I've nearly finished the 5-book sequence by now. (I am appalled that the books went up from 7 dollars apiece to 20 in the space of two short years, but then, the classes nearly doubled as well...). I am hoping to finish the series by the time I take off. At 20 dollars apiece, I better.
I've also finished the first writing book. Amazing to think I learned dozens of letters in several months and now I can actually read them!
Again, I have to reiterate that it's an impossible fucking script. There are 70+ letters, many more diacritic marks, old fashioned letters that look like more familiar letters but aren't pronounced that way, and I come across a new, inexplicable diacritic mark every single passage I read. Add to that the fact that Khmer is about as phonetic as English, with all sorts of traps and tricks and silent -e's & other letters and non-sensical spellings...well, you've got a recipe for suffering.
So every day for 1-2 hours, my reading teacher and I struggle through yet another painful passage intended for Khmer 2nd graders. I am hoping I can improve significantly over the next 6 weeks, that is for sure. Cause this is something more akin to torture.
I've also finished the first writing book. Amazing to think I learned dozens of letters in several months and now I can actually read them!
Again, I have to reiterate that it's an impossible fucking script. There are 70+ letters, many more diacritic marks, old fashioned letters that look like more familiar letters but aren't pronounced that way, and I come across a new, inexplicable diacritic mark every single passage I read. Add to that the fact that Khmer is about as phonetic as English, with all sorts of traps and tricks and silent -e's & other letters and non-sensical spellings...well, you've got a recipe for suffering.
So every day for 1-2 hours, my reading teacher and I struggle through yet another painful passage intended for Khmer 2nd graders. I am hoping I can improve significantly over the next 6 weeks, that is for sure. Cause this is something more akin to torture.
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