OLLI at SOU > Catalog/Register > Languages and Cultures

Languages and Cultures

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Conversaciones – Online
Item Number: S25LANG155
Dates: 4/22/2025 - 5/20/2025
Times: 3:30 PM - 5:00 PM
Days: Tu
Sessions: 5
Maximum Enrollment: 19
Seats Available: 6
Building: Online
Room: (Zoom)
Instructor: Ginny Blankinship

This course is designed to provide an opportunity to speak and listen to Spanish in a comfortable nonjudgmental atmosphere. It is meant for those who already speak Spanish with some fluency but who don’t have all the opportunities to converse that they would like. Each week, students will be provided with materials to stimulate conversation on a particular theme, including poems, readings, song lyrics and discussion questions. During each class, we’ll talk in a whole group and in breakout rooms. Themes include education, music, science and more, but it will be all right to stray from the theme. Grammar and vocabulary questions that arise will be answered, but the class is about enjoying conversation in Spanish. Any learning that occurs arises from that. It will enhance our conversation if students spend some time with the materials posted on LearnerNotes before each class. Translations are provided for readings and song lyrics.

NOTE: This is not a Spanish course per se, and it won’t work for beginners. Rather, it is a chance for those who already comprehend and speak Spanish with some fluency to listen to others, converse freely and encounter readings and songs that reflect Hispanic culture. Those who have been in previous Conversaciones courses will find new themes, readings and music.

Fun With Russian – In-Person
Item Number: S25LANG166M
Dates: 5/7/2025 - 6/4/2025
Times: 9:00 AM - 10:30 AM
Days: W
Sessions: 5
Maximum Enrollment: 34
Seats Available: 27
Building: Campbell Center
Room: Room B
Instructor: Alice Taylor, Marcus Levitt

This highly interactive, informal class will give you a chance to improve your Russian. We will use a minimum of English and repeat and contextualize Russian so that everyone understands and can respond in Russian. Grammar will be discussed only as needed, as our focus will be on using Russian. The free online textbook “Mezhdu Nami” provides some materials, along with a selection of short readings, songs and poems.

NOTE: We don’t expect students with fluent Russian. Experience shows that some students struggle with pronunciation, some with cases and some with the Cyrillic alphabet. The Russian From Scratch course is not a prerequisite but could help many students.

Enjoy German! – In-Person
Item Number: S25LANG109A
Dates: 4/2/2025 - 6/4/2025
Times: 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM
Days: W
Sessions: 10
Maximum Enrollment: 16
Building: Campbell Center
Room: Room B
Instructor: Udo Gorsch-Nies

Registration for this course is closed.
This is a previously taught course with new content. This course aims to broaden a student’s vocabulary and understanding of the day-to-day German spoken today. The etymology of certain words will be discussed, and the rules of grammar will be explained on request. This term we will read the instructor’s memoirs referring to the events in 1992 and later.

How Languages Are Learned – In-Person
Item Number: S25LANG169A
Dates: 4/3/2025 - 5/15/2025
Times: 3:30 PM - 5:00 PM
Days: Th
Sessions: 6
Maximum Enrollment: 34
Building: Campbell Center
Room: Room A
Instructor: Bruce Evans

Registration for this course is closed.
This seven-session course will be an exploration of how languages are learned, the conditions necessary for language learning, and the conditions that promote and facilitate language learning. It is designed for people who speak more than one language, those who are in the process of learning another language or those who intend to learn another language. A large part of the course will involve activities with hands-on analysis of language and the learning process. There will also be activities in which students will explore their own learning styles and other personal factors that influence second-language learning. The last two sessions will focus on how languages are typically taught.

Spanish via Songs – In-Person
Item Number: S25LANG167A
Dates: 4/10/2025 - 5/8/2025
Times: 9:00 AM - 10:30 AM
Days: Th
Sessions: 5
Maximum Enrollment: 32
Building: Campbell Center
Room: Room A
Instructor: Teri Coppedge

Registration for this course is closed.
In this course you can listen to great songs from various countries, watch videos, sing along (or dance) and learn some Spanish while doing so! You should already have some background in Spanish. Here you can increase your listening skills, pick up new vocabulary and see how tricky grammar constructions are used in authentic contexts and cultures. After listening, we will clarify the meaning of the songs through discussion and some translations of the lyrics. We’ll focus on important grammar points as they are used in each song, but this is not a formal grammar and translation class. All the songs have easily singable sections, and students are encouraged to sing along. Links to the songs, videos and lyrics will be posted online for study and enjoyment. New students, as well as those who have taken previous versions of this course, are welcome; we will have new songs this term. We’ll speak Spanish as much as possible.

NOTE: Students who have at least a basic understanding of Spanish up to a strong intermediate level can benefit from this course. At times, the vocabulary and grammar discussions may feel like a review to some students; at other times, they may be incomprehensible to beginners. Each student can learn something as they are ready. At the very least, we’ll have a good time listening to songs in Spanish.

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