Learning new languages

[JustinNed]

Was wanting to learn a couple new languages in my spare time, especially Dutch. Does anyone know of any great ways to learn new languages without the textbook?
I would love to just move overseas and learn the language by living it, but that's not a possibility.

 

[Forkbender]

You can find most good language courses (audiocds) online on torrents. Doesn't really go deep into things, but helps to get the basics down.

 

[Jakobien]

You can find most good language courses (audiocds) online on torrents. Doesn't really go deep into things, but helps to get the basics down.

Such as Rosetta Stone, it takes time like any language course but it is very good!

 

[JustinNed]

Rosetta Stone! I remember seeing those commercials a while ago. ^_^ Does anyone have any experience with this, or anything like it? I would really like to read the Dutch section of these forums without using a translating program because, well, they suck!

 

[Forkbender]

Dutch is pretty hard to learn and for someone who is not living here for years and years impossible to master. It is one of the hardest languages for english speaking people to pronounce (Try "grachtengordel" :wink and there are many exceptions to grammatical rules (like English, but in its own way, of course). Reading it can be okay if you know some basic things like the structure of verbs and some pronouns and things like that. Also, knowing German pretty much helps a bunch. Plus it is easier to learn for English/American people (don't mention the war, though :wink: ). Knowing at least one Roman language (French, Italian, Spanish, Portugese, Romanian, English to a lesser degree) helps a bit as well, but not really, as Dutch is in another language group. We do have a lot of words coming from Roman languages, so it is not entirely useless.

Another good language course is Pimsleur.

 

[Jakobien]

Dutch is pretty hard to learn and for someone who is not living here for years and years impossible to master. It is one of the hardest languages for english speaking people to pronounce (Try "grachtengordel" :wink and there are many exceptions to grammatical rules (like English, but in its own way, of course). Reading it can be okay if you know some basic things like the structure of verbs and some pronouns and things like that. Also, knowing German pretty much helps a bunch. Plus it is easier to learn for English/American people (don't mention the war, though :wink: ). Knowing at least one Roman language (French, Italian, Spanish, Portugese, Romanian, English to a lesser degree) helps a bit as well, but not really, as Dutch is in another language group. We do have a lot of words coming from Roman languages, so it is not entirely useless.

Another good language course is Pimsleur.

I'd say it's so hard for foreigners to learn dutch because, as soon as the dutch find out you're foreign, they start speaking english with you...adn they'll never stop...

Colleagues of mine have learned excellent dutch in courses (IRL though, without software), it's not impossible

8)

 

[Caduceus Mercurius]

Don't feel discouraged by Forkbender's words. Here are some video's I made to show how similar English and Dutch are. I made the slices myself, and that's my voice you're hearing. The images and words, and their order of appearance and reappearance were all carefully chosen. I made the videos for my Dutch children, to teach them English, but I think they can also be used to learn Dutch words and phrases. I added some jokes to keep it fun to watch.

Lesson 1

Lesson 2

Lesson 3

The other 5 lessons

 

[Forkbender]

Don't feel discouraged by Forkbender's words.

+1!

 

[JustinNed]

Awesome Caduceus, thanks! I'll look in to this a bit more over the week, and btw, I did try and pronounce, 'grachtengordel' and well... yeah

Is it as hard for Dutch speakers to learn English as well?

 

[Forkbender]

^ Not really. English is pretty ubiquitous in our country. Television (lots of English sitcoms/movies/documentaries, which are subtitled instead of dubbed), music, internet. We're confronted with English a lot, even kids. Plus it is mandatory at school. Pronunciation of English isn't that hard for us, because it is generally a lot 'softer'. If I hear people speaking English in another country, I can spot a Dutchman from miles, though.

 

[Mara]

I found this site for you J: http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Dutch

I haven't been able to check it out because the Internet on this computer is very slow. I think they also help you with your pronunciation. I hope it's useful!

 

[JustinNed]

Oh wow, who would of thought of wiki Just something from the page,

" * Les 1: Eenvoudige gesprekken ~ Dutch grammar (introduction), conversations, polite and familiar forms, personal pronouns: subject and object.
* Voorbeeld 1: Poesje en Hondje
* Les 2: Onbekenden en vrienden ~ Verbs (introduction), polite and familiar conversations, word order in questions.
* Les 3: Getallen ~ Numbers 1 to 12, telling time, natural and grammatical gender of animate and inanimate nouns and the reference problem.
* Les 4: Indefinite articles, more pronouns, plural of nouns.

* Herhaling 1-4 ~ Review Point
* Toets 1-4 ~ Test

* Les 5: De weg vinden ~ Asking directions, conjugating regular verbs in the present .
* Les 6: Numbers 13-100, simple math, colors. Past and perfect tense
* Les 7: Samenstellingen - Gluing words together - Diminutives
* Les 8: Er and the pronominal adverbs. Pronominal replacement. Translating its.

* Herhaling 5-8 ~ Review Point
* Toets 5-8 ~ Test

* Les 9: Zullen, kunnen and laten. Future and conditional.
* Les 10: Separable verbs.
* Les 11: Word order. Conjunctions and subjunctions
* Les 12: Passive voice.
* Les 13: Adjectives revisited
* Les 14: Verbal nouns
* Les 15: Modal particles, case endings
* Les 16: Review of werkwoorden verbs
* Les 17: Adverbs and Prepositions
* Les 18: More about word order of separable verbs"

 

[JustinNed]

Just got the time to check out your links Caduceus, thanks! Incredibly, that must of taken you quite a lot of time.

EDIT: And by the way, what's nicer to know in Dutch than, hondepoep!