Learning Hindi

Discussion in 'Education & Personal Growth' started by LunaDoveDesigns, Mar 4, 2013.

  1. LunaDoveDesigns

    LunaDoveDesigns Silver IL'ite

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    I'm on the lookout for Hindi learning materials for kids. Okay, if I'm being honest, for adults too. My only fluent language is English. I know a few phrases in some other languages. I have exactly four words in Hindi, and all of those are names.

    My daughter is almost 2. Supposedly, thus is the best time to start teaching her a new language, because she still has the ability to learn all the sounds in any language easily (we're born with that, and by early childhood our native language "takes over" and makes it harder to pick up new languages.) My son is 7, still young enough to at least pickup an understanding of a new language even though he won't be able to speak it (disabled; he can't speak at all right now).

    My relationship with my daughter's father's family is nonexistent since we divorced, but I expect at some point that will change. If/when it does, I also expect her grandmother to teach/exclusively use Hindi with my girl in an effort to exclude me from interactions. It's just the way she is. She did it with my ex (he would translate sometimes, but when our relationship went south he stopped), so I'm sure they'll do it with my girl too.

    Thus, I am looking for some direction on language materials for kids and adults. Even if I'm wrong and the above scenario doesn't happen, it would be nice for her to be able to speak with older relatives who don't or won't use English. Not to mention the multiple benefits of being at least bilingual.

    Where do I start? I don't necessarily need to be able to read or write it as its meant to be red/written. Phonetic spelling may help me pick it up faster. Where do I start?
     
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  2. tashidelek2002

    tashidelek2002 IL Hall of Fame

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    The Teach Yourself Hindi books by Rupert Snell are a good place to start. There is also some audio courses although they are limited in how well they work. I had some big snafus with Rosetta Stone. There is also a course by (I think) Tej Bhatia that is helpful. Recently I downloaded an app that is somehting like Learning Hindi in 9 Steps but I think you better start with something else and review with this. There are some colleges that have free online stuff. Best to just use what you can find and jump around to flesh it all out. All of them have drawbacks. Finding someone who will let you pick their brains is very helpful. Watch some Hindi movies on Netflix to get used to accents. One thing I will warn you about: everyone has their take on Hindi and lot of Hindi speakers are speaking it as a second or third language and with different accents and pronounciations. It can get very confusing. Just know this so you don't think you are losing it while you are learning. Also lots of places transliterate wrong and that also is frustrating. The Allis Chalmers dictionaries are by far the best Hindi dictionaries and you should get all three. ( Hindi, English, and transliterated Hindi.)
     
  3. LunaDoveDesigns

    LunaDoveDesigns Silver IL'ite

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    Thanks for the suggestions. I'll look into them.

    I used to watch Hindi movies pretty often. I wasn't trying to learn the language then, so I didn't pick up on anything.
     
  4. plantscantalk

    plantscantalk Gold IL'ite

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    Here are a couple of options i can think of:

    1. The boring one: Rosetta stone and other online teaching s/w belonging to the same category.
    2. A native speaker who can also teach.
    3. Kids' peer group

    Option 2 would be my best bet, and if she could teach kids as well, grab that opportunity with both hands. By this, you and kids could learn from her and practice with each other. That should be fun.
     
  5. LunaDoveDesigns

    LunaDoveDesigns Silver IL'ite

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    Not many Indians in my area, but I live less than an hour from one major city and an hour from an even bigger city. I might be able to find someone from one of those. Thanks :)
     
  6. hgulla

    hgulla Silver IL'ite

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    I know a few language courses are conducted at temples, for ex. Aurora temple in Chicago. Inquire in your area (major city) temples if they have anything. Rosetta Stone is a good option too, I have it but have not used it much (my fault!).
     
  7. LunaDoveDesigns

    LunaDoveDesigns Silver IL'ite

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    My sisters used Rosetta Stone for Spanish(they were home schooled, but I went to public school. I took Spanish classes at my high school). I seem to remember it sticking for a while, but only when they practiced. Once they stopped practicingm they forgot it. I might look into Rosetta Stone and see what it will cost.

    I realized yesterday that I know more than the four names. I know some food words too, which is a start, at least! :-D
     
    Last edited: Mar 6, 2013
  8. hgulla

    hgulla Silver IL'ite

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    That's a good start. I totally hear you about practicing the language. I took Spanish in a community college last year, but it was all written, not spoken. I don't remember much because I didn't really practice speaking it, planning to read up on my coursework this summer and take Level 2 this fall.

    When I was a kid, the way we learnt Hindi was through television. Back in the days there was only one government TV channel in India called Doordarshan (DD1 and DD2). They used telecast only in Hindi. My Hindi isn't too bad, but all the credit goes to the TV channels. Encourage your kids to watch Hindi programs with English sub-titles, like Jungle Book, Shaktiman etc.

    Are they familiar with Krishna/Mahabharta/Ramayana epics? they are available in animated format too, FYI.

    [video=youtube;w0GrLEk6qYE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0GrLEk6qYE[/video]

    I recent bought these books for my niece, she loves the Krishna stories so far.
    The Magical Adventures of Krishna: How a Mischief Maker Saved the World (Classic Indian Stories for Children): Vatsala Sperling, Pieter Weltevrede: 9781591431107: Amazon.com: Books

    Ramayana - The Story of Lord Rama: Bhakti Vikas Swami, Valmiki Muni: 9788190829267: Amazon.com: Books
     
  9. LunaDoveDesigns

    LunaDoveDesigns Silver IL'ite

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    They aren't, because I'm not familiar with them, but that's another thing we can all learn about together. I'll have to see what we can track down online. We don't have cable TV, just Internet service.

    Thanks for the book suggestions. My kids love books and stories, so that might be a pretty good way of getting some cultural knowledge as well as language practice in.

    I am reminded of a little boy I used to babysit whose parents came from South Africa. He was probably about four or five at the time (goodness, I feel old. That boy is twelve now!) and he would bring me his favorite storybooks at bedtime, which were in Afrikaans. I don't know Afrikaans, so he would end up reading the story to me!he would also switch back and forth between Afrikaans and English and expect me to understand like his parents did. I had to pick up a few phrases just to keep up with him.
     
    Last edited: Mar 6, 2013
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  10. singhsunita

    singhsunita New IL'ite

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    Check out site for free & interactive Hindi worksheets at Sunosunao Hindi learning site. i hope This will definitely gonna help you.
     
    Last edited: Jun 12, 2013

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