skip to main |
skip to sidebar
Polish 101
Cheshch ("hello")! As you may have guessed, we are working on language lessons. I don't think we've gotten very far yet, but it's not for lack of trying. Now that the intense paperwork is behind us (with the dossier) we are doing our best to jump in with both feet and learn as much Polish as we can. I met a new friend this week who I know will be a wonderful help in the future when it comes to all things Polish. We attend the same church and she started a Polish women's group which is very active and vibrant. She recommended the Usborne book "First Thousand Words in Polish".
It was difficult to find this online (it appears to be out of print) although Usborne does offer a book of "One Hundred Words in Polish" (instead of one thousand). Thankfully, our local library had a copy and I highly recommend it for children. They also have an online quicklink with more interactive options (here). I can't say that we know how to pronounce the words yet, but our boys have enjoyed it, and I think it would be a nice tool also with our child (or children) in Poland.
In terms of resources for Jim and me, I ran across a .pdf file with a ton of basic words and phrases here. My new Polish friend also told me that the Polish American Cultural Center in Cleveland (Slavic Village) offers language classes too. I wish we could do that but it's an hour away from us, and with our schedule I know it wouldn't be possible. Still, nice to know. We also took the plunge and ordered Rosetta Stone. I definitely need audio assistance because I really struggle when I'm just reading the words, I need to actually hear it...over and over.:) I know once I get the basics it will be just a matter of building on that, but it is still intimidating at this point. That is what my blog title is all about though... "joy in the journey", this is an adventure and I am grateful for every confusing and amazing part of it!:)
I also bought the Rosetta stone and Pimsleurs basic Polish. My advice is to not get hung up on all of the masculine feminine differences that you will see with the Rosetta stone...learn nouns and verbs. I learned almost enough to get by as a traveler in Poland and all of the nouns and verbs help with the girls. We have also learned a lot of words while being here with the girls. Some of the words that have really helped-street, store, car, train, all of the colors, numbers, good, not good, listen, breakfast, lunch, dinner, drink, eat, sleep, goodnight, good morning, and of course I love you! For example i will say be careful there are lot of samochod (car)-that way they know I am talking about a car and I can't tell you how quickly they pick up on the rest. I was so worried about the language-but it is amazing how well we communicate with each other. In fact the younger one told the social worker she speaks perfect English:) What you are doing is great and the more you know the better off you will be!
ReplyDelete