Use it or lose it (BloG)

rafael_willems“Hoi!” from Rafael Willems, in beautiful Maastricht, my birth town (some say it’s a city), where Dutch literature started with Henric van Veldeke – and, by the way, the € took off too. It’s up to you: what is more important?

Below you’ll find notes about learning the Dutch language. The date of publication is below each blog.

* Waterval liedjes/songs


Dutch songs hard to find?/Nederlandse liedjes moeilijk te vinden?
Click here, above!/Klik hierboven! (18 november 2021)

* Learning Dutch – when nobody speaks it to me 🙂

Groep expats switcht naar Nederlands omdat er ook een Nederlander bij komt zitten

Learning Dutch is hard, when the Dutch insist on speaking English. Talking English is a quick fix, where talking Dutch really helps you integrate. How about some slow thinking and long term goals?

(4 mei 2019)

 * NEDERLANDS? PRAAT HET OF LAAT HET!

  • You know “use it or lose it”? I’ve been looking for a good translation of the English saying, because it goes for any language, in particular Dutch. Walk it, talk it, use it in your everyday life, or let it, forget it, don’t even start. Therefore: ‘NEDERLANDS? PRAAT HET OF LAAT HET!’ Talk Dutch wherever and whenever it is possible, because otherwise it is not going to stick, let alone develop. That’s the most important tip you get.
  • Dutch is no easy language, with its Germanic grammar. Expect to find more verbs at the end of a sentence than you would expect there:

Words going to the end.

 

 

 

  • The good news: reading and spelling are fairly easy. Plus: the Dutch are quite pragmatic, and I am too. And so is my teaching: no Double Dutch, but straightforward, helpful, classical education. Expect good explanation, effective exercises and lots of speaking and writing!

* Learning Dutch by conversation

Talking about things of interest to the pupil is the best way to learn.  Education means communication, which implies mutual interest. Positive interaction with other human beings is the core of learning a language: that’s why you can only learn to speak Dutch by speaking it. The Beginners Courses are more “structured”, because we want you to know the basic rules before you start talking. You always get both oral and written feedback (online, to practice) to all you say and write, because that makes you grow.

* Learning Dutch by pleasure

Being able to communicate in a different language and feeling you grow is fun. And although pleasure is an effect of good education, it’s a condition too. You can’t memorize boring things and you can’t learn when you don’t feel good. We aim to make you feel at ease in our classes, trying to understand how it is to live in another country and learn a new language. We hope you experience our education as a loop, a spiraling circle – a positive one. Dutch course Waterval

* Learning vocabulary and grammar

The bricks and mortar of a language, when they are presented the right (playful) way, can be fun too. Using words, e.g. in building sentences and playing games, makes you remember them. Clear rules and explanations give you something to hold on to. normalez       Here, our online possibilities will help you a great deal. You can find every important new word from a book lesson in our online vocabulary trainers – used in an everyday sentences, of course.  The online drills are there to internalize and automatize the rules.

* Learning Dutch: everything goes!

Last but not least: by using a wide scale of means – e.g. children’s books, papers, songs, films – we’ll catch your attention, and learning will be more intense. A language lives in its everyday conversations, its papers, its television programs, its songs, its stories, its plays and games; we use them all. You’ll learn much faster when language situations change a lot!

* Waterval!

How to learn Dutch? Certainly, there are many books that’ll teach you Dutch – some of them even good. There are lots of web sites and apps that may boost your vocabulary. But do they offer an allround solution? Waterval - Learning DutchLet’s use all the possibilities mentioned above.             Here’s a book that does: Waterval! (“waterfall”). There are five Waterval books, leading to A1, A2, B1, B2 and C1+ respectively. They come with cd’s, containing conversations, listening exercises and Dutch songs, and a web site containing computerized exercises with meaningful feedback. The Dutch say: “Hij/Zij is een spraakwaterval“, he or she is a waterfall of speech. That’s what we aim at: to make a fluent speaker of you. You’ll experience a “waterfall of Dutch” at Waterval, a shower of Dutch. Together, we’ll find the mixture that suits you best! How to learn Dutch? By interaction!

 * Teaching cycle

This is how we work in our courses:

Welcome chatHomework review Book dialogue→  Conversation/interactionFeedbackRoleplay GrammarPractice ReadingListeningSpeaking [HomeworkWriting E-learning Tools]

01brief2Example of a writing assignment: write a postcard (lesson 1)!

(2015)

A

Learn Dutch in Maastricht