Learning Bahasa Indonesia the Easy Way!

http://www.omniglot.com/language/articles/indonesian01.htm

Interested in learning Bahasa Indonesia (or Indonesian language) yet you have no clue of where you should start? Considering learning Indonesian language in the near future yet the idea of having to learn a new language scares you off? You might also have many questions lingering on your mind, making you even more hesitant to learn Bahasa Indonesia.

“Why should I learn bahasa?” and “Is learning Bahasa Indonesia really worth it?” are only few of the questions we hear from non-Indonesian speaking people who live in Indonesia. They happen to stay in Indonesia for some reasons, either it is because they have been hired to work in one of multi national companies in Indonesia, or because they are housewives and children who are following their husbands and fathers who are working in Indonesia, or even some seasonal tourists who like to visit Indonesia many times.

It has long been known that there are NO many Indonesian people who can communicate in English well, including those who are supposed to be able to speak in English, such as shop assistants, office boys and girls, drivers, and others who have to interact with people around them most of the time. Most of these people have learned how to speak English during school and yet they don’t really know how to communicate with foreigners using the proper English language. So there is no other choice for the expatriates in Indonesia other than trying to learn bahasa. It is the only way for them to be able to communicate with the Indonesian people.

There are many ways to learn Indonesian language, and you can choose whether it is the easy way or the not-so-easy way. Below are some words commonly used in daily conversation, which can be a good start for you who want to learn Indonesian language the easy way:

Good morning	Selamat pagi
Good afternoon	Selamat siang/sore
Good evening	Selamat malam
How are you?	Apa kabar?
I’m just fine	Saya baik-baik saja
Good bye	Selamat tinggal
See you	Sampai jumpa
Thank you	Terima kasih
You’re welcome	Sama-sama/kembali
Nice to see you	Senang bertemu anda

More Indonesian phrases

Days of the week and numbers

Monday	Senin	One	Satu	Eight	Delapan
Tuesday	Selasa	Two	Dua	Nine	Sembilan
Wednesday	Rabu	Three	Tiga	Ten	Sepuluh
Thursday	Kamis	Four	Empat	Eleven	Sebelas
Friday	Jumat	Five	Lima	Twelve	Dua belas
Saturday	Sabtu	Six	Enam	Thirteen	Tiga belas
Sunday	Minggu	Seven	tujuh	Twenty	Dua puluh

It has long been known that Indonesian language is one of the easiest languages in the world and you can even make a good sentence despite your limited knowledge of Indonesian grammar. As long as you know the KEY to arrange words into a sentence, you can make good sentences, and even a paragraph. It's just that simple.

However it is the teacher's job to guide and direct the student so that the student can be later on his/her own to develop his/her Indonesian language skill by practicing his/her Indonesian language with the locals and eventually be able to speak Indonesian better and better.

Practice makes perfect. And the more you practice your Indonesian language and do your teacher's assignment, the better your Indonesian language skill will be. These are the ground rules you must always remember when learning Bahasa Indonesia.

Bahasa Indonesia: Effective Ways to Study

Why do some people learn easily and others have so much more difficulty?

Whether you succeed or not really depends on what kind of a commitment you make to the learning process.

Age is not the issue! Adults not only have better habits for memorizing data, but they also are better at organizing and at studying in general. In the case of adults learning Bahasa Indonesia, the motivation factor is often very high: the difference between being able to communicate and not is obvious in one's daily life. Witness the average newcomer's frustration at not being able to tell a driver where to go or the same person's discomfort at being unable to understand what's happening in the office. Being at the mercy of a so-called 'interpreter' is not a condition most of us independent westerners feel comfortable with. Learning to communicate effectively is, then, something we feel will improve our ability to cope successfully with life in our new surroundings.

The disadvantage of being an adult learner is our reluctance to make mistakes, an area where children are much more comfortable. Adult learners need to tell themselves often that making mistakes is the way we learn and that without mistakes, little learning takes place. One teacher decided to substitute 'learning step' for the word 'mistake', thus putting his students much more at ease with normal errors.

Some people seem to have a talent for languages; for others, it seems that only effort is what makes the difference. Hearing is one area where there is a big difference: those who have a good ear, for music and tone for example, will have an easier time learning to speak since they can 'hear' and thus imitate more accurately. Another factor in successful learning is your attitude: are you open to the new culture and language? Looking forward to learning or dreading it? It can make an enormous difference in the kind of progress you make.

What kind of a person you are also influences language learning: people who are outgoing, extroverted and like talking to others will easily be able to harness their natural instincts in communicating in the target language. Chances are an extroverted person will also be less likely to be upset at making errors. Laughing along with the guys who laugh at your mistakes makes everyone feel better. Within one month of arrival I had ordered two kilos of traditional bras (kutang) instead of the potatoes I wanted (kentang). The entire household had a good laugh over that one!

When learning a language, a high tolerance for ambiguity also helps. As westerners, we tend to want to make everything black and white and very organized: a neat little list of what the language is. Often it isn't exactly that black and white; an acceptance of some gray will help in making your progress faster. Some things can be worried about later.

When you start out from zero, having a plan helps. Give yourself a schedule and some targets or objectives. Whether you choose to take a class, hire a private teacher or study on your own, some type of framework will make meeting your targets an easier task. So now, for the real hints:

1. Set aside a certain time for study each day: after morning coffee, on the way to work, during lunch - whatever you can maintain without too much 'stretching'.
2. Spend time with words: make flash cards and use them until you remember easily, then exchange them for others.
3. Listen a lot: keep the radio on, watch TV. Even without being aware of it, you will be absorbing the sounds of the language.
4. Ask others to correct you when you make mistakes. Most Asians don't feel completely comfortable with this, but at least try.
5. Experiment with new words or new patterns. Even if you make mistakes, you need to use it before it really becomes a part of you.
6. Be active: talk to everyone you meet. Taxi drivers are almost always ready for a conversation; people in shops and restaurants as well. Don't lose these remarkable opportunities for free practice.
7. Make a 'hat rack' of words and build on it. See how words are related and how they fit together in certain ways. Keep a list or book of your new words and expressions and always have it with you.
8. Look at where you make your mistakes. Are you making the same mistake over and over again? Why? Carelessness or real lack of understanding? Check it out and try again.

And that is the final point: try and try again, especially with a sense of humor. Enjoy the joke, even if it's at your expense!

Contributed by Susan Scherer, Indonesia Australia Language Foundation (IALF).

Exercise: Present continuous and reading text

Put in the verbs in brackets in the correct tenses. Example: The sun ______________ now. (to shine) Answer: The sun is shining now.

1) We  TV when it started to rain. (to watch) 2) I  to visit you yesterday, but you  not at home.(to want) (to be) 3) Look! It , so we can't  to the beach. (to rain) (to go) 4) There are a lot of clouds! It  soon. (to rain) 5) The sun  in the East. (to rise) 6) Since 2003 they  their son every year. (to visit) 7) While the doctor  Mr Jones, his son  outside this morning. (to examine) (to wait) 8) I  for my girlfriend for two hours. (to wait) 9) After Larry  the film on TV, he decided to buy the book. (to see) 10) Wait a minute, I  this box for you. (to carry)

Name:____________________________

The hardest language

People often ask which is the most difficult language to learn, and it is not easy to answer because there are many factors to take into consideration. Firstly, in a first language the differences are unimportant as people learn their mother tongue naturally, so the question of how hard a language is to learn is only relevant when learning a second language.

A native speaker of Spanish, for example, will find Portuguese much easier to learn than a native speaker of Chinese, for example, because Portuguese is very similar to Spanish, while Chinese is very different, so first language can affect learning a second language. The greater the differences between the second language and our first, the harder it will be for most people to learn. Many people answer that Chinese is the hardest language to learn, possibly influenced by the thought of learning the Chinese writing system, and the pronunciation of Chinese does appear to be very difficult for many foreign learners. However, for Japanese speakers, who already use Chinese characters in their own language, learning writing will be less difficult than for speakers of languages using the Roman alphabet.

Some people seem to learn languages readily, while others find it very difficult. Teachers and the circumstances in which the language is learned also play an important role, as well as each learner's motivation for learning. If people learn a language because they need to use it professionally, they often learn it faster than people studying a language that has no direct use in their day to day life.

Apparently, British diplomats and other embassy staff have found that the second hardest language is Japanese, which will probably come as no surprise to many, but the language that they have found to be the most problematic is Hungarian, which has 35 cases (forms of a nouns according to whether it is subject, object, genitive, etc). This does not mean that Hungarian is the hardest language to learn for everyone, but it causes British diplomatic personnel, who are generally used to learning languages, the most difficulty. However, Tabassaran, a Caucasian language has 48 cases, so it might cause more difficulty if British diplomats had to learn it.

Different cultures and individuals from those cultures will find different languages more difficult. In the case of Hungarian for British learners, it is not a question of the writing system, which uses a similar alphabet, but the grammatical complexity, though native speakers of related languages may find it easier, while struggling with languages that the British find relatively easy.

No language is easy to learn well, though languages which are related to our first language are easier. Learning a completely different writing system is a huge challenge, but that does not necessarily make a language more difficult than another. In the end, it is impossible to say that there is one language that is the most difficult language in the world.

Questions

Q1 - The question of how hard a language is to learn is relevant to both first and second language acquisition.

TrueFalse

Q2 - Portuguese is definitely easier than Chinese.

TrueFalse

Q3 - A Japanese speaker may well find the Chinese writing system easier than a speaker of a European language.

TrueFalse

Q4 - The Hungarian alphabet causes problems for British speakers.

TrueFalse

Q5 - Hungarian is the hardest language in the world.

TrueFalse

Q6 - Hungarian has as many cases as Tabassaran.

TrueFalse

Q7 - Many British diplomats learn Tabassaran.

TrueFalse

Q8 - The writer thinks that learning new writing systems is easy.

TrueFalse

English speech text sample: Talent show of local culture

Praise is to Allah, the lord of the world, and the sequel is for those who keep their duty unto him. Further, there will be no hostility except against wrongdoers.
Blessing and salutation upon the most honorable prophet and messenger, his families, all his disciples, and those who follow them in goodness till the any of judgment.

Are you all familiar with talent show on TV? Something like idola cilik or Indonesia mencari bakat?

TV rating shows that talent show still becomes one the most watched programs on TV and I’m sure all of us agree that yes, everyone deserves to show and explore their talent , like what I’m doing now.

Ladies and gentlemen,

All around the world, idea of creating a talent show has significantly improved. More and more people are attracted to be one of a talent show contestant. People all over the world agree that every single person deserves to explore his talent and to show his talent public. Talent show shows audience the idea of hard work and it builds confidence of the participants. Hard work and confidence of engaging audience is absolutely something positive which agreed by anyone all around the world.

Acting,singing, dancing, acrobatics, drumming, martial arts, playing an instrument are the examples of talents which can be shown in a talent show. Do you notice that basically, the talents shown in a talent show are something related to the work of art. And art is something which is closely related to culture.

Talking about talent show and culture, I wonder if any of us has ever thought of creating such a talent show which perform local culture packaged in local value.

Are you all familiar with the saying “Think Global, act local?”. For some people it maybe only a slogan, but you know what, we can make it real through talent show!

In Indonesia, we know Indonesia mencari bakat or Idole Cilik. Both of the talent show are basically good to accommodate the talent owned by each participant. However, aren’t we happy to see that a talent show which not only show a modern performance yet a accommodate local culture instead?

The idea is clear, ladies and gentlemen, that we do not want to be merely imitator only even for a TV program. We knew that that TV talent show basically comes from western country which adapted almost exactly same as the original show in the origin country. We can’t be only become an imitator, and by creating our own talent show format that brings local culture, we can promote our culture in a way which is recognized worldwide.

I will show you how a talent show can be a culture as well as talent promotion agent. Now imagine that I’m coming to a stage as a TV talent show contestand and you are the judges, one would be Ahmad Dhani, one becomes Nagalila and one becomes Kak Winda. Ok, are you ready?

(Irfan is playing instrument and singing)

So, how would you comment on my show? It’s great, right?

The idea of bringing local culture in a talent show is not only to show a talent. Age proved that culture is a set value that keeps life meaningful. In order to achieve that, we need to set an event which is in the process involves the local wisdom that is recognized by the participant as part of the show itself.

In the process for example, we need to apply a value of local wisdom, like what Javanese believe in Ngelmu pari saya isi saya tumingkul, that is a value of being humble even though one has become popular or knowledgeable because of his knowledge of art he gets from the talent show. This value is important to avoid new popular people forget who they were before becoming popular.

I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest u all

Lesson Plan for Social studies Grade 1

Lesson Plan

Subject                                           : Social studies

Grade/semester                                      : I/2

Time allotment                              : 4 × meetings @ 35minutes

Standard of competence         : To describe house environment

Basic competence : To explain the situation of healthy house and how to keep the house clean

Indicator: - To mention the characteristics of healthy house

- To mention the tools for simple cleaning task

- To mention the way of doing simple cleaning task.

- To apply the cleaning task

Goals

         - Applying the way of keeping the house clean

Material

-  Keeping the house clean

Method

         -Roleplay

Steps

Pre activities (10 minutes)

a.       Greeting

b.       Brainstorming about previous material (the characteristics of healthy house)

c.        Arranging the students based on the group divided at the previous meeting

d.       Delivering the goals of the study

e.        Setting the rules

f.        Distributing checklist to the students

Whilst activity(50 minutes)

a.     Group A performing role play setting 1 (cleaning up the bedroom)

1.     The narrator reads the setting

2.     The characters performing some cleaning up activities, they are

Ø The maid making up the bed

Ø The kid helping the maid making up the bed

Ø The kid folding the blanket

Ø The kid arranging the book

b.     Group B performing role play setting 2 (cleaning up the livingroom)

1.     The narrator reads the setting

2.     The characters performing some cleaning up activities:

Ø The boy cleaning up the window

Ø The girl sweeping the floor

Ø The girl wiping the chair

c.      Group C performing role play setting 3 (cleaning up the veranda&yard)

1.     The narrator reads the setting

2.     The characters performing some cleaning up activities:

Ø The boy picking up garbage

Ø The maid mopping the floor

Ø The girl sweeping the yard

Post activity

a.     Discussing the problems faced by students

b.     Distributing feedback card toward the activity

c.      Summarizing the benefits of doing the activities

Assesment

a.     Checklist to be done by students during the activities

No.		Keterangan	Yang  perlu dilakukan	Alat yang dibutuhkan
1.		Buku berantakan
2.		Kaca jendela kotor
3.		Lantai licin
4.		Dinding banyak coretan
5.		Lantairumahkotor
6.		Kamarmandikotor
7.		Kursitamubanyakdebu
8.		Tempattidurberantakan
9.		Halamanrumahkotor
10.	Saluran air banyaksampah

b.     Rubric of assessment toward the activities

Criteria	4 Excellent	3 Good	2 satisfactory	1 Poor
Works Cooperatively with partner P	Actively workswith partner to accomplish task.  Works well, is on task,and is a contributing member.	Works with partner to accomplish task.  Works well, is mostly on task, and is contributing member with few needed cues from the teacher.	Works with partner, but is somewhat off task.  His / herpartner does a greater share ofthe work.	Is off task and contributes little to nothing to the group.
Presents perspective clearly	Speaks clearly and loudly when presenting using voice intonation and expression.	For the most part, speaks clearly and loudly, using voice intonation and expression.	Speaks somewhat clearly.  There is some voice intonation and expression used.	Presentation is not clear.  Little to no intonation and expression used.
Presents characters appropriately.	Clearly representing the characters	For the most parts representing the characters	Representing somewhat clearly. Most part going back to real person	Clearly representing real person

c.      Feedback from the students toward the activities