So, I’ve just finished an hour’s chat with Charlotte - as mentioned over in the Australian newcomer thread - where you might remember she was saying that she’d got to the end of Level 2 and hadn’t had a conversation in Welsh yet.
Well, that’s fixed now - and what an opening shot it was. Those of you who’ve thrown yourselves into conversations at an earlier stage may remember the pain involved - the first time you last for 10 minutes, the first time you make it to half an hour…
So I’ll understand if you feel a faint urge to throw things at Charlotte when you hear that she absolutely waltzed through the entire hour completely in Welsh.
Ladies and gentlemen, we have another new Welsh speaker in the house…
But I sense you’re not feeling staggered enough - so let me share the news that staggered me part-way through our chat…
Charlotte only started learning about 2 months ago.
And now she’s a Welsh speaker.
Don’t worry if you’re not going that fast - it’s fine not to set records and leave a trail of flames behind you.
But if you’re keen to push yourselves, and to see what’s possible, then what Charlotte has achieved should be inspirational for you (yes, I’m kicking myself for not having recorded it sneakily and then asked for permission to share!).
And if you’re willing to help her push on even further by giving her conversation practice - or if you’re looking for conversation practice yourself - then sing out in here…
I was very lucky to have a sgwrs with Aran, especially as my very first one! I’ve got LONG WAY to go so there’s nothing for it but to keep going full steam ahead- Aran, being a hugely generous and encouraging man was definitely too kind ^^ but yes, now I’ve had my first sgwrs, I’m keen for more!
Remember what I said about how all learners under-value what they’ve achieved?! There you are… Catrin would tell you that I never err on the side of kindness when it comes to talking to learners about their progress. In fact, I’m usually more on the brutal side of things (which is why I told you that you’d got one line of conversation wrong, instead of figuring there was no point mentioning that when you had an hour of successful communication done and dusted!).
So remember what I said, and (please!) accept it as true - because I honestly just don’t do ‘say nice things to cheer them up’ - it never works particularly well in the long run, and it’s the long run I care about…
You have genuinely achieved something remarkable in the last two months, and it’s going to be a delight watching you become a hugely confident and natural speaker…
Any chance of a link to where you’re sharing details?
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