At any level of language acquisition, reading poetry is beneficial. Few people make a living reading or writing poems these days. So in a world of "Spanish for Business" and "Medical Spanish," why are poems important?
Poetry requires a writer to eliminate words and keep only the bare essentials. Rarely in this life are we presented with a choice that requires us to "forsake all others." Weddings are one time like that. Backpacking trips are another. But usually, at least in 2008 in the USA, we can rent a storage shed, fill a garage, and opt to just keep everything.
Poetry invites us to say goodbye to the unnecessary and keep the essential. In communication, whether in our first, second, or tenth language, each conversation invites us to do the same. What ideas do I wish to convey to my children during this breakfast together? What do I want to say to my husband before I fall asleep tonight? What do my parents need to know next time I talk to them?
Poetry is not simply romantic expression, or the trappings of old-fashioned courtship, or making empty promises that one does not intend to keep. Classics in the poetic tradition lead us to examine who we are, what we believe, what matters to us, whose we are, and what choices we make.
What's your favorite "poema" and who is your favorite "poeta"--and why? Give it some thought and let me know.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Why Don Quixote is a great book
Windmills, giants, barbers, innkeepers, knights errant, and libraries might not be your cup of tea. So why is Don Quixote a great book, and why does it make sense for an American to take the trouble to read this great book in Spanish?
Don Quixote asks us to ponder the questions about our humanity. What is the purpose of living? Why are we here? What do we need? What do we believe and why? Whose are we? What is loyalty? Friendship? Love?
Don Quixote is a funny book. Personally, I can't read it in public--I giggle too much. I have gotten some very strange looks while reading DQ on the NYC subway. So I am a closet DQ consumer nowadays.
Many of Cervantes' jokes are language-related, and Spanish allows for such flexibility in the formation of words and subtle changes in meaning through suffixes and slight variations that this book is much funnier in its original language.
You will probably never wake up one morning and say, "hmmm... my Spanish is good enough now, I think I'll read Don Quixote today." It's a two-volume book and it's a daunting feat to read even the first chapter for the first time, as a non-native speaker. So don't think. Just grab a copy, and a good dictionary, and wade through. Take the plunge. You'll giggle and cry your way all the way through, I'll bet, as you consider more deeply what it means to be human.
Don Quixote asks us to ponder the questions about our humanity. What is the purpose of living? Why are we here? What do we need? What do we believe and why? Whose are we? What is loyalty? Friendship? Love?
Don Quixote is a funny book. Personally, I can't read it in public--I giggle too much. I have gotten some very strange looks while reading DQ on the NYC subway. So I am a closet DQ consumer nowadays.
Many of Cervantes' jokes are language-related, and Spanish allows for such flexibility in the formation of words and subtle changes in meaning through suffixes and slight variations that this book is much funnier in its original language.
You will probably never wake up one morning and say, "hmmm... my Spanish is good enough now, I think I'll read Don Quixote today." It's a two-volume book and it's a daunting feat to read even the first chapter for the first time, as a non-native speaker. So don't think. Just grab a copy, and a good dictionary, and wade through. Take the plunge. You'll giggle and cry your way all the way through, I'll bet, as you consider more deeply what it means to be human.
Saturday, October 4, 2008
Conexiones culturales
"Your class is too hard. Some students went to the other section," greeted me today as I took roll for a college-level beginning Spanish class. While I'm not covering as many chapters as another professor, the students have noticed that we are going in-depth. I share what I know with my classes, what I have learned, what I have studied, and waht I have been taught by my professors and by years of experience as a student of Hispanic culture and Spanish language.
The best part about slowing down and going in-depth in every chapter of the text is that we can take time to enjoy the cultural connections with parts of the Latin American and Peninsular world. Music, traditions, dance, fiestas, santos, foods---none of these areas escape our notice when we take time to explore the cultural explanations for "why do you say it like that?"
I am readily accessible by appointment, e-mail, and phone. When students are lost, we work together to get "found" again on the roadmap towards cultural and linguistic fluency. But I always take it as a compliment when someone says the class is "hard." If it were easy for you, then you would have tested into another level! :) If you're not making mistakes, you're not learning much--so hang on for the ride and raise your hand when you're (not) having fun and have a question. Speak up--because when you're lost, guaranteed, someone next to you is, too.
The best part about slowing down and going in-depth in every chapter of the text is that we can take time to enjoy the cultural connections with parts of the Latin American and Peninsular world. Music, traditions, dance, fiestas, santos, foods---none of these areas escape our notice when we take time to explore the cultural explanations for "why do you say it like that?"
I am readily accessible by appointment, e-mail, and phone. When students are lost, we work together to get "found" again on the roadmap towards cultural and linguistic fluency. But I always take it as a compliment when someone says the class is "hard." If it were easy for you, then you would have tested into another level! :) If you're not making mistakes, you're not learning much--so hang on for the ride and raise your hand when you're (not) having fun and have a question. Speak up--because when you're lost, guaranteed, someone next to you is, too.
Friday, October 3, 2008
Una manzana al día
In English we say "An apple a day keeps the doctor away." Today I did a medical translation. It is a blessing to have access to good medical care. A translator can be nice, too, if the doctor and patient don't speak the same language. How do you keep the translator away? What is the "apple a day" that will help you polish up your Spanish language skills before you embark on a journey where you might have to use your emergency Spanish in a real world context?
Here's Señora Fields' "Apple A Day" technique for learning Spanish effectively. My Ivy Tech classes meet weekly, as do my Spanish Bible Stories students. Practicing every day or even a couple times a day helps Spanish language really begin to "stick" so I give suggestions like:
+ Count in Spanish when you climb stairs
+ Practice Spanish sounds when you ride around on your bike
+ Listen to the radio in Spanish
+ Pick up a Spanish edition of the newspaper
+ Have someone ask you the time in Spanish (¿Qué hora es?) and see if you can answer
Practicing a little every day makes a BIG difference in how quickly you learn.
Keep up the good work!
Here's Señora Fields' "Apple A Day" technique for learning Spanish effectively. My Ivy Tech classes meet weekly, as do my Spanish Bible Stories students. Practicing every day or even a couple times a day helps Spanish language really begin to "stick" so I give suggestions like:
+ Count in Spanish when you climb stairs
+ Practice Spanish sounds when you ride around on your bike
+ Listen to the radio in Spanish
+ Pick up a Spanish edition of the newspaper
+ Have someone ask you the time in Spanish (¿Qué hora es?) and see if you can answer
Practicing a little every day makes a BIG difference in how quickly you learn.
Keep up the good work!
Monday, August 18, 2008
Translation... slowing down to smell the "rosas"
Translations can be tedious. Translations can be challenging. But translations can also be beneficial and, in time, can yield joy.
I love to translate texts that really move me, because when I slow down to think about each word, savor it, and select a word in another language as it's "equivalent", I have taken the time to enjoy the text and meditate on it.
I encourage my students to write essays between classes, as optional homework, and to try translating something from Spanish into English from time to time. Pick a text you love, or ask for a text that your teacher thinks you will learn to love...and then get to work!
Benefits include:
*A tired brain, to help you sleep well.
*New vocabulary words you didn't even know you didn't know.
*An opportunity to meditate on a text that you want to understand better.
*The finished product: a text you love, translated, that you can share with others.
*An alternative to watching TV.
*A job... if you get good at translation, you can charge people for your services.
Find something that you want to turn into English, or into Spanish, and get to work!
I love to translate texts that really move me, because when I slow down to think about each word, savor it, and select a word in another language as it's "equivalent", I have taken the time to enjoy the text and meditate on it.
I encourage my students to write essays between classes, as optional homework, and to try translating something from Spanish into English from time to time. Pick a text you love, or ask for a text that your teacher thinks you will learn to love...and then get to work!
Benefits include:
*A tired brain, to help you sleep well.
*New vocabulary words you didn't even know you didn't know.
*An opportunity to meditate on a text that you want to understand better.
*The finished product: a text you love, translated, that you can share with others.
*An alternative to watching TV.
*A job... if you get good at translation, you can charge people for your services.
Find something that you want to turn into English, or into Spanish, and get to work!
Fall Classes
Coming this fall and continuing classes are listed here:
Spanish for Travel: a class for adult beginners, hosted by the Munster Parks Department, and held in Munster, Indiana.
Spanish for All Ages: continuing in Highland, Indiana.
Mommy and Me Spanish: continuing in Porter County, for toddlers, preschoolers, and a caregiver or parent.
Spanish for Ministry: Location and times TBA
... as well as private tutorials and small group classes in people's homes.
Spanish for Travel: a class for adult beginners, hosted by the Munster Parks Department, and held in Munster, Indiana.
Spanish for All Ages: continuing in Highland, Indiana.
Mommy and Me Spanish: continuing in Porter County, for toddlers, preschoolers, and a caregiver or parent.
Spanish for Ministry: Location and times TBA
... as well as private tutorials and small group classes in people's homes.
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Querido Amigo: Writing Letters in Spanish
Querido Amigo,
This week, in two Spanish classes, we are writing letters.
One group, that meets at our church, is writing letters to children who attend school in Guatemala, with A Servant's Heart--a Lutheran ministry to families who live on a garbage dump. Four children have been receiving support from Redeemer's Sunday School, and now our group of Spanish students are writing personal letters to them: in Spanish! We really hope they will write us back.
The Mommy and Me kids are learning about el correo also: and I'm writing letters and mailing them to their houses. It's exciting to get a real letter in the mail, especially when it is addressed right to you, and has handwriting on the front of the envelope. We will be talking in class about sobres, and sellos, and about cartas. Last week we drove small cars around on a mat on the floor, and delivered mail to various houses around town. This week, we're checking our real mailboxes at home, just in case we hear from our amigos.
Un abrazo,
Sarah
This week, in two Spanish classes, we are writing letters.
One group, that meets at our church, is writing letters to children who attend school in Guatemala, with A Servant's Heart--a Lutheran ministry to families who live on a garbage dump. Four children have been receiving support from Redeemer's Sunday School, and now our group of Spanish students are writing personal letters to them: in Spanish! We really hope they will write us back.
The Mommy and Me kids are learning about el correo also: and I'm writing letters and mailing them to their houses. It's exciting to get a real letter in the mail, especially when it is addressed right to you, and has handwriting on the front of the envelope. We will be talking in class about sobres, and sellos, and about cartas. Last week we drove small cars around on a mat on the floor, and delivered mail to various houses around town. This week, we're checking our real mailboxes at home, just in case we hear from our amigos.
Un abrazo,
Sarah
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