Hi guys. So finished l3. Need practice. I live in England. I will be trying in the wild when we holiday in n Wales but need to practice outside of that. I have tried a couple of Skypes- the people were lovely but I don’t feel comfortable doing it. Not because of the Welsh but the awkwardness of Skype. It feels false and I can’t think of what to say (would be same in English). Same with the other digital options here - no real reason for conversation. The only thing I can think of is Skype lessons- where maybe a teacher would role play real situations or guide the talk. Does anyone have any other ideas?
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Wow, well done - L3 is a major achievement! That is a lot of hard work…you are well on the way!
My first thought is, is there a group near you? I live in York (for example) and go to a meeting in Leeds? So, the locations of the meetings can be surprising?..
@Deborah-SSi knows where the meetings are dependent on your location …?
Rich 
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I know you say you’re not keen on digital options, but the regular Hangouts on Slack are absolutely great. They are semi-structured, so you are not left groping around for something to say. Some of the same people show up every week so it becomes very friendly, but also very welcoming to newcomers.
I am sure @siaronjames would welcome you to her Friday night Dangos a Dweud ( show and tell) hangout, where folks bring objects to share, talk a little bit about them and then answer questions. It’s huge fun and great for building both vocabulary and confidence.
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Congratulations! That’s a huge milestone and something of which to be very proud! 
I understand about Skype being difficult, I feel the same way, but when there’s structure it’s very different. I agree with Catriona that Siaron’s Show and Tell is worth a try.
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Absolutely, you’d be very welcome Vicky - and if you’re not sure how my hangout normally works and would like a taster, I’d be very happy to give you a 1-to-1 example so you’d know what to expect before trying it out with others in a proper hangout (and that goes for anyone else unsure of their hangout-confidence-level 
)
Are you already signed up to the Slack Welsh Speaking Practice group? (if not, we can get you signed up). That’s the platform I work from. At first I wasn’t keen on online chats either for exactly because I found it felt awkward too, just as you did, and it took a bit of persuasion to get going, but I’ve seen the huge improvements in the speaking abilities of people using the group, so it really is worth considering.
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Congratulations Vicky! Well done! 
As for the question - since I’m even further than Wales, unfortunately - I can tell I’m not a fan of talking through the web myself.
But the groups and people on Slack practice groups (mentioned and answering before my post) are really nice and I think it’s very useful to practice speaking.
(and I’ll try to hang out there more often when I finish Level 3!)
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I sympathise. I found Skype chats very awkward at first because I could never think of anything to say and it wasn’t the language, I find it hard to chat with people I don’t know in English. However, since my Skype partner suggested that we ask one another questions, things have gone much better.
Open ended questions are best. On Thursday we were chatting about our first jobs and which were our best and worst jobs. Other questions that produced interesting chats were things like: Where did you live as a child? What was the area like? Is it different to where you live now? What was the first record you bought? Do you enjoy shopping? Or you can be more imaginative! I was asked: If I were a witch, what animal would be my familiar?
Otherwise you might like to try the hangouts. Unfortunately the timing is not usually convenient for me, but as they’re more structured, you avoid the desperately scrabbling around for something to say problem.
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Which part of England are you in Vicky? You might have people nearby in a similar situation who’d want to practice over a coffee.
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If you get the weekly newsletter, it has a list of SSiW meetups at the end and they are scattered across England as well as Wales
Thanks all. I’m going to look for an online tutor I think. I need the structure, payment will force me to not duck out , and I don’t have to worry about maintaining the conversation
Have you considered the structured SSIW courses Vicky, I completed the 6 month one last year and found it kept me very focused. You get an e mail each Monday with tasks for that week to complete and sign off. It covers Levels 1 and 2. There are video sessions where you can ask questions in English or speak in Welsh to a tutor, various channels to join according to your level where you can post any queries and one of our very approachable and friendly tutors Dee and Nia will answer and sometimes a fellow learner will share their experiences. There is an offer on at the moment too. Pob lwc with whatever you choose.
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