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Learning Dutch?"Nederland"
I would say the best starting point for learning Dutch is at my
website. No book or course on tape or audio CD will offer this ease of
hearing words pronounced at a click of the mouse.
Then listen to a few longer Dutch texts, like a few
poems and songs, readings from
my Dutch short stories,
or
The Lord's Prayer
(no religious endorsement implied)
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just to hear the language.
I think it's best to take the instruction in small doses, like ten
minutes once or twice a day. For most people that will be much more
effective than a few long sessions.
It's probably best to study the
pronunciation first.
How are the letters said in Dutch? Listen to the sound files.
Then I would recommend to familiarize yourself further with the spelling rules.
This is not as hard as
it may look, for Dutch spelling is much more straightforward than
English - but still, Dutch has
exceptions too.
After that, work on the
pronunciation exercise.
Try to say the words correctly, then listen to how I say them; invite a friend
and work on it together. Listening to
the sound files on this page is also good for getting a sense of the language.
At this point it would be good to learn some common Dutch phrases
like "Good morning," "Thank you," "Please" and "What's the price?"
From there, I would recommend you try to memorize ten to fifteen words a day from the
'Everyday Dutch' pages
(The nice thing is, it's not like in school, that you have to learn all the words in the list.
Choose words from a field that interests you or that you think will come in useful. )
You'll probably need Food Words too.
These pages have pictures with words:
Take breaks from your daily words lists to:
From time to time, revisit old pages like spelling and pronunciation.
Imaginary conversations are a good tool to learn a language, they'll
make you to think of the everyday words and structures you'll need.
Once you have a basic knowledge of Dutch you could start reading
something simple, maybe Annie MG Schmidt's children's stories, like
'Jip and Janneke,' or 'Pluk van de Petteflet.' Some of her books are also
available in audio versions.
2BDutch.nl
short Dutch videos with both Dutch and English subtitles
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Fietspad - Bike Path
Hop on and let me be your guide in the landscape of Dutch
Dutch Pronunciation
English, Dutch and German Words From a Common Root
The Dutch Family
Hear Longer Dutch texts (most with English translation):
Hear Dutch Names: Going to Pieces/Pulp A Short Story in Dutch with a Re-Write in English (no sound files) Maps of the Netherlands with names spoken
Read about Holland in my Christmas Stories:
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Marco Schuffelen -
email
Copyright © Marco Schuffelen 2006. All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Don't be a
dief (thief) -
dievegge (female thief) -
diefstal (theft) -
stelen (to steal) -
heler (dealer in stolen goods) -
hear Dutch -
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