'I like the sound of Lithuanian – it burbles like a small river. Sit near the Vilnia River in Vilnius, and you can listen both to the water and Lithuanian.' Andrew, Australia
| River Vilnelė in Vilnius, Lithuania Photo credit: https://dosaladeriva.com |
First-year Lithuanian, taught by Inga Daraškienė, ingad@uw.edu
Class meets 9:30-10:20, MGH 284, daily (5 credits) or MWF (3 credits)
Course Description: Lithuania, one of the three Baltic' sisters,' has a long and rich history. A country that has experienced many things and undergone many large transformations, from being the largest state in Europe to a country that was erased from the political map several times. Nevertheless, Lithuania maintained its language, traditions, customs, and cultural spirit. Lithuanians are proud that their mother tongue is the language that rose like a phoenix from the ashes after the long years of ban and oppression under Tsarist Russia. Nowadays, it is spoken by around 4 million people around the globe; it is the official language in Lithuania and one of the official languages in the European Union. Not to mention, Lithuanian is considered to be the most archaic Indo-European language alive and similar to Sanskrit, Latin, Ancient Greek, and other 'old' languages!
This Lithuanian language course is designed to introduce students to the Lithuanian language and develop basic speaking, reading, listening, and writing skills. In addition to textbooks, lessons are supplemented by authentic texts, including songs, public signs, folklore, and literary works, which help students develop their language skills. At the end of the course, students can handle basic communicative tasks necessary in daily situations.
During the course, students will also be introduced to the Lithuanian culture to understand Lithuanian customs and traditions better. Quarterly after-class events for language students are organized to experience the most vital traditions, taste foods, and meet interesting people.
Evaluation: Grades will be based on online quizzes in Canvas, writing assignments, and in-class activities. Online quizzes and writing tasks will be assigned after each finished topic (textbook chapter). No final examination.
Grades: Quizzes 40%; Writing tasks 30%; Participation in class activities 30%.
Learning Material: Textbooks and other learning materials will be provided in Canvas or class.
This quarter will focus on:
Topics: Personal Information, Food and Restaurants, Studies, City, Home and Housing
Vocabulary: about 500 most common words related to communicative activities.
Grammar: declensional cases of nouns, adjectives, and numerals; three tenses of verbs.
Access and Accommodations: Your experience in this class is important to me. It is the policy and practice of the University of Washington to create inclusive and accessible learning environments consistent with federal and state law. If you have already established accommodations with Disability Resources for Students (DRS), please activate your accommodations via myDRS so we can discuss how they will be implemented in this course.
If you have not yet established services through DRS, but have a temporary health condition or permanent disability that requires accommodations (conditions include but not limited to; mental health, attention-related, learning, vision, hearing, physical or health impacts), contact DRS directly to set up an Access Plan. DRS facilitates the interactive process that establishes reasonable accommodations. Contact DRS at disability.uw.edu.
Religious Accommodations: Washington state law requires that UW develop a policy for accommodation of student absences or significant hardship due to reasons of faith or conscience, or for organized religious activities. The UW’s policy, including more information about how to request an accommodation, is available at Religious
Accommodations Policy:
https://registrar.washington.edu/staffandfaculty/religious-accommodations-policy/
Accommodations must be requested within the first two weeks of this course using the Religious Accommodations Request form:
https://registrar.washington.edu/students/religious-accommodations-request/