My Development in Russian Continues

I want to give an update about my recent activities with the Russian language. I continue to make progress in it through various means. As I wrote in a previous article, I am studying Russian in order to take a Russian proficiency test and reach the C1 level.

First, I found a short article on the Internet. This article is a short synopsis of a story written by the Russian author Anton Chekhov. The story is about a boy named Vanka. I choose this short story to help me with my goal to reach the C1 level in Russian reading comprehension on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages.

In addition, I have purchased additional study guides to help me master Russian verbs. I bought a book about Russian verbs of motion (Verbs of Motion: Workbook1). This book gives a basic explanation of the verbs with written practice exercises and a short reading article that uses the verbs covered in each chapter. It is a very useful book!

I also bought a reader book called Where is the Bus Going? (Куда едет автобус?) This is a story divided into 20 chapters. This will help me master the verbs of motion in a fun manner through a story.

Another book I bought is about the prefix forms of 18 Russian verbs. This book will augment my learning process with verbs. I also have two books about verbs. These are great because they show the verbs fully conjugated and with sentences in context. The photo below shows my recent books.

Also, I have found two study guides for grammar, vocabulary, and reading at the B2-C1 level. These two excellent guides are full of exercises and articles that will help me prepare to take the Russian test. They were developed by the Zlatoust company in St. Petersburg, Russia and the Southern Federal University in Rostov-on-Don, Russia.

In addition to reading and studying Russian through books, I have had the chance to speak Russian. In January, I was invited for lunch at a Russian restaurant by a native, female Russian who lives in the Washington, DC area. A few other people were invited as well. We ate lunch at the Russian restaurant Mari Vanna in Washington, DC. I was excited for this event because it had been a long time since I last ate Russian food. I was able to speak some Russian with these people which was enjoyable. The photo below is of Solyanka soup, my favorite Russian soup! It is really tasty!

Lastly, I had the chance to speak more Russian at an event by the Institute of World Politics (IWP). I went with my class members to the Victims of Communism Museum in Washington, DC. It was very interesting to learn more about the crimes committed by Communists throughout the world. At the museum was a fellow native Russian student at IWP and we spoke some Russian. Also, there was an older Russian couple and I was able to speak Russian with them. They were very impressed that I could speak Russian so well!

So, I continue to prepare for my Russian test. I hope to take it in May, if all goes well. Наилучшие пожелания всем!