Another update from the Online Greek Grammar: Authentic Language Acquisition

Here is a slightly different kind of picture-based exercise from the online grammar. It presents pictures and asks the user to input an appropriate Greek word from a list of options. Here are the words for this one:

  • καθαρός, -ά, -όν
  • νέος, -η, -ον
  • ἀσκός, -οῦ, ὁ
  • σημεῖον, -ου, τό
  • πράγμα, πράγματος, τό.

If you can look at each image and think of the appropriate Greek word without translating that word into English, you are on your way to acquiring Hellenistic Greek. If you have to translate the Greek words into English first, you have much more work to do.

Authentic language acquisition requires thinking directly in the language you are acquiring, without reference to your first language. That is very difficult to do with an ancient language, but not impossible.

The online Grammar at HellenisticGreek.com focusses heavily on translation because most people attempting to learn ancient Greek from the hellenistic period, the period of early Christianity, are learning the language to be able to translate the relevant early Christian documents into English or another modern language. If your goal is to understand those documents authentically, though, you need to do much more than learn the grammar and memorize vocabulary.

When I wrote that grammar in the early 1990s the practice of teaching Ancient Greek in Ancient Greek was barely beginning. If I were starting today, I would create a very different learning tool. To embark on the arduous task of completely redesigning the website and writing an entirely new grammar is more than I can possibly commit to at this late stage. I’m 67 years old now!

Instead, I have chosen the much more modest task of adding more authentic exercises to the lessons and producing materials for teachers to use in class to nudge instruction away from the focus on translation to include communicative tasks that support authentic language acquisition.

Simple exercises like the one above are not enough to do that, but they can serve as a push in the right direction. I have a lot more work to do in retirement!

Improving the Online Grammar

Alphabet StoneI would like to thank those of you who, over the last several years, have submitted suggestions for improving the online grammar here at Greek-Language.com.

I have added a link to a new report page at the top of every lesson and at the top of the table of contents to make doing this easier. Keep the suggestions coming, and it will make the grammar more useful for everyone.

Cell Phone Browser Success!

RaphaelPhilosophers350x300Finally! I have overcome the crazy lack of standards for cell phone browsers. Lessons 1 to 18 are now HTML5 compliant and displaying correctly on Safari for iPhone and Chrome and Firefox for Android.

If you are accessing the grammar on a cell phone with a different browser, please let me know, and I’ll test the grammar for your special circumstances.

Working on Greek Lessons from Perú

Chabuca's PatioI’m working on Greek lessons in Miraflores, Lima, Perú. Lessons 1 to 15 are now HTML5 compliant.

I would like to thank those of you who have submitted suggestions and corrections. As I convert the files to HTML5, problems inevitably arise, and it’s wonderful to have dedicated readers who have the confidence to point them out.

The climate here in Miraflores is amazing. It’s winter. The picture above was taken yesterday. It shows the patio at my wife’s aunt Chabuca’s house. All of metropolitan Lima sits on a desert, so such gardens need careful attention.

Patio PictureHere’s the one at her parent’s house where I’m working these days. It’s a nice place to work on Greek grammar. If things go well, I’ll be able to complete the revision of the rest of the lessons before returning to the U.S. in August.

Unicode Greek in the Online Grammar

After two very frustrating days of frantic coding, the Greek text in the online grammar is converted to unicode and displaying correctly. For a day and a half I was unable to get the revised files to show up after uploading them, but that problem is now resolved.

As I continue to update the HTML and CSS supporting the grammar some formatting may look odd for a day or two, and if you notice anything that doesn’t look right, please feel free to contact me using the contact link above.

For the next few weeks the topical index will have a great deal of problems. The HTML4 method for linking to specific paragraphs within a web page has been deprecated. The HTML5 method is seriously different, and it will take me some time to get everything converted to the new method.