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A letter to prospective participants in AmeriCymraeg [An on-line Welsh course]
A message from John Good:-
Hello everyone, John Good dw i, I am Sioni Dda and will be leading the newydd spon danlli /brand-spanking new flame-colored interactive, on-line Welsh course on AmeriCymru, to be known as Ameri Cymraeg .
Let me tell you a little about myself so that we can understand each other better from the dechrau. I was born in South Wales in the Afan Valley and Welsh/Y Gymraeg and English were spoken in the house. By the time I left school, I knew less Welsh than when I started I had little interest in a dying language , and anyway the Beatles sang in English and all of my friends spoke it. Fast forward 25 years, having moved to San Francisco, LA then Phoenix all of a sudden I realized I had robbed myself of a major part of my cultural identity and I set about re-learning Yr Hen Iaith/the Old Language so that I could talk to my aging mother in the language of her youth. I achieved that and, in the last 15 years or so, have taught a surprising number of desert dwellers and others, among other things, how to pronounce popty-ping [popty /oven--that goes--ping] or microwave.
The language is now a passion of mine and I look forward to the opportunity to pass on what I cherish: The truly healthiest dying language in the world.
Y Driniaeth/The Approach
Ive assembled my approach to teaching from a number of sources over the years: John Albert Evans, Rhodri Jones, Heini Gruffudd, and Gareth King to name but a few, but have also assembled a fairly large dossier on how not to teach Welsh. Ill be working from my own play book, illustrated with the borrowings from the best teachers I know. As a musician I am attracted to the by ear method: Language as sound, much like a melody with meaning. After all young children dont use grammar books (although for adults they have their place), they associate repeated sounds with objects and people.
Adnoddau ar-lein/On Line Resources
We are very lucky these days that there are a myriad of on-line resources that I would have killed for when I was first looking to revive my heritage. Ill go through these in detail later on, as they all have special strong points, but for now.
Geiriaduron/Dictionaries
http://techiaith.bangor.ac.uk/GeiriadurAcademi/?lang=en
English to Welsh only but an incredible bargain am rad ac yn ddim /for free! The hard copy is $84 from Amazon!!
http://www.cs.cf.ac.uk/fun/welsh/LexiconForms.html
The first -- to my knowledge -- on line Welsh/English/Welsh dictionary; written by a Welsh learner. Theres inspiration for you.
Another great free dictionary, with search features Ill tell you about later.
http://www.cysgliad.com/cysill/arlein/Default.aspx
Free spell-checker/Sillafydd
Well, I hope this has sparked your interest. I got pumped up just writing it! I look forward to seeing you on Google Hangout (Also free!).
Hwyl am y tro/Bye for now, Sioni Dda/John Good.
Hi John,
Unfortunately, I may not be able to make it again due to a project at work that's come up. I am keeping up with homework. Hopefully I still may make it for the last hour. Mae'n ddrwg da fi eto!!!
Cofion,
Alff
Hi Alexander
The meeting time is:- 6 pm Pacific time/9 pm Eastern on Wednesdays. It is possible that, by mutual agreement, we can change the times if this does not suit everyone but of course, we are trying to cater for all participants in all time zones. The first meetup ( which is purely introductory to hash out timing and technical details ) is tomorrow at the above stated time.
The 'Donate' button is just below 'Top Videos' on the right hand side of any page on AmeriCymru ( where it says 'The Meriwether Lewis Memorial Foundation'. If you prefer you can simply log in to your PayPal account and make payment to the following PayPal email address:- americaneisteddfod@gmail.com
As soon as we receive payment we will invite you to the private group on AmeriCymru where all further course details will be discussed.
Hope that helps
Cofion gorau
Ceri
Ok, please disregard most of my last post--I just rediscovered/reread the instructions--but I can't find the button to pay the "Donate to The Meriwether Lewis Memorial Eisteddfod Foundation" button?
Also, does the course meet at a specific time? If so, what is that?
I'm really looking forward to it but is it synchronous? If so, what time does it meet? Either way, how do I access the course in Google Hangounts?
With apologies if this has been covered in depth ...
Instructions For Registration
Firstly ......make payment of $40 via the Paypal button in the right hand column on any page of AmeriCymru. Once we have received your payment we will invite you to the course group.
Secondly ....check your email for an invite to the AmeriCymraeg course group. Join the group and you're done. The AmeriCymraeg group is a private/ members only group for course members and course materials and times of classes/practice sessions will be posted there.
The Course
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The Teacher
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John Good is well known throughout the West, South, Midwest and in his native Wales as a multi-instrumentalist, Welsh piper, singer/songwriter, composer and poet. Veteran of many Celtic festivals and concerts, including Estes Park, Chicago, San Diego and Denver, he brings the subtly different flavor of traditional Welsh music to the stage. John speaks and teaches the Welsh language ( Y Gymraeg ), is a member of the traditional band Tramor and is the president of the Welsh League of Arizona .