During my schooldays it was compulsory to have French lessons from around age 9 to 13. Although I was quite academic I did not take to languages and so came away with very little of the language. I knew a fair few words and some phrases, but had not retained much about how things like the verbs and adjectives worked. After that I was pushed into learning German, but was not into that either. I did not think I had the aptitude for it and did struggle. I failed the O Level exam. The ironic thing is that a few years later I went and lived in Germany for a couple of years and so needed to learn the language. My father had a Berlitz course on cassette that I used and I picked up a fair bit from that as well as from being immersed in the culture. I did some evening classes to try and improve my grammar, but I found that quite hard too. I think there is something about the classroom environment and how they were teaching languages that did not work well for me.
Although I have not spoken German regularly for over 30 years I still retain some of it. I tried the Duolingo mobile app to give myself a refresher, but it did not expand too much on what I already knew. I think at some time I need a course that covers some fine details that I struggle with. More recently we have been planning a trip to the French speaking part of Canada and I decided it was time to try that language again. My last attempt was at some evening classes, but that was probably 25 years ago.
I just completed a 100 day streak in the app. Technically I did not practice every day, but they provide 'freezes' that give you a pass. So far I have not paid for the app, but today it gave me a three day free pass of the Super mode that unlocks some features.
I do not consider myself a fluent speaker year, but I have gained some confidence. I have learned more works and something about how to form sentences whilst getting the verbs right. In German words are pronounced exactly as they are written, but in French some parts are silent, so it can be hard to tell which version it is when you hear a word.
Duolingo has various things you can earn. XP can move you up the leagues. I keep missing out on moving beyond the ruby one, but I am not sure it matters. You can earn gems to pay for various bonuses. You can pay money for those to speed things up. You get some hearts each day and lose them when you make a mistake. If you run out of those you cannot do more lessons, but I think you can do some of the exercises. I do not pay too much attention to the details as I care more about learning the language than competing with people. Mind you, I was impressed that someone I know got to a 1000 day streak!
Somewhere I read recently that people are using apps to cheat in Duolingo. I do not see the point, but it seems some kids can get credit at school for using it and some people will just want to be top of the ranks. I do see some crazy scores in there.
At least I am learning something. I feel it is a better use of my time than playing games or looking at cat videos.
Merci!
