. Prove them wrong.

- watch academia and studytok videos. As dumb as it sounds, they're quite motivating

- think of the consequences if you don't revise. while everyone will be smiling and happy with their results, you'll be sitting there knowing you could've done better if only you'd taken the opportunity. That opportunity is now

- a reminder that social media is always going to be there. There's always posts to like and videos to watch but the real world isn't here forever. Focus on your studies before your phone

- think about what you're ultimately working towards: WHY do you want these grades- money? A successful career? Revenge? Validation?

EXTRACURRICULAR BRAIN DEVELOPMENT

- don't make school your life- having a hobby or doing something you enjoy is SO important. It also makes you a more interesting person :)

- we all need downtime. find what that thing is for you

- you need to develop your brain outside of school too. Whether it's sport, music, art, writing- invest a little bit of time into that everyday

- READ. Reading is important and gives you more knowledge and develops your brain. JK Rowling once said if you hate reading, it's only because you haven't found the right book. FIND IT.

SELF CARE

- don't forget to take care of yourself. At the end of the day, a test is just a paper, a grade is just a number. As much as you want to get good grades, remember there's so much more to life

- remember this world is temporary - don't become so caught up in school you burn out. One day we're all going to die so it's important you stick to your religious faith/beliefs because everything is from god/happens for a reason. Ultimately, you may put so much effort into something but if God isn't pleased with you or decides not to make it happen, it isn't going to happen/if it's not meant to happen a certain way, it won't. Failure is inevitable and don't let it put you down. The afterlife/death is forever and when you're standing in front of God on judgement/ rotting in your grave this test is not going to matter. At all.

- hang out with friends often, and make sure they're not toxic and they're people who make you feel happy. Do things with them because you're only a teenager once so live your life and make memories with them. Just a reminder that there's a difference between fun, and stupidity+danger. Don't wreck up your future in the process

- take days off, and love yourself. Have a relaxing bath or a facial, or dress up for no reason. Remember that YOU are the most important person. Never hate yourself for putting you first

- don't overdo it so much that you burn out. Don't sit at your desk for ten hours straight trying to memorise something

- remember to get fresh air and go on regular walks and exercise. Exercise gets your blood flow pumping and can help clear your mind and help with exhaustion and mood.

I love you, and good luck to everyone doing their GCSEs :) you got this! ❤️

[english-proficiency-learning]

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[study-with-aura]

Friday, January 12, 2024

I am sad that my brother is leaving tomorrow to fly back to university. It will be okay. I am happy for the time I spent with him over the break.

I do not know if I will do weekend updates or not. I will decide tomorrow what my blogging plan is at that time.

Tasks Completed:

Geometry - Learned about inscribed angles + practice + honors work

Lit and Comp II - Vocabulary test (100%) + read an article about Edmund Hillary + read about the types and purposes of nonfiction

Spanish 2 - Reviewed vocabulary + watched lecture video on hacer ...que + practice

Bible I - Read Deuteronomy 2

World History - Read over notes on the Age of Absolute Monarchs + read about the causes of the English Civil War

Biology with Lab - Completed genetics practice problems + completed a genetics/meiosis activity

PE/Health I - Read a health article about calories, nutrition, and energy

Foundations - Read the definition of loyalty + did an activity where you look at random lines and describe everything that you see by interpretation in order to help with creativity + gave my speech

Piano - Practiced assigned pieces for 30 minutes and worked on memorization

Khan Academy - Completed High School Geometry Unit 8 - Lesson 7

CLEP - Completed Module 1 assigned reading “Europe: A.D. 1601 to 1700” + Module 1.4-1.5 in World Civilizations II

Duolingo - Completed at least one lesson each in Spanish and Chinese

Reading - Read pages 1-40 of Promise Boys by Nick Brooks

Activities of the Day:

Ballet

Pointe

Journal/Mindfulness

-

What I’m Grateful for Today:

I am grateful that I have an amazing family that supports me whenever I am having a rough day because my brother is leaving tomorrow.

Quote of the Day:

Believing is a type of magic. It can make something true.

-The Astonishing Color of After, Emily X.R. Pan

🎧Le lever de la lune · Bart Schneemann & Paolo Giacometti - Camille Saint-Saëns

[not-so-bored]

12-13 October 2023, Thursday-Friday 

39-40/50 days of productivity

Things I have done:

🦉 Duolingo: German

🏫 Thursday Classes 

📍 Maths Test 

🇩🇪 German Class 

💬 Meeting with a Friend

🎟 Volunteering at a School Event 

🤩 Small Commission for a Philosophy Magazine 

📔 German Homework 

✍️ Practice Task (Language and Literature) 

📃 Bureaucracy

💻 University Applications 

🇬🇧 Listening 

🇬🇧 Speaking 

🇬🇧 Reading and Use of English 

🇬🇧 Grammar 

🧠 Meditation (4 minutes) 

📚 Assigned Reading (Finished!) 

Tranquil's Studyblr Challenge

Daily Question: When was the last time you let yourself express yourself openly? What did you express?

I try to express myself openly, talk about what's important to me, even if I'm not the most charismatic speaker. I stim when I need to and I gave up eye contact in favour of a clearer message. I know it doesn't bother my friends, often on the contrary, they appreciate it. I try not to care what other people think.

[gaysails]

thanks for posting about busuu! I stopped using duolingo a while back but never really succeeded in switching to anything else, so I've just ended up having stopped practicing consistently.

are you using the free version? if so, are you finding that that offers a useful breadth & depth of lessons?

I am using the free browser based version! I took a placement test when I signed up and they started me at the top of their intermediate-level lessons. the subject material so far has been almost exclusively travel/lifestyle oriented, discussing vacation plans and dietary requirements and such. but I go at a slow pace so I’m assuming there will be more variety further on. what I’m finding useful so far is the greater level of immersion than duolingo offered – it gives you larger and denser chunks of both text and speech on average, which personally helps prompt my brain to think more “in german” rather than consciously translating back and forth from english. (having german instructions for each task is also a big plus for this.) and they definitely go in depth with grammar explanations whereas duolingo was just like “figure it out from context lol.”

I haven’t run into this yet but another commenter on my post mentioned a benefit of having fluent human users give feedback on your short answers which is that you get exposure to colloquialisms and turns of phrase that traditional language lessons generally don’t/can’t offer! another benefit of the short answers is they’re open ended and challenge you to express original thoughts instead of just regurgitating vocabulary words to fill in a given sentence, which is something I struggle with.

[prismaticutie]

I've officially been learning Japanese for about a year now! Let's talk about it!

Language learning is a marathon not a race and it is SO important to know that going into it.

It's a long process, and it takes a hell of a lot of dedication. You have to put a lot of time and effort into it, and you ABSOLUTELY have to practice everyday, reading AND writing.

That sounds obnoxious and unbearable but hear me out

I cannot stress enough how important writing is! You will not learn kanji/kana any other way! You will not be able to familiarize yourself with it as well otherwise! It will make it more difficult to read if you don't write it! Writing it helps you recognize it outside of one perfectly consistent font, so if you see it in other fonts you have a better chance of recognizing it than if you just read it digitally in the same font all the damn time!

If you are going to learn a language, especially one in a different alphabet, you HAVE to write. And make corrections when you mess up, to. Correct your mistakes. That's how you learn.

And when you're learning, it'll take more than Duolingo! Fuck Duolingo! I don't use it and I think it's utter hogwash.

My current resources involve:

- two different types of textbooks (Marugoto and JBP1) (note: I do not recommend Marugoto, stick with JBP1 if you can)

- a separate kanji workbook (basic kanji book)

- two notebooks for my own writing (dollar store ass loose leaf notebooks. W some dollar store ass pens ofc)

- an online jp-english dictionary (Jisho.org)

- youtube videos (Japanese Ammo with Misa)

- whatever homework assignments I had in my classes (a lot of fucking homework)

- whatever powerpoints my teacher sent us (👍)

- plus I'm in a Discord for Japanese learning where we send each other resources and help each other out (it's a school server tho so you can't join if you're not a student)

It's a LOT. And it can be overwhelming and hard to know what to do!

My advice for starting out is to take academic classes and yoink all the resources they give you. I regret not downloading all the stuff my professors gave me cause now I don't have access to it anymore.

Classes give you a sense of guidance and plenty of resources to get you started, plus the resources generally have some credibility since it's coming from a (hopefully) reliable source.

If you can't take classes, go to Youtube. Look up baby videos in that language. Learn to count. Learn your ABCs or whatever the equivalent is. Baby videos help. A lot.

Additionaly there are channels dedicated to helping people learn languages! The main one I watch atm is "Japanese Ammo with Misa", and her videos have been SUCH a help.

These videos are extremely useful, especially when the creators are native speakers of the language because they understand nuances of it better than anyone. I watched one manga reading video from that channel and learned SO much more than I would have been able to learn with a dictionary or just by googling.

(Ex. In the first chapter Yotsuba says "sugee" instead of "sugoi". The Youtuber clarifies that this technically means the same thing (sugee=sugoi=cool), but "sugee" is a more informal and masculine way of saying "sugoi". Just to test my theory, I tried looking it up on Jisho (jp-eng dictionary) and sure enough, it could not define it for me.)

I really did get a lot of resources from my classes. If I hadn't taken them, I definitely would not be learning Japanese efficiently at all. If you can't take classes yourself, and don't know where to start with Youtube videos, I highly recommend talking to people who are learning the language and asking them what they did to get to where they are.

Talking to others is so scary especially if they want to practice speaking with you or gauge how far along you are. Then you have to admit to knowing nothing. But that's the first step to learning so brother it's time to humble yourself.

That's why, after a year of taking Japanese classes, I'm starting over from the beginning.

I don't feel like I ever had a solid foundation. Now I have the resources I need, but I don't have the stress of grades looming over me. I can go at my own pace and take things as slowly as I need so I can learn properly.

It involves a lot of time. And it takes daily practice. Seriously. Learning a new language is a huge time sink. And it's extremely humiliating and humbling.

It's difficult it's challenging it can be tedious it makes me feel really really stupid at times yes all of this is true. But persistence is key.

I really hope I keep up with it because I did just totally take a full week off from practicing it ehe. Oops.

But as intimidating as it is I really do want to keep up with it. I want to keep practicing so I don't have to open every conversation with "すみません。 私 の 日本語 は 上手 で和 ありません。" (I'm sorry, my Japanese is not very good.)

I copy and pasted that from google translate bc I don't have a jp keyboard on my phone so the "wa" in "dewa" of course got translated to kanji when it shouldn't have been. What fucking ever I hate Google translate btw. It's useful but only if you want a really rough idea of what a sentence says. Never rely on it for language learning. Btw.

Overall it's tough. Consistent effort will be rewarded. Write and read and speak and listen to the language all the times. Even if you will never realistically need to write it ever. Write so much. It helps you learn I promise.

Practice daily. Use a variety of resources to mix it up so you don't get bored. Try translating random things you see in the other language, like song lyrics or twitter comics. Translate using an online dictionary. It won't give you the full picture, but you may glean some meaning.

Watching shows and reading comics in the other language might help (especially for Japanese, what with anime and manga being popular). Watching anime with subtitles on (Japanese and English subs at the same time if possible? But just English is fine) helps you learn common phrases in the language and familarizes you with how things are pronounced and what a natural speaking cadence sounds like.

Just don't be afraid to mess up. It's part of learning. It's not easy but everyone has to start somewhere.

...Even if it means starting right from the beginning despite having taken classes for the past year (<- Talking about himself)

I like learning Japanese I think everyone should learn a second language if they can! Especially you Americans because your country SUCKS fuck you (myself included).

Another important aspect that I didn't touch on is culture! While learning language it's also important to familiarize yourself with the culture of the language's place of origin! It gives you such a different perspective on things and a much better appreciation for it.

I sincerely hope I keep to my jp practice and I take it seriously etc etc this was a spur of the moment post and I don't know how to end it so ummmmm byeeee