I’m stuck! I managed the first lesson really well, took me a week but I felt good, I could say a few things in Welsh. But I’m still stuck on lesson two and now lesson 4 has arrived in my inbox! The problem is i keep fluffing up the transition - I know there is a pause button but that doesn’t help when you have forgotten the English sentence in its entirety. I miss things like ‘how’ or ‘still’. I kept going back and after a week was only halfway through the lesson so could not sign off. I’m now so far behind I don’t think I can catch up.
What you’re describing is completely normal! Your brain needs to get used to this new way of learning and it takes a little time to get into the swing of it.
Most people also struggle with remembering all of the English, and I’ve lost count of the number of times people say “I just keep forgetting to put that word for ‘how’ in there!” so you’re very much in good company.
The good news is that those people who went through that a few months ago are now confidently having Welsh conversations, and you can get there too.
Don’t let yourself get too far behind and start feeling overwhelmed though. Send an email to admin@saysomethingin.com and ask for a pause or to be set back a couple of weeks in the course. That will give you a breather so you can gather up some confidence and go at it again.
I’m not a new learner, actually read Welsh reasonably well, and can string a written paragraph together given time. However I have failed to become a confident speaker. I hoped this course would help, but 3 weeks in I’m on week 2 and struggling to grasp the words in time. I seem to need at least 30 minutes, not 6 everyday.
The vocabulary is mostly there, but it doesn’t come out quickly enough.
Help!
Hi @sue-northcott! It sounds like you may be doing better than you think. It is still early days, and the target is to get something out in the gap provided, not perfection every time. It took me a while to accept that, and I still struggle with it and use the pause/back buttons when I get flustered. You are not the only person who has felt that way, it is quite normal.
I use other methods to help me remember and review vocabulary, like creating a flashcard deck using Anki that I can use to study on my phone or computer. I also practice thinking in Welsh, talking to my cat in Welsh, describing my various activities to myself in Welsh whenever possible, and generally living as much of my life in Welsh as I can since I spend a lot of time alone at home. I have also been practicing starting the Welsh as soon as I can while I am still listening to the English during the challenges, which gives me more time in the gap. It doesn’t always work out for my memory, but I’m sticking with it.
I say keep up the good work, and maybe others will have more advice for you. Dal ati!
Firstly, I would cut yourself some slack as it sounds like you are doing really well
I would take it as it comes and ultimately however long it takes…but… don’t aim for perfection on a per lesson basis - and this is a tough one for a lot of people (me including) who are used to more traditional learning methods.
The repetition in the course is designed to get you there in the end - and this suits the way the brain processes things for listening and speaking.
The ability to speak and to have the Welsh planted in the bit of the brain ready for creative speech is different to fact recall and writing.
At school I spent several years learning Welsh and could write an essay - but could never really speak - crazy really. Speaking was the cherry-on-the-cake of the method at that time.
This method is a whole different approach - speaking comes first and an essay would come last - although obviously they converge in the long term.
So I would say trust the process- it is one of the most surprising things I’ve done - but…it works.
After all these years - I can now speak Welsh at least by my own measure!
I found the first challenge really hard , I’m not Welsh and my Wife who is kept bursting into laughter at my pronunciation!
Single words I got but some of the really welsh words like to practice for example has me worried.
I also seems to forget quickly !
Tony
Hey Tony, the first challenge has been really hard for most of us!
Don’t worry, also if at the end of it you have the impression to remember nothing at all.
It will probably take some time before words stick , especially some of them - it was the same for me, I can say.
They come up again and again in next challenges, so you will become familiar with them.
But if I were you I’d consider not allowing wife in the same room when you…ymarfer!
(or just learn to let them laugh without getting discouraged).
Learning new things take a bit of effort and patience, so…dal ati and pob lwc!
I have been on week 4 for 2 weeks now. Admittedly we buried my father in law this week so have been distracted. However, i feel as though i will never be able to get my brain to go quick enough to do the translations without the pause button. I can work it out if i pause for long enough but despite around half an hour at least 4-5 times a week just can’t get quick! Should i stay behind until the quickness cones or keep moving forward if i can do the translations slowly still using the pause buttons ??
I’m sorry to hear about your bereavement @jo-king . I’ve heard quite a lot of people saying it is better to not use the pause button. But i used it heavily all through the course and didn’t worry about it at all i didn’t repeat many challenges, i was more concerned about learning new words and moving on. I’m now going through the whole course again and can do it without the pause button this time, so I’m definitely getting somewhere there must be a good reason that people say it’s better not to pause, but i just felt i enjoyed it more without feeling that pressure, and i wanted to keep enjoying it x
I’m sorry for your loss @jo-king. That’s hard any time and especially at this time of year in this horrible year.
The way I think of it is I spend a week working on each challenge then I move on. Don’t worry about not being able to do the next one if you can’t do this one. Firstly, the next one often focuses on slightly different material, and secondly it’s amazing what sleep and hearing the same material in different contexts does for consolidating your knowledge.
The most important thing is to turn up and put in the practice. If you do that it genuinely will come eventually.
So sorry to hear your news, Jo.
There’s plenty on all of our minds at the moment, and even more for you.
I’d say move on now as you will be revising the stuff again that was new to you. A few constructions completely escaped me for the whole course, but when I came across them elsewhere at the end of the course they clicked into place and that process made them stick with me even more than if I had understood them the first time.
I’m sure no-one will mind you using the pause at this time. Some students will even be having a week off. So just do what you feel like doing and enjoy a new approach with your learning just for a couple of weeks and you’ll be ready to push ahead again in the new year.
@jo-king I would say, if you need to use the pause button then use it as much as necessary. I have always made prolific use of the pause button and without it would have given up in frustration long ago. For those who don’t need to, that’s fine. But for those of us that do, that’s equally fine. We all have slightly different learning aptitudes and what is appropriate for one is not necessarily so for the next person. I now have regular chats in Welsh but still have a long way to go.
Many thanks for re-assurance, Alan. I should have faith to go at my own pace but it is easy to get anxious and i know that interferes with learning. Lovely to have these encouraging responses.
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i didn’t repeat many challenges, i was more concerned about learning new words and moving on. I’m now going through the whole course again and can do it without the pause button this time, so I’m definitely getting somewhere 
there must be a good reason that people say it’s better not to pause, but i just felt i enjoyed it more without feeling that pressure, and i wanted to keep enjoying it x