I just made my first play on words in German. Instead of frühstück, I said frohstück. Because breakfast here at the hotel is so good, it makes me glad. They serve herring in a fur coat. The real kind! For breakfast! Plus, separate slices of herring. And there’s fennel tea.
Duolingo really works. I’m having conversations everywhere. I ask questions and understand answers. I’m sure I make a goobizillion mistakes in the process but dialogue is happening, and that’s what matters.
I’ve always been fairly anti-Duolingo, and I still have no plans on using it myself. But you and N showed me that it can work for someone capable and motivated.
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I had to stop using it with my kids, though, because it is so over-the-top with the fake prizes and email harassment– my eldest was in tears any time we spent the day out and he couldn’t “maintain his streak”. We had a very productive discussion about dopamine hacking, and we shelved it because it is psychologically unhealthy for children. Even before you get to the weird sexual politics that show up in there.
For me, personally, I also cannot deal with even the slightest pressure to maintain a streak (though for me it manifests totally differently.) It’s much worse for me with something like Anki though, where there’s really a feeling you have to use it every day without exception because of the nature of how it works, whereas with Duolingo I might logically know that it’s just an annoying app notification (I still suspect it would get to me though.)
The funny thing is I do engage with language learning almost every day anyway. But I need it to be fully my choice and not an obligation, and I need total freedom to choose how it happens (I don’t do the same thing every day.)
Most language apps also strike me as very boring, though I can’t truly judge that without trying them all. But if I was learning French from scratch I would start with Alice Ayel videos over any app. If I did incorporate an app it would need to be low pressure and fairly open ended.
You don’t hate Duolingo? Cool beans. What do you think of this book: https://www.amazon.com/Sink-That-Located-Kitchen-Eclectic-ebook/dp/B09RJXDQMV/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&sr=1-1
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A conservative literary critic and college professor
Clarissa's Blog 
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