Getting used to the Audio

I am listening to the audio every day and getting used to it.

Text to speech

I am building my own vocabulary list which I am going to change to an mp3 file! I am using this software http://www.naturalreaders.com/

I have started listening to linguaphone and am looking at Arabic grammar videos on Youtube! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qeVARcizHHY I aim to get the grammatical system down this week.

Arabic day 2

I got linguaphone Arabic today and I am listening to it. I am aiming at using as many resources as possible. I am going to get Assimil and listen to that as that is supposed to be the best possible resource. Throughout my career as a linguist I have focused on the written language, and I am focusing on the oral and aural aspects now.

Learning Arabic

I am learning Arabic. I have taken a break from actually studying any foreign languages after I completed my training with Alexandre Coutu who is one of the most senior linguists in Canada last year. My proudest achievements in linguistics are passing tests with translation agencies and copywriting my own language learning tools. As I have alluded to before, the academic system diminished a great deal of my interest in foreign languages as I felt the whole thing screwed me over. Over the next few days I am planning on reading an Arabic grammar book and forming my study plan. I am aiming at downloading massive amounts of Arabic audio files and listening to them on my mp3 player. Things to do today: Fix my laptop Read several articles on Arabic Grammar Download freely available Mp3 files on English to Arabic

A new Anki deck with the capital of every sovereign state in the world https://www.dropbox.com/s/ns2lwh8pbxzg0wp/all%20the%20world%20capitals.anki

Premier League Football

When I was embarking on my language career at college and university i was described as the "model student" and "the first person to write something down". I was accoladed, praised and awarded. I even got offered to do a PhD at SOAS, the best language school in the country. Deep down inside I new that I was a big fish in a small pond. The gap between this and professional competence was huge. I still had a long way to go and this was a big blow to me. I recommend the following steps to get to professional competence as a translator in a foreign language: Mix with serious individuals be it online or in real life - the chess club was a big plus for me. Get a serious grasp on the language of choice. I will write about this in another post. Mix with professional translators. Have high standards of professionalism. These were not drilled into me at university. Hire somebody to get you to a higher level. This was an EXCELLENT move for me and has revolutionized the way I translate!! I can't recommend it enough. Join forums to swim as a smaller fish in a bigger pool. This was a big help to me Don't be put off by spoilt rich kids who have spent ages in their country of choosing. I have only lived in Japan for twenty days and I realistically realise that verbal fluency is a near impossible goal.