Hello! New Learner Questions and Concerns

Hi Everyone! I just started doing Level One for Northern Welsh and I’m trying to follow Aran’s advice just to press through without going back, but I suppose I’m needing a little reassurance. I find that I get to the end of the lesson and cannot remember much of anything (although by the next day I do remember more than I thought I did). I did lesson 4 today and feel as though barely anything sunk in. Does anyone else have this experience? Even halfway through the lesson I find I can’t remember what we did at the beginning of the lesson. I’m not using the pause button but very infrequently manage to get the phrase out in the time allotted. Any advice / hand-holding would be much appreciated!

Also, a slightly different topic: anyone in the San Francisco Bay Area who would like to get together and practice?

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Croeso, Beth! What you’re experiencing right now is completely normal, so don’t worry at all. You’ll find that as you progress through the course, the bits that just didn’t seem to stick will come naturally without you even thinking about them! :smile:

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As well as what Karla said, it’s fairly normal to feel a bit “punch drunk” at the end of the lessons in the beginning, and you might well not think you remember anything.

But you will have remembered more than you think, subconsciously, and that’s the magic of this method.

In fact, I think I’m right in saying that at no time in any of the courses does Aran ask you to make a conscious effort to remember anything. (In fact, if you tried to make a conscious effort to remember … like we all used to have to at school) it would probably be counter-productive.

In a way, it’s not our job to remember: it’s Aran’s job to design the course in such a way that we just do. And so far, it seems to have worked pretty well.

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You not remembering something midway through the lesson is perfectly normal, and is in fact why the lessons are structured the way they are. The effort of trying to remember a thing when it’s right on the cusp of being forgotten makes it easier to remember in the future - that’s why spaced repetition is so effective. Also, your brain needs rest after learning. It needs you to go to sleep, so it can go ahead and sort out all that new information you’ve given it, that must be important because you kept trying to recall it. That’s why you find it easier to remember the next day. The only real advice I can give you is to relax. Don’t stress about the time given; don’t beat yourself up over mistakes; just relax. Maybe after you’ve done lesson five, you should redo lesson 2 - not because the lesson needs redoing, but to show yourself that yes, you have actually learned the material.

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Hi, welcome to the forum! All the above, plus…

When I first do a lesson I allow myself pause button use. Second time over I try to use as little as possible.

This is my general rule; however, these days I can usually run straight through and I wonder if that is because I am used to the process?

Last thing, I find I remember more if I do the lessons while carrying out another activity. I find it almost impossible to sit down quietly and just do a lesson. I tend to do them on the drive to work and I know that some people do them when doing housework, ironing etc. For me the effort of actually trying to concentrate hard makes it more diificult. Pob lwc! :slight_smile:

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Croeso, Beth!
Karla’s right - these courses are very very clever and so you will find that in later lessons the bits that you didn’t remember at first have all perfectly sunk in. Aran says that we should change how we view our leaning experience and that we should see it less like a process that we need to control. I have found that letting go of control and trusting the courses is a very pleasant experience in itself and it works!

I have one sugesstion, though - it works for me non to say the sentences automatically, but to try and imagine them pronounced in different speaking contexts. I then try to use the same intonation I would use when I’m asking, refusing etc. Which is why my poor relatives can always hear some indignant “Dw i ddim yn moyn siarad gyda ti!” or the sad and regretful “Wnes i ddim cerdded i’r dafarn ddoe” (I didn’t go to the pub yesterday) coming from my room:)

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That is a great suggestion–I’m going to try adding context as I practice. I can see how that will help me to learn faster :smile:

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thank you! So far I’ve been doing the lessons while seated at my desk staring at my computer, but I’m going to try incorporating other activities–I can see how that would help let my brain do more work for me. :smile:

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thank you all for your kind words of encouragement! I did challenge 5 today and it already felt less frantic because I relaxed. I made lots of mistakes, but that’s okay. :grinning: I’ll get there!

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Mistakes are just as important as the stuff you get right. Embrace them! :smile:

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Croeso Beth,
Remember, don’t worry about it! You do get there in the end.Just enjoy it.I found the more I tried to work things out on an intellectual level the more I became confused.It’s all been worked out for you in the way the course has been formulated so just keep ploughing forward.Many people say it’s best to listen to each lesson and then go straight on to the next. For myself I listened to each one twice and then moved on.Probably because I was having so much fun I wanted to hear each one again. Everything in each lesson is repeated throughout the course so does sink in with time. Its a bit like muddy water where the silt eventually settles into organised layers with, perhaps bedrock somewhere as a firm base.
It is difficult to get the words out quickly
enough at first but you get used to starting to speak in Welsh while still listening to the end of the English sentence.

All best wishes.

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If you’re trying to remember earlier stuff while you’re still in the middle of a session, you’re going to lose focus on the next phrase (which is always the most important!) - so I’m very glad to hear that you’re starting to take a more relaxed approach, because it will make an important difference to your learning… :smile:

[Otherwise, of course, everyone else has already given you exactly the input you need…:sunny: ]

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Thank you, Maureen! I’ve definitely relaxed a great deal since I wrote that post :smile:
Everyone has been lovely and helpful!

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