Game Plan: Learning Russian (take two)

Okay, I seriously don’t know what happened to the post I just spent the last twenty minutes writing. So, redo.

I would like to say that I’ve been busily writing those reviews I need to catch up on, but truth is I have a renewed interest in learning Russian. And that’s where I’ve been this past couple of days. I promise I’m not goofing off! Here’s proof.

Learning a second language has been one of my goals for years and Russian has been my target language for the past two or three. I’m behind mainly because I keep pushing it to the side. As much as I want to learn another language, work and school are my priorities (and they still are) but I need to make more of an effort to incorporate Russian into my daily routine, even if only for thirty minutes.

So, my game plan. So I can hold myself accountable.

1. Practice reading in Russian for ten minutes a day. Currently, I suck at pronunciation. I can read fairly well, but I’m still trying to get the hang of stressed and unstressed letters. Hopefully by reading I can pick this up.
2. Practice writing in Russian for ten minutes a day. Because I’m a writer. And because writing seems to make things sink in and help me to recognize patterns (in my first draft I listed examples, but I’m too tired to pull it up again. They’re written in my language journal which is tucked away since I’m just about ready to sleep!).
3. Start a vlog. Which is for my eyes only! Possibly. Maybe. For now at least. Reading and writing helps, but keeping a daily vlog will probably help with my pronunciation.
4. Add three words to my vocabulary list. Because it’s good practice, especially if I use a partial phrase to help students learn, like “This is a [insert vowels].”
5. Practice three phrases per week. Because I agree with polyglot Olly Richards. We hardly use single words to communicate. When we do, it is generally spoken in phrases. This will teach me something new.

So there you have it. Game plan! Can’t wait to check back in. See you then