Учебники....

I remember when my comrade and I bonded…

I was looking at his profile on Live Mocha, which for the uninitiated is a language learning website with lesson modules and for the most part people who are more intentional about language learning, I noticed this very interesting little factoid; we were both using the same textbook. What were the chances! The text was called Тройка and was written by Marita Nummokoski. I have often called this a very sturdy text as I have often thrown it across the room in frustration. The search for a good textbook is almost as important as a finding a good teacher. It has to be a good fit and both the teacher and you will know when it is time to move on.

I have some affection for this textbook for two reasons. It was my first book and it brought me to my Midwestern comrade. There is something to be said for the first reason. I was so happy when this book arrived and I could actually start really learning to speak and write in Russian. As some of my tutors can attest those early days were dark ones indeed. On the one hand it was helpful to have actual exercises, lessons and reading. On the other…there were actual exercises, lessons and readings. Let's just say it was a pretty steep learning curve and there are some people in the Russian speaking world who are in my mind, saints for putting up with me.

The book remains true to its subtitle: A communicative approach to Russian language, life and culture. Each chapter is broken up into three sections: Themes- Culture- Structures. The grammar is explained in understandable terms and there is very helpful cultural information also. For example this text provided useful information on how and why one should buy a samovar and what activities to engage in at your Russian friend's dacha, Moscow airports, Wedding ceremonies and traditions and how to name your Russian child if your course in Russian study led you to such a situation. In one of my first "reading" exercises on Moscow it mentioned a certain hotel and café that no longer exists post 1989.

Grammatically it led the non native speaker through noun cases in what seems to be agreed upon as the best way to teach English speaking capitalists; Nominative, prepositional, accusative, genitive dative and finally instrumental. Verb conjugations, adjectives, personal pronouns were dealt with in a way that was eventually understandable. That being said both my comrade and I only made it through 11 chapters in this text before we felt the need to move on or (in my case) we moved on at the suggestion of our teachers.

My current textbook is titled unceremoniously as Russian Grammar and was written by Galina and Leon Stillman with William Harkins. This text was also written for English speakers but unlike the Nummoski text, this one deals specifically with what I have determined to be one of my biggest problems in learning Russian: SYNTAX. (My Russian friends are more than welcome to weigh in with comments as to what they think my biggest problem is.) And while I like and respect Тройка I am in love with this text. (I remarked to Mila, my Russian teacher that I even like the smell of this book. Don't judge me, if you are a bibliophile you smell your books also.) The book was written in 1972 and seems to give me some indication about what it might have been like to study grammar in the Soviet Union. It is strict and tight and does not mess around.

Here is what I find interesting in comparing these books. In Тройка the exercises are constructed in such a way that it teaches the Russian student how to talk to Russians about their lives. So after learning how to use direct objects you can ask your Russian friends about what music they listen to, movies they like to watch, and sports that they like to play. Interestingly, this particular chapter teaches you to do this using the verb любить (to love) so in conversation you had better really like soccer. I think even now my Russian friends just think I LOVE everything because I have not really bothered to learn the verb нравиться (to like). Therefore, the examples in the grammar practice go something like this: What does Ivan like (love) to do in his free time? Ivan loves to listen to Russian music. What did you do at the dacha on Saturday? We gathered mushrooms and berries in the forest. We love to gather mushroom and berries!

Compare that to the examples in Russian Grammar: What will Ivan do on Saturday? He will play volleyball, he plays every Saturday. Ivan should work more. What kind of music does Anna listen to? Anna listens to classical music while she reads Russian literature. Nina, what are you saying? You should not speak so much you talk too often.

You get the idea. In the Stillman's world no one is gathering mushrooms. People do not love music, the listen to it. It is a very functional world. I LOVE IT! The best feature of this textbook is that after each grammar lesson in the chapter it has "pattern sentences" with the grammar you just learned highlighted. Everything is explained without complication. The only lesson I had some trouble with was a highly detailed explanation of reflexive pronouns. With the Stillman text I was able to learn with alacrity the rest of my noun cases, I feel more in control and confident when I speak and write in Russian because I have taken the time with the drills in this text. I have increased the amount of time I can "sustain" a conversation in Russian. The Stillman text also introduced some valuable concepts like how to say "I must" and "I should" and even though while practicing with this construction led one Russian friend to accuse me of "becoming suddenly demanding", I enjoyed being able to be demanding.

I have found a happy match with my new textbook. However, it would be unfair to say the first one was a waste of time or not helpful. It got me started and served its purpose. I confirmed this a few weeks ago when I had misplaced my new book and decided to use the same grammar lesson in the old textbook. I wrote out my exercises and sent it to a friend. The return email had a confused tone to it. My friend could not understand why I was writing like this, the syntax was not quite correct and also responded with a terse "I thought you understood this declension? What happened?" I located my new "friend" the next day and got back to learning how to chastise Ivan for playing too much volleyball. Stillman is right, he should work more!