I am an enthusiastic beginner here - now up to lesson 6 (just a baby really) and finding the course very inspiring. I’m a musician (Harp, Fiddle, Flute and Pibgorn!) who loves the folk music of Wales and I hope that learning the language will help enormously in terms of getting to grips with the rich culture and history.
OK - my question: How far into the course does one have to be to benefit from (and cope with) a ‘Say-Something’ Boot Camp? I understand that all learners are different and have different styles of learning etc but - there I;m looking for a sort of benchmark that I can aim for - e.g. completed course one or perhaps two? - before booking a place.
Do you experienced learners have any recommendations?
The general rule for bootcamp is that you need to have finished course 1 and the course 1 vocab units. After that you’re good to go! I’ll be going for the first time in Sept, so can’t give you any info/advice on the actual experience yet, but it sounds absolutely fantastic! I’m sure others will fill you in.
Pob lwc with the rest of the course. Look forward to hearing how it goes.
Hi, Wolfy!
I recommend using what you’ve got as soon as possible in preparation for a “Bootcamp” : If your living in Wales it really is everywhere and I’d start with greeting everyone with a “Bore da!”…You could be very surprised at the response. If your outside of Wales listening to Radio Gymru is a great way of tuning into the rhythm of the language - even if you understand only the odd word . Also, you could try to find a Skype partner on the Forum.
From my observation here in Kent those who start using the language as soon as possible, converse
with others from the off - using whatever Welsh they have - make rapid progress. The Bootcamps being icing on the cake…
The only two ‘rules’ about Bootcamp are (1) you must have finished Course 1 lessons & Course 1 vocab units before going, even if you’ve done other Welsh courses in the past (I know this doesn’t apply in your case, but mentioning just for completeness), and (2) speak only Welsh during the week. Obviously, the more beyond Course 1 that you’ve done, the better you’ll be able to communicate and understand, but I went for the first time when I was about 2/3rds of the way through Course 2 and had a blast!
I’d echo Dinas and say use whatever you have as soon as you can, as often as you can, and try not to over-think before you speak, and really don’t worry about mistakes. Mistakes are your friends in disguise.
And listening to Radio Cymru is good for the reasons mentioned. By and large I think the speakers there are fairly clear, and it’s a blast when you first begin to recognise words and phrases you learned on the course or for yourself “in the wild”, even if you aren’t understanding whole sentences.
I used to find I could only listen to it for shortish periods, since I wasn’t understanding much and it became a strain after too long. But I can listen for much longer now, presumably because I’m picking up more words and phrases, and it’s slowly beginning to make more sense. I think you can do both active and passive listening, depending how awake you feel, or how much attention you are able to give it, etc, and both sorts of listening have their value.
All the above advice is being inwardly digested - and I’m strengthening my plan as well as my resolve.
I live near Hull and I believe there is a Welsh society there who well may be welcoming of a displaced Geordie of Scots parents! So I may yet get some face to face practice as well as my daily deciphering of Welsh folk songs. The radio idea is good too - when I needed to brush up some French this practice certainly helped.
I think I’ll relax and enjoy the rest of course one (and vocab) at my own pace of little and often (twice or thrice a day in short bursts of ten minutes (with the pause button never far from reach). After this I’ll take the litmus test of a holiday on Mon (Angelsey) or nearby, give others and myself a good laugh at my expense and consider a first ‘Boot Camp’ experience.
The course is really good - having attempted to learn other languages via the conventional methods I can safely say that ‘Saysomething’ is the most effective and inspiring method I’ve encountered. I’m certainly having more fun than poor Rhod Gilbert it seems:
Apologies to all who have already seen the you-tube clip!
Shwmae Wolfy, a chroeso i’r fforwm!
Having just done my first Bootcamp this week, I can tell you that you’re in for a treat!
Firstly, I echo everything that has been mentioned here for preparation for Bootcamp.
Secondly, once you have booked, and that time comes when you go to Bootcamp, the important (yet unwritten) rule is to have fun! Don’t worry about making mistakes, or of how much Welsh your fellow boot campers have. Just immerse yourself, join in, and enjoy! The only rule you will have is that you must speak only Welsh for the ENTIRE week - that is it! The rest is what you make of it. It’s definitely a worthwhile experience, you will make new friends who may well be in the same boat as you, or may be on their 2nd+ Bootcamp, but you will all find yourselves supporting each other, learning new things - if not just survival tips in your new language! It really is a lot of fun and I will recommend it to anyone! Just finish course 1 and vocabs as a minimum and you’re away! The rest is down to you! Note: this isn’t my review from the June 2014 Bootcamp. That will follow…eventually!
I agree with Gavin. The most important thing to remember - even more important than any of the Welsh you’ll have learned up until then, is that it’s a holiday. If there’s anything you genuinely don’t want to do, there’s no pressure (beyond speaking Welsh, but if you’re going to Bootcamp, I’d hope that’s something you really DO want to do ). Thing is, if you just relax, the Welsh will come (though beer does help ), and you’ll probably end up surprising first language speakers who’ll assume you’ve been learning for years.
