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The Teach Yourself One-day language series is great if you are off
on holiday and don't want to learn the full ins and outs of a language.
It's a 75-minute CD with a small vocabulary booklet for back up
containing the 50 most needed words for your trip. With One-day
Greek, the help of characters Liz and Andy and the vocab booklet,
you can learn the basics of holiday lingo in just over an hour.
There are 10
sections on the CD and each of them has vital vocabulary lists which
are also available in the booklet. I found that the CD would be
especially useful for holiday-makers, as the series took me back
to the days when learning how to ask for something in a shop was
a chore and directions seemed so confusing.
When I first
started the CD, as a complete beginner to Greek, I found it daunting.
In the first section, Liz asked Andy about Greek words he already
knew. This made me feel slightly apprehensive, as I had assumed
the course would be for pure beginners and not beginners with a
prior knowledge of the language. It turned out that the words he
knew were only words he would have picked up from holidaying in
Greece once - such as hello! Apart from this he was actually a pure
beginner.
Towards the
middle of the CD, Liz begins to introduce the sections with everyday
role play situations. These are very fast and difficult to understand
at first, but the good thing with this is that you can hear Greek
at a proper speed and adjust to a real Greek accent. Liz then goes
on to explain exactly what was said and how you would pronounce
it. I found that I had to repeat the CD a number of times in order
to hear the pronunciation and really take it in.
The format of
the CD is effective, but some of the scripts seem to be forced and
it was often hard to answer the questions as Andy's answer was often
said straight away. It is therefore a good idea to pause the CD
once Liz has asked the question, think of the answer yourself, say
it out loud and then check it against the answer that Andy gives
on the CD.
At the end of
the CD, there is a recap section going back over the whole course
or the "one-day Greek challenge" (which sounds a lot more
fun than recapping!). I found this a great way of actually discovering
what I had learnt in Greek and what I had managed to remember. The
challenge works in a way that makes it easy for you to skip back
to the relevant section if you have forgetten any of the words.
So you can keep revising and repeating the course until you can
do the challenge standing on your head.
I found the vocabulary easier to remember by doing the series over
a few hours rather than cramming it in to just one 75 minute session.
For me to listen to Liz and Andy continuously for 75 minutes would
have been a slight drag, but with breaks it is bearable and you
can actually get the corny 'gag' that Andy has said out of your
head!
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This
CD is a fab way of learning the local language and maybe even
managing to socialise, having a conversation with the locals
and jumping onto a bus and knowing what you have to say.
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Bearing all this
in mind, this CD is a fab way of learning the local language and
maybe even managing to socialise by having a conversation with the
locals and jumping onto a bus and knowing what you have to say.
It is also excellent value for money as it only costs £6.99
in the UK.
The only thing
left for me to do now is go holidaying in Greece and really put
this learning CD to the test. Adio!
Click
here for more information about all Teach
Yourself One-day language courses.
Click here for more information about all Teach
Yourself language courses.
Click
here for more information about the best and most innovative Greek
language courses.
If
you require any further information, please contact
us.
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