Happy new year dear all – gott nytt år! A big thank you to all my customers and supporters 2014.
The last Swedish lesson this year I gave this morning, via Skype – yes, on New years eve – and on Friday the 2nd I will have my first meeting 2015; with an expat family.
Looking forward to meet you all in 2015!
Gott nytt år!
Charlotta
In my previous post I promised to provide links to instructions for Christmas craft in Swedish. Why? Because it is fun, and because it is a way for you to activate both brain hemispheres when learning the Swedish language, which is beneficial for your acquisition hereof.
I practiced this method myself yesterday when I tried to fold a small star from an instruction in German. I did not succeed in making the star but I did learn a new German word – which I now have a visual of in my head; working on different sections of paper ribbons across one another. I tried to fold it anew this morning from a Swedish video but have to say I did not manage that one either on the first go :).
So, which Christmas craft will you do first? Below you find three suggestions. How about sending me a pic of your master piece when you are done? I will happily put it in my FB timeline.
If you go here you will learn how to make a “smällkaramell” (see photo above) in Swedish. Sveriges Radio is providing the written instruction, with illustrations.
Below is a link to Barnens bokklubb, who provides a pdf for the task of folding a traditional paper heart. Yes I would like to make a heart – show me the instruction in Swedish! Pdf.
Here is a link to Arla’s video on how to make a paper star. Video; for you to practice your listening skills.
Good luck! Lycka till!
Koppången. The name of a nature preserve in the Swedish region of Dalarna. You will learn the name today however because it is also the name of an amazingly beautiful Swedish song. It was released in 1998 by Per-Erik Moraeus; lyrics by Py Bäckman.
The song gains in popularity every Christmas time.
Koppången has been recorded by numerous artists; this version is sung by Sanna Nielsen and is also supported by musiXmatch for you to follow the lyrics visually. You can find musiXmatch as an app in Spotify.
Instrumental – oh so wonderful, but you are missing out on practicing the Swedish vocabulary – unless you have learned some of the lyrics already and want to sing along on your own!
Do you get Swedish humor? It might not merely be about understanding the Swedish language …
Watch a video clip from the new Swedish comedy show “Inte OK!” (“Not OK”) on TV3. This particular clip portraits different social media types. It is in Swedish but there is probably no need to understand the language – I think the video speaks for itself. 🙂 Watch it here.
Do you think Swedish social media types, or their frequency, differ from other cultures’? Leave a comment.
Wordlist
arbetsnarkomanen – the workaholic
sociala medier-junkien – the social media junkie
faktagranskaren – the fact checker
traditionalist – the traditionalist
Let’s build some sentences in Swedish today! Use this game – Bella Bävers ordlek – to make sentences; silly ones or perfectly normal ones – you decide! Click “spela upp meningen” to hear the result. It’s a children’s game and kids most definitely have a lot of fun playing this. I am sure it can amuse an adult or two too, and you will most likely pick up some new vocabulary while reinforcing how to make simple sentences in Swedish. 🙂
The word game can be found on the Swedish Radio’s website.
Every year Swedish radio channel P1 lets Swedish celebrities from every walks of life (artists, athletes, politicians, business gurus, ministers etc.) host a daily show. These programs are very popular, and topics and music vary a lot. Last week the summer hosts of 2014 were revealed. Listening to the show is a good way to keep up your Swedish as well as to keep up to date with what’s the talk of the town in Sweden.
Click here to read about it / listen in easy Swedish (Klartext P1)
Find the complete list of hosts here Sommarvärdarna 2014
Do you want to know how a word in a foreign language is pronounced? Or do you want to fine tune your Swedish pronunciation? One way to do it is to take a look at the website of Acapela. This site provides native speaking voices for 30 different languages; often also different local dialects as well as several voices to chose from. I tried Swedish and I think it works well. You just type in/paste the word or text you want to hear. So go ahead and listen to the pronunciation in Swedish of that special word you are wondering about or need to practice a bit more.
Welcome to my newest website! I have split my first website Globatris, in order to be able to provide you, as well as myself, with a clearer focus on learning and teaching Swedish.
No matter if you are learning Swedish as a foreign language, as a second or as a first language/mother tongue you are most likely looking for a smart and convenient way to learn. I am offering tutoring via Skype to ensure that you can fit lessons around your busy life; enjoying the freedom of being anywhere in the world – for business or for pleasure – and still allow yourself time to invest in your Swedish language proficiency.
“This sounds interesting; take me directly to Lessons to learn more.”
The blog will contain tips and tricks for learning Swedish (sometimes applicable to any language). You will also find posts on Swedish culture and traditions to improve your sense of belonging to Sweden and the language; whether you live here or not, whether you travel here in real life or in your armchair.
Alright; let’s begin!
Låt oss börja!
Charlotta
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