What it is really like learning three languages at once. | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Student Life

Forget Pre-Med, Try Learning Three Languages At Once

A true insight from a college student into what it is like to be learning three languages at once.

131
Forget Pre-Med, Try Learning Three Languages At Once

As a journalism major at KU, we are required to take two years of a foreign language.

Most people choose Spanish or French. Well, not me.

During high school, I was absolutely horrible at Spanish. Never got A's on tests and could barely pronounce the words correctly. Two very good reasons why I knew I shouldn't take Spanish in college.

However, I decided to take not only one language but three.

Yep, three languages. I am learning Bosnian, Serbian and Croatian.

Currently, we are learning Croatian with bits and pieces of the other languages but starting with the easiest one with the easiest alphabet.

Whenever I tell someone that I am currently learning Croatian and will soon be learning Bosnian and Serbian their jaws always drop. They tend to think that it is a super difficult language to learn.

Well, they are only partly correct. Yes, it's difficult, but if you practice daily and study the vocabulary it makes it a little easier. Plus having an amazing professor and a class of only five students really helps.

The most difficult part of the language is having to know all of the different cases that can be used. For example, there's the locative case, normative case, accusative case, and instrumental case.

Those are the only cases we have learned so far, but our teacher warned us that there is a lot of them and that we need to be careful not to mix them up, which is very easy to do.

Now, back to the comment about having an amazing professor.

She is one of the most supportive teachers I have ever had. She is also very understanding and accommodating to her students. On the day that marked us being her students for one month, she brought us Croatian cookies called, Napolitanke.

Napolitanke are these wafer-like cookies that come in different flavors She brought us some that tasted like chocolate and Nutella.

So, in other words. Pure heaven.

Besides the amazing teacher and the delicious cookies, there are two other perks to taking a language that seems out there and with a small class.

Having a class with only five people is really helpful. You are able to get more one on one time with the teacher and you are also able to practice your pronunciation a lot easier.

Another perk is the fact that not only does it sound impressive, but it also makes it possible to be able to visit new countries and cities around the world.

After only three months of taking the language, I already want to travel to Croatia and visit all of the cities and islands we have been learning about in class.

For anyone that is considering taking a different language than Spanish or French. I highly recommend Bosnian, Serbian, and Croatian!

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
campus
CampusExplorer

New year, new semester, not the same old thing. This semester will be a semester to redeem all the mistakes made in the previous five months.

1. I will wake up (sorta) on time for class.

Let's face it, last semester you woke up with enough time to brush your teeth and get to class and even then you were about 10 minutes late and rollin' in with some pretty unfortunate bed head. This semester we will set our alarms, wake up with time to get ready, and get to class on time!

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

The 5 Painfully True Stages Of Camping Out At The Library

For those long nights that turn into mornings when the struggle is real.

696
woman reading a book while sitting on black leather 3-seat couch
Photo by Seven Shooter on Unsplash

And so it begins.

1. Walk in motivated and ready to rock

Camping out at the library is not for the faint of heart. You need to go in as a warrior. You usually have brought supplies (laptop, chargers, and textbooks) and sustenance (water, snacks, and blanket/sweatpants) since the battle will be for an undetermined length of time. Perhaps it is one assignment or perhaps it's four. You are motivated and prepared; you don’t doubt the assignment(s) will take time, but you know it couldn’t be that long.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

The 14 Stages Of The Last Week Of Class

You need sleep, but also have 13 things due in the span of 4 days.

567
black marker on notebook

December... it's full of finals, due dates, Mariah Carey, and the holidays. It's the worst time of the year, but the best because after finals, you get to not think about classes for a month and catch up on all the sleep you lost throughout the semester. But what's worse than finals week is the last week of classes, when all the due dates you've put off can no longer be put off anymore.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

28 Daily Thoughts of College Students

"I want to thank Google, Wikipedia, and whoever else invented copy and paste. Thank you."

1267
group of people sitting on bench near trees duting daytime

I know every college student has daily thoughts throughout their day. Whether you're walking on campus or attending class, we always have thoughts running a mile a minute through our heads. We may be wondering why we even showed up to class because we'd rather be sleeping, or when the professor announces that we have a test and you have an immediate panic attack.

Keep Reading...Show less
Lifestyle

The Great Christmas Movie Debate

"A Christmas Story" is the star on top of the tree.

2506
The Great Christmas Movie Debate
Mental Floss

One staple of the Christmas season is sitting around the television watching a Christmas movie with family and friends. But of the seemingly hundreds of movies, which one is the star on the tree? Some share stories of Santa to children ("Santa Claus Is Coming to Town"), others want to spread the Christmas joy to adults ("It's a Wonderful Life"), and a select few are made to get laughs ("Elf"). All good movies, but merely ornaments on the Christmas tree of the best movies. What tops the tree is a movie that bridges the gap between these three movies, and makes it a great watch for anyone who chooses to watch it. Enter the timeless Christmas classic, "A Christmas Story." Created in 1983, this movie holds the tradition of capturing both young and old eyes for 24 straight hours on its Christmas Day marathon. It gets the most coverage out of all holiday movies, but the sheer amount of times it's on television does not make it the greatest. Why is it,
then? A Christmas Story does not try to tell the tale of a Christmas miracle or use Christmas magic to move the story. What it does do though is tell the real story of Christmas. It is relatable and brings out the unmatched excitement of children on Christmas in everyone who watches. Every one becomes a child again when they watch "A Christmas Story."

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments