Week 3: Improving Project Trajectories

Plotting the Final Destination

This week, Chloé and I decided to buckle down and create a more concise plan for the rest of our project based off of our current standing which was very difficult to predict at the beginning. We hope to continue learning Dutch and Italian in addition to showcasing that understanding through different lingual applications such as taping a cooking segment, memorizing song lyrics, etc. In this way, we will be able to achieve three goals of learning a language which are understanding its application, utilizing it appropriately, and building a cultural context. As such, next week is going to full of different and unique ways to showcase how far we have come in learning Dutch and Italian. 

One interesting moment this week occurred when I noticed my tendency to pronounce Italian words with a similar style that I used to pronounce French words and I noticed that I did the same for Dutch with English. This is presumably due to my background in both French and English, which causes me to naturally assume that any familiar word fits into patterns that I have spent years growing accustomed to. However, I was able to move away from those unconscious tendencies this week and instead learn more about Italian and Dutch pronunciation as a natural consequence. 

Having finished three weeks of the senior project, I am shocked by how quickly time has passed and surprised by the growing familiarity I have with Dutch and Italian. I have found myself learning these two unique languages at a faster pace than expected, as the current languages I know took me years to form some sort of mastery. At the same time, I believe this is due to a better understanding of how languages function to communicate ideas, which, while allowing me to account for the many differences between each language, especially Italian and Dutch, also helps me to create a facsimile of a checklist to accomplish. 

The goals from week 1, which seems so recent, appear to be more achievable instead of daunting, and I am excited to continue learning these two very different languages. Learning Italian and Dutch has created this unique challenge of the known mixed with the unknown and I am more than ready to dive back into it. With the concrete plan that Chloé and I made to successfully finish this project, I find myself with no other questions and only a zeal to continue forward.