Glossika method

[vkim67]

 

 

It wouldn't hurt for you to send Glossika an inquiry and post back with their answer.

 

Good idea 

 

Just shot them an email. Also asked for a preview as I was unable to find one for it on google books as I did for modules 1-3. 

 

 

Update:

This is their answer: "The Business Chinese is in Mandarin with Taiwan accent."

Below is the one-page preview. 

 

[giokve]

 

As I said previously, Mike Campbell from Glossika sent me a copy of his pronunciation course to review. If you decide that you'd like to purchase the course, you can do so either on the Glossika website (PDF, Paperback, MP3) or from Amazon (Kindle ebook only, so you have to buy the audio from Glossika).

 

I can't find it anymore on his website. Is it just me??

[Auberon]

Miss Beijing seems to say 冰激凌 rather than 冰淇淋 as in the script; is this another mainland/Taiwan thing?

[EricJMa]

Glossika method [now with discount codes] Is there anymore discount codes?

[ChTTay]

I am currently on day 19 of Glossika fluency one. I have been using the GSR files. Beijing pron

 

I probably started 25 days ago but, when I miss a day, I go back to the previous day. Also, a couple of times I wasn't able to speak outloud (because of where I was or what I was doing) in which case I did that file the next day.

 

The fluency 1 sentences have, thus far, been below my level in a sense. By that I mean that I can easily read them, understand them when heard and repeat them without too much bother. Only once have I had to go and look at the pdf to check the sentence.On the other hand, the reason I wanted to try glossika in the first place is to drill sentence patterns. Get them in my head good n'proper. I know I'm not alone in getting into a conversation only to resort to throwing down nouns and dodgey grammar in the hope of getting my point across (usually works for me these days but im aware of how I sound). I may be able to read it, understand it when I hear it, but being able to quickly and "fluently" produce it is another thing.

 

So far, after 3 weeks, I feel like I've improved. At least the sentences I've been drilling are easier to recall and I find some just roll off the tongue. Of course, I'm not even a quater of the way through the 100 day course and I've not done that many sentences. However, the sentences are all fairly basic and all pretty useful day to day. It's pretty easy to substitute words in them to make more sentences.

 

I chose to use the GSR sentences as I found the GMS sentences and method a bit confusing. I also didn't think I'd be able to keep track of which sentences I've done, need to do etc. I thought it would be a good idea just to dive in with GSR, where the sentences are pre-selected, rather than mess around and delay getting started.

 

I believe someone previously mentioned that the audio files didn't match up with the pdf which made it hard to find which sentences were being read. So far, the GSR audio matches up exactly to the pdf. I just make a note of the page number in the pdf and go back there if I want to have a read of the sentences.

 

I haven't been writing the sentences down as I can pretty much remember them without doing that. When I ride my bike to work, I will often just say them outloud (quietly) to myself as usually there isn't anyone else around OR i'm goingto fast for people walking to really hear me. When the sentences get longer/harder (in fluency 2/3) I will start writing things down. Also, I have only occaisionally been recording myself - mostly to check on my pronunciation rather than the 'flow' of my speach.  I am lucky in that I am in China so have people who can correct my pronunciation if it gets a bit dodgey.

 

I know a few people on here have been putting sentences into ANKI. So far, I don't feel I need to do this but may do so in the future. One question for those who do that, how do you set up the flashcard? Is English on the front and you must translate it to the sentence?

 

I'm not sure it's suitable for an 'absolute beginner'. I would recommend it for someone who has already studied enough to understand basic grammar (maybe HSK3-4). A lot of sentences will be fine to follow and if there is a grammar point you don't understand, it shouldn't be too hard to figure it out or look it up.

 

Actually, I wish this had been available a year or two ago. I am definitely happy with the purchase and I feel that, so far, it's worth the money.

[Mr John]

@ChTTay

 

I'm about half way through the first pack myself, except I'm using the GSM version as I prefer the way it's structured.

 

I'm in the same boat as you. Up until this point I've rarely felt the need to add sentences to anki. However, when I do, I go with the classic English to Chinese formula. So far it works quite well, I can usually hear the recording in my head when I read the English sentence.

 

It has been getting harder recently though. Initially, the sentences were usually only single sentences, and often quite short at that. Now they're getting much longer and contain much more information which is making it harder to reproduce them accurately at a native speed.

 

Personally, I record myself speaking once for every set, which is the c file in the group of three. I think it has been worthwhile, but each to their own.

 

I definitely agree that it would be tough for a complete beginner to use. I think having the basic tones and pronunciation down is the bare minimum required, prior to using it. Also it would be pretty tough if you had to learn all the vocabulary as you went. You could easily end up spending an hour - if not more - on each lesson. Personally, I aim for thirty minutes a day.

 

Agreed, worth every penny.

[Auberon]

 

I definitely agree that it would be tough for a complete beginner to use. I think having the basic tones and pronunciation down is the bare minimum required, prior to using it.

 

I think that would hold true with any language using a primarily audio method.

 

 

Also it would be pretty tough if you had to learn all the vocabulary as you went.

 

I'm finding that an awful lot of vocabulary is simply learning itself with the spaced repetition. I'm suddenly finding myself remembering how to say all sorts of words that I made no conscious effort at all to remember. You do need familiarity with the most basic words and basic grammar, however, in order to identify new vocabulary, but that's not an onerous or time-consuming task with a language like mandarin. Am I learning any new grammatical patterns from it? Like you I'm only about half-way through, and I knew a good deal of them before I started, so it's difficult to tell. It does make me wonder how well the method works with a highly inflected language like Russian, given that it was developed, I understand, for Chinese to English.

[ChTTay]

Thats interesting Mr John, thanks

 

 I'm about half way through the first pack myself, except I'm using the GSM version as I prefer the way it's structured.

 

Would you mind just briefly going through how you organize your time / the sentences?

 

How many new sentences a day/week, how do you decide what to review or do you just review everything?

 

 

I record myself speaking once for every set, which is the c file in the group of three. I think it has been worthwhile, but each to their own.

Are you using Beijing or Taiwan pronunciation?  Do you think recording helps you sound 'more native' or just a way to check on pronunciation?

[Mr John]

@Auberon

 

Good point. I basically agree with ChTTay that having a solid foundation - approximately HSK 3 or higher - would be ideal. I'd say there's usually at most one or two words at present in a given sentence that I haven't learnt before, which makes them quite easy to remember. If there were significantly more than that, I'm not so sure. As you say though, already having the basic grammar and words down would go a long way.

 

Like ChTTay, I use it mostly to reinforce existing knowledge, not primarily for learning new grammar patterns. Still, it's good to get used to understanding and using different ways to express the same idea.

 

@ ChTTay

 

No problem. First, I review the "c track" from the previous days lesson which only contains each sentence said once. Then I listen to the "a track" from the new set, repeating each sentence as I go. As it gives the sentence in English first - if I think I already know how to say it - I try to say the sentence before the Chinese translation is provided. If not, I just listen and repeat during the appropriate pauses. After this, I go through the "b track" which covers the material again in a slighly different way, and repeat the same process. Finally, I listen to the "c track" once, before recording myself over the "c track". The tricky thing is that the pauses are almost identical in length to the sentences themselves, so you have to know them well enough that they roll of your tongue. Having said that, I don't aim for perfection, so even if I screw up a few sentences I move on regardless.

 

That's about it, nothing special, but it works okay for me.

 

P.S - I'm not sure how many sentences I'm covering per day to be honest. I just complete one set, however many that is...

 

P.P.S - I'm using the mainland China version now, having intially started off using the Taiwanese one. Sounding more like a native speaker would be nice, but I'm mainly focusing on improving my fluency with the language.

[Crush]

Each (GMS) mp3 file should contain 50 sentences. I made it about 2/3rds of the way through but got frustrated at a series of sentences with lots of (non-Chinese) names and set it aside. I'd like to try the Beijing set later, but am currently trying to improve my reading.

 

I followed the old course guidelines and was reviewing the past 4 days' worth of material every day:

 

Typical Day's Routine
(If it's your first day, you skip the review steps.)
1. Review the recordings you made yesterday. Anything you want to improve?
2. Before starting today's new recordings of the new sentences from the last four days, first listen to the GMS C files to find any pronunciations you want to improve.
3. Now record the sentences from the last four days as review.
4. Now listen to the B files for the oldest review sentences (interpretation training). Try to translate each sentence without using your text in the space provided. If you fail, don't give up. Mass practice is better than perfect practice. Don't let one or two sentences keep you from progressing.
5. If you feel tired or burned out, then there's no need to do new sentences today. (If it's your first day, you can start here.)
6. Prepare 10-50 new sentences, depending on your time limit and what you're comfortable with. Look them over in the book, then listen to the accompanying GMS A File.
7. Now use either the A files or C files to write down your new sentences. Try to do this without looking at the book. If you're learning a new script, make sure you can do this in IPA or phonetics before trying to master a new script so you don't miss any sounds.
8. Listen to the sentences one more time, then record them yourself. Come back tomorrow and check your recordings.
9. For added benefit, use the accompanying GSR files.

 

If you're actively recording 200-400 sentences per day, you should reach conversational fluency in about 100-200 days depending on the person.

 

So i listened to the last 4 days' C files, then i read the sentences from the book (didn't feel like recording them). After that, i listened to the B files for the oldest 2-3 days. Then i'd learn a new mp3 file by first listening to and repeating with the A file, following it up with the C file twice. Then i'd read that mp3 file's sentences from the book out loud. Usually i split it up into two days, new set one day, review the next. The new set took me around 40 minutes, the review took a little over an hour. The instructions in the new booklet are much less intense, though.

 

Like you all it was basically all review for me apart from learning some Taiwanese vocab/grammar (especially using 有 and 会 all the time).

[crt32]

I'm at day 245, doing a mixture of GMS and GSR.

 

I've tried to do 'actual' GMS, but ended up wasting lots of time fiddling with Audacity and struggling to remember anything at all.

I think doing the GSR files is what really advances my Chinese, but I guess that varies from person to person.

 

I've cut everything up into Anki flashcards, but I'm using Anki just for convenience, not for actual spaced repetition.

I set up my deck such that in each session I review the 40 last sentences and learn 10 new ones, matching the sentences that appear in each GSR file.

On the front I have the English sentence and audio, on the back everything else (including Chinese audio).

I guess you could do this without Anki as well, but I just like to just be able to start reviewing in Anki, not having to do any preparation first.

 

When using Anki, I look at/listen to the English sentence and try to say it in Chinese, recording myself.

Then I look at the back of the flashcard, listening to the Chinese and comparing it to my recording (also using the pinyin and IPA transcriptions).

Afterwards I shadow the native recording a few times, all while recording myself and playing it back to spot any mistakes.

It takes me usually about 15-20 minutes to review 40 sentences and learn 10 new ones.

 

After finishing my Anki session, I do the corresponding GSR file. I've found that only after doing GSR, I can really say those sentences fluently.

Whenever I can, I'm doing two GSR days per day (one in the morning and one in the evening).

 

Besides using Glossika, I'm not attending a class right now. I'm learning all the vocabulary used in the sentences, and occasionally do some reading and listening (mostly TV shows from Taiwan and this for its great variety of accents). I also meet with a language partner once or twice a week.

I think practicing with a language partner (or any native speaker) is essential, because putting together the patterns and vocabulary learned from Glossika into fluent speech also takes practice. As I'm progressing through the Glossika materials, I'm definitely getting a better feeling for the language and can apply all those patterns naturally.

 

Altogether, I'm quite happy about my progress and - most importantly - using Glossika every day is fun for me and does not feel like a chore.

[makochan]

I'm on day 58 and its been great for me as well.  Like ChTTay, all the sentences so far have been words/vocab I've learned in the past.  But Glossika has really helped build up my speed and fluency.  I just re-recorded myself reading something from NPCR 3 and compared it to my recordings from last year and there is definitely a noticeable improvement.  (I'm glad to have made various recordings in the past to track my continual progress =P )

 

My daily routine is also a mixture:

1. Listen to the 10 new sentences from GMS files (takes a few seconds to scrub through the file, but no big deal).

2. I pause the mp3 after each sentence and try to write down the sentence by hand.  (Usually I have no problem with this, the only time I actually have to look at the PDF is when I'm not sure how they wrote the proper nouns for names like Enzo or Antonio, etc.)

3. I record myself reading the 10 sentences (and re-record if I'm not happy with any of them)

4. Switch over to GSR and do the mp3 of the day.

 

Usually takes 30-40min first thing in the morning.  

[JustinJJ]

I found something similar to Glossika sentences for Cantonese which may interest some of you.

http://www.fyan8.com/yysy.htm

http://www.fyan8.com/xueyueyu.htm

[stoney]

Any chance of a discount code again for forum members?

[roddy]

I'll ask, last I heard I think they were keener for us to use an affiliate program. 

[Yadang]

There's a Chinese New Year discount code that's going on right now for 10% off, from the 7th to the 22nd of February:

 

 

loveglossikacny

 

If you go to the glossika website, it's right on the main page.

[querido]

I downloaded the Cantonese package today. Wish me luck.

[naijahusker]

Hi everyone, just a quick question as i try to decide what to get from glossika. Does the Fluency 1-3 (package) for $79.99 have the mainland audio? It doesn't seem to indicate it in the description. I see there is an AUDIO only fluency1-3 version for $49.99 that does explicitly state in the description that it contains both Taipei and Beijing dialects.

[roddy]

No reply on the discount code, I'm afraid. Will edit the title...

[ChTTay]

The fluency pack has both audio files - Taiwan and Beijing. I think it does say there somewhere but perhaps not so clearly.