Monday, February 23, 2026

Сегодня в лингафонном кабинете ELEMENTARY RUSSIAN УРОК 6 (Урок 6, неделя 3 Unit 6 Week 3 Elementary Russian)

Среда... значит (=means) лингафонный кабинет!

 TODAY СЕГОДНЯ

ФИЛЬМ "БРАТ"! Cultural credit! 




ПРИХОДИТЕ! БУДЕТ ИНТЕРЕСНО!


I'm a simple guy...... it's my exams that are complicated. 


На сегодня! 

Here is a link to Memrise for the Genitive Case Review. It's all there. Spend at least 10 minutes on it and then take the quiz!

А теперь... And now for something completely cool! 

Download our lab worksheet or grab it at the lab.

The topic of the phonetics exercise is voicing and devoicing of consonants. English does it too, but there aren't any rules... thing of "cats and dogs" (the s in the first word is pronounced /s/ but in the second it's /z/... why? I don't know!).

There are two main rules concerning voicing of consonants. 
1) "Word-final devoicing." Voiced consonants are always DEVOICED when word-final... the word гараж is pronounced /garash/ because the last letter in the word is devoiced, ж gets "hushed" and pronounced /ш/. 2) The second phonetic phenomenon is what we call, in class, "the Vodka Rule"... In clusters of consonants, the cluster-final consonant dictates the voiced or devoiced status of all preceding consonants. The word водка sounds like /votka/ because the cluster final consonant K is unvoiced, so it "triggers" the preceding consonants, making them voiceless, too: д-->/t/.

 

This phenomenon is most notable in borrowings from English into Russian like баскетбол /baskedbol/ and the Russian numerals like пятьдесят /piddisiat/. You'll find a convenient table of voiced and unvoiced consonants on your handout. 

Look through the tables, and try to figure some of the consonants in Exercise A that will get devoiced or voiced because of the "Vodka Rule" or because they are word-final voiced consonants. Now, listen to Exercise A. Were you right?

4. Go to the tables and learn a bit about verbs of position. Notice that they are ALL 2nd-conjugation verbs that are ending stressed.  So their они forms end in а/я: СтоЯт, лежАт, висЯт. Notice, too, the 123545 vowel spelling rule, that you cannot write я after a husher (makes you go HUSH!), so you get лежат (not лежят). Good spelling is for suckers. 

5. Listen a few times to the dialogue. read the dialogue and translate it. иконы - icons, верующие - believers

6. The last page of the handout is Dr Denner's шпаргалка for the genitive case... Now you know all that about the genitive, well, wow. Time for a PhD in linguistics! 

Sunday, February 22, 2026

Сегодня в лингафонном кабинете. Урок 6. Второй курс. Неделя 3.




TODAY СЕГОДНЯ
ФИЛЬМ "БРАТ" CULTURAL CREDIT!

НЕ ПРОПУСТИТЕ!




Здравствуйте! 

1. Сначала квиз по грамматике =take the grammar quiz.

2. Потом возьмите хэндаут или скачайте хэндаут здесь

Слушайте to the recordings of the poems in your handout Давайте послушаем! и читайте текст ниже:


Ответьте на вопросы из хэндаута=answer the questions in your handouts.

Russians attach great importance to the style of reading. Pushkin and Lermontov are read in a standard dramatic style and standard poetic rhythms iamb and trochee. That's why classic poetry can be sung well; both the Pushkin and the Lermontov poems in your handout have been set to music. Check them out!
"Я вас любил" в исполнении Дмитрия Хворостовского


"Выхожу один я на дорогу" в исполнении Анны Герман

Ну, к столу! Поработаем над грамматикой!


Сделайте упражнение из хэндаута (oral drill 7)

И если еще не устали, посмотрите, как шестилетний Саша читает "Гамлета" ... вундеркинд!








Tuesday, February 17, 2026

Сегодня в лингафонном кабинете ELEMENTARY RUSSIAN (Урок 6, неделя 2 Unit 6 Week 2 Elementary Russian)





Сегодня среда! 

Привет! Как дела? Потихоньку...


1. Spend TEN MINUTES practicing our vocab quiz on Memrise. Then take the quiz (just a reminder, this is a closed book quiz)
 

2. Почитаем!  read this article (did you know that you can subscribe to NYTimes through Stetson and ERAU libraries?) for some cultural insights about the question, How are you?...  In my experience, it's mostly true, though younger Russians understand that you're not really asking how they're doing when you ask... How do you do?








3. А теперь... Review quickly counting by tens. Listen to this recording and read along with the numerals from below. Listen a couple times...



NB a couple things: Thousand in Russian is тысяча. That word's etymology traces back to *tuHsont-, a proto-Indo European root that also gives us thousand.  So, like сто hundred (like cent), there's an historical connection between тысяча and thousand. (Without geeking out TOO much, the really old word in Russian for thousand was тьма, which now means, like, "darkness" or "gloom"... which is what tuhsont meant, too... You get a lot of stuff, and it looks like a cloud, like gloom! Russian stopped using тьма to mean a thousand a thousand years ago... COOL!) 

In Russian (as in English) the word is a noun. Think about, for instance, the difference between: "Ten cats sat in the room" and "A thousand cats sat in the room." Weird, isn't it? That's because thousand is a noun in English. 

The word for thousand, тысяча, is feminine, so you get однА тысячА; in 2, 3, and 4 thousand, the word тысяча is in the genitive singular form, две (feminine form of 2) тысячИ, три тысячИ, четыре тысячИ.

Five thousand and higher, the word тысяча is in the genitive plural form, тысяч. (You don't yet know that form! Все ХОРОШО!)


4. PRINT OUT OR DOWNLOAD THIS LAB WORKSHEET or grab it from the lab table. Do упражнение А, writing down the prices of the items (it's on the second page of the lab worksheet). The challenge here is to figure out how many thousands and hundreds each item costs. You'll hear the word тысяча in various forms; the forms aren't as important as the numbers in front. 

Then, come back to the first page of the worksheet! Work some more on the use and formation of the Genitive case. Do oral drills 7,8,9. Do them in writing. Pen or pencil or just type in the word document. Have them checked by our tutors. 

Anyone interested in poetry, history, politics... try giving this poem (from like 1917) a shot...

Скифы
Мильоны — вас. Нас — тьмы, и тьмы, и тьмы.
Попробуйте, сразитесь с нами!
Да, скифы — мы! Да, азиаты — мы,
С раскосыми и жадными очами!
Александр Блок

Mmmmmm... Блины! East Slavs eat a lot of pancakes. Everyone should eat more pancakes. 


Monday, February 16, 2026

Сегодня в лингафонном кабинете... Русский язык (второй год) (Урок 6 Неделя 2)










1) Сначала поработайте с этим списком слов QUIZLET. review the words and take the VOCAB QUIZ (15 мин)

2) Now, grab from the table or download and then print  THIS WORKSHEET (it does not work if you open it in google doc, in order to see all the images properly you need to download it on your laptop). 

3) прослушайте разговор 2 и ответьте на все вопросы! You'll find the questions on the хендаут and below:

Трудности? ... ну, спрашивайте! Ask a tutor for help understanding, if you need it (15 мин)

3) Немного грамматики... =Now, a little grammar...
First, watch this mini-lesson on how to use indefinites in Russian (-то, -либо, -нибудь) This presentation has a practical part. Pause at those moments to check your understanding.



4) Now, Double negation ни- не ... or ни- нет. Watch this fabulous explanation first:
Then read this concise explanation in English with excellent examples:

 Now, do the handout assignments on negative constructions:  I have not heard nothing about it...

На сегодня всё! Молодцы!

Tuesday, February 10, 2026

Сегодня в лингафонном кабинете ELEMENTARY RUSSIAN (Урок 6, неделя 1 Unit 6 Week 1 Elementary Russian)

Доброе утро! Сегодня среда.





Итак...

First, here is the Memrise quiz  and Quizlet (two separate lists!) that will prepare you for the quiz NEXT WEEK (=на следующей неделе!). Spend 10 minutes reviewing these new phrases that we'll go over as we proceed through the dialogues.

Print out your handout HERE or grab it from the lab table.


Next, listen to the two разговоры (3) (кликните по ссылке! Click on the links!). Don't listen more than three times each of the two dialogues! Я вам помогу! I can help you... just ask! Попросите!


On the back of one of your handout, jot down the answers, in English, to the following questions






Before completing handout assignments, take a second and listen to me read the conjugational pattern of a new verb, хотеть, to want. Notice that it's irregular: the singular present tense has -e- as its vowel (like работать); the plural persons (мы, вы, они) have -и- and -ят (like говорить). It's not irregular, хотеть is a hybrid, half first, half second!

Listen to the recording at least twice, and read along:


***

Now, come join us at the tables... Пожалуйста, к столам! Поработаем вместе! Do all the assignments in your handout. Read dialogue 5 and answer the questions.

Monday, February 9, 2026

СЕГОДНЯ В ЛИНГАФОННОМ КАБИНЕТЕ ВТОРОЙ КУРС, УРОК 6, НЕДЕЛЯ 1


Привет! Вы узнали этих писателей и поэтов? 
Давайте поработаем!
0. First things first: memorize the new Quizlet vocabulary HERE. We will have the vocab quiz next Wednesday.

Print out the handout HERE or grab it from the lab table.

1. Сначала почитаем в парах. Read the dialogue ты любишь стихи in your handout.

Ответьте на вопросы к диалогу письменно в ваших хэндаутах...=answer the questions in writing in your handouts

2. Examine the main rules of "который" constructions! Watch this video and examine the rules below:


Do ex. 6-20 on your handout (choose between что, кто, какой, который)
Pay attention to this rule:

3. "НУЖНО/НУЖНА/НУЖНЫ/НУЖЕН" + Dative Subject: выполните упражнение на третьей странице вашего хэндаута (4 предложения) =do the assignment on page 3 of your handout



На сегодня все! Спасибо за хорошую работу!



Monday, February 2, 2026

Сегодня в лингафонном кабинете ELEMENTARY RUSSIAN (Урок 5, неделя 3 Unit 5 Week 3 Elementary Russian)

Ну, погоди means "Just you wait!"

Привет!

Возьмите хендаут! На if you want a virtual one! (In Russian, you can say На! and it'll be understood as "Here, take this!" It's not super formal, but it's not rude...) 


Let's start with the grammar quiz! Grab it in the lab and have it checked by us before you leave the class (аудиторию)


А ТЕПЕРЬ (=and now...)

Next 10 minutes. «Ну погоди!»

Не хотите посмотреть мультфильм? Do you want to watch a cartoon? Русские (скорее советские граждане) очень любят серию «Ну погоди!». Watch an episode of the much-loved animated series «Ну погоди!» ("Just You Wait!"). Every Russian-speaker I know can recite these series from memory... Watch one episode! It's just ten minutes!






Закончили?? МОЛОДЕЦ! Ну погоди makes Tom and Jerry look like Teletubbies, right? Wipe the blood off your computer screen. 

There was a time before trigger warnings... было да сплыло... 

Last 30 minutes.
А теперь... Поработаем! Handout

On your handout, you'll find some exercises for за столом и за компьютером, for table work with tutors and for work at the computer. Do whichever you wish first! Как хотите! But do them both and include the completed handout in your Unit 5 portfolio.

1) The work at the tables is on the tricky Russian translation of "CLASS"... I'm going to class! I'm taking a class! Class! Класс! (That word, класс, means (among other things)... "That's cool!")
2) Listen to 5-41 (the first exercise below) and 5-42 (the second). Just jot down the answers on the handout. You'll find the exercise additionally printed there, on your handout. 


Sunday, February 1, 2026

RUS 202 ВТОРОЙ КУРС Unit 5 LAB 3



Здравствуйте, дорогие студенты!

1. Сначала.... КВИЗ по грамматике ! 

2. Теперь... посмотрите программу "Лучше всех" про повара Полину (3 года). Посмотрите 8 минут, она готовит салат Оливье... ням-ням... (10 мин)


Вам понравился ролик? Правда, очень мило? А теперь давайте поработаем!

3. Возьмите наш хэндаут. Сделайте устные упражнения 11 и 12 (15 мин)

4. А теперь давайте повторим reflexive verbs=REVIEW THE FOLLOWING VERBS (PAY ATTENTION TO STRESS!!!) (5 min)

USE  the nonreflexive form (WITHOUT –СЯ) when an animate being is the grammatical subject (Миша начал смотреть кино) Use the reflexive form (with –ся) when something inanimate is the subject (Библиотека закрывается в 7 часов)



5. Теперь устное упражнение 16 (10 мин)

ВСЁ! УРА!

Tuesday, January 27, 2026

Сегодня в лингафонном кабинете ELEMENTARY RUSSIAN (Unit 5 Week 2/Урок 5 неделя 2)




 
 




***

Пора работать! It's time to work. 

First, take the vocab quiz!

Here is the хэндаут for today. If you come to the lab, then I'll have some copies for you. 


Давайте послушаем. Напишите ответы. Do this exercise on the lab хендаут. Listen to the recording at least twice! If you need to review numbers go HERE and spend 5 minutes on 1-100.
  • Listen to the recording and jot down Ско́лько сто́ит? How much does it cost? (Recall the word Сколько from the phrase Ско́лько се́йчас вре́мени?) You'll hear prices given in rubles and kopecks (рубли и копейки) but you'll hear them in their inflected forms рублей и копеек. 

Check the answers with tutors or professors
Принесите нам хендаут и мы его вам проверим (We'll check it).


***
Таке а second and review your QUESTION WORDS!


  • On your handout, jot down at least three questions using the question words. We'll start our class tomorrow with these questions.

Now, let's finish up with verbs of motion, examining the "there-and-back-again" verbs ездить and ходить. Take a second to examine their conjugational pattern. They are regular verbs like говорить, but they have a mutation in the я form, like the verb любить (люблю).



Consider for a moment the 3rd person forms of these two verbs, both of which have an "end-stem" stress pattern. The first-person я form is stressed on then ending, while all the other non-past forms are stressed on the stem. 

Typical for many second-conjugation (и-class) verbs, the third singular and third plural are essentially homophonous -- they sound the same because я reduces to /и/ when not under stress.  
он хОдит...они хОдят
they both sound like /хОдит/

он Ездит... они Ездят
  • Do the written tasks 6 and 7 on your handout for practice.

Monday, January 26, 2026

Сегодня в ЛИНГАФОННОМ кабинете REVIEW LAB RUS 202 Unit 5 Урок 5


ЗДРАВСТВУЙТЕ!!!
Сначала=at first, practice QUIZLET to review the vocabulary of Unit 5 for 5 min.

Now, take the vocab quiz!!!

Теперь (=now), загрузите и распечатайте этот хэндаут... мы будем читать первую часть истории про Малыша и Карлсона! (=download and print out this handout or just grab a printed copy at the lab. We will read the first part of a classic Russian cartoon about Malysh and Karlson)

1) прочитайте текст с тьютором и переведите! = read the text outloud (preferably with a tutor) and translate.
2) посмотрите мультфильм (= watch the first episode until Karlson leaves the house after breaking the lamp. It's just 6 min. stop at 6:45!


3) теперь сделайте упражнения из вашего хэндаута (вопросы) = now, do assignments from your handout (all questions should be answered in writing)

СПАСИБО ЗА ОТЛИЧНОЕ ЗАНЯТИЕ!!!!