Lingonauts
Ever felt your lost in space about your German communication skills?
- You've studied so long and hard, but can't find a chance to put theory into practice?
- You're preparing for travel, or even a long-term stay abroad?
- You spent time abroad and want to make sure you don't forget your German?
- You really know your grammar and "vocab", but want to get rid of that certain "nervousness" about making mistakes when talking to your friends or business partners?
- You want to be relaxed when talking about your own interests, daily news and events, or gossip?
- You want to fill black holes in your vocabulary?
- You have difficulty finding a teacher or a class that suits your personality, your interests, your German level, your intellectual level, etc.?
- You want to improve your German without that odd feeling of being "back to school", where a know-it-all teacher unloads Betelgeusian tons of dry theory on you?
Now, here's the chance for you to explore your very own Universe of German, the chance to get a better grasp of the stars, so hold on and fasten your seat belts for a completely different experience! You even have the chance to be the spacecraft pilot once or several times.
Become a Lingonaut now - it's going to be asteroid heaps of fun!
Life, the Universe, and Everything... but what on Earth is a Lingonaut?
There are as many approaches and solutions to language acquisition as there are human beings – so that is more than 8 billion at present!
We're individuals, after all, and everyone has their own interests and life experience and their own ways of learning how to listen, speak, read, and write, first in their native languages, then in or several foreign ones.
As Lingonauts, or "sailors of the language universe", we are curious to learn new things, using German as a radar (a tool, a medium, a window, a telescope, etc. – whatever you want to call it). And by using this tool, we will naturally improve the tool itself as well as our own skills.
Onboard the spacecraft (terrestrials would call this a "classroom"), the crew of Lingonauts are encouraged to become each other's peer "teachers" by exchanging all their experience and discussing matters they're interested in, because that's the basis to develop the enthusiasm needed for improving our skills. The Lingonauts take turns as spacecraft pilots, taking charge of where the ship goes next. (In practice, this means that every course participant will have to bring at least once a one-page text of his or her own choice. A copy of that text will be handed out together with a vocabulary list, so everyone else will be able to prepare, too. Any topic is welcome: daily news, politics, business & economy, science & technology, philosophy, arts, music, film, literature, computers, sports, games… the only limitation being that it should be fair enough to be easily understood by non-experts, i.e. your co-Lingonauts.)
After checking the equipment (common earthlings would call it a vocabulary or grammar "test") and a few minutes' briefing ("introductory presentation") by the pilot in charge, the ship will be ready to take off to the next planet ("discussion, conversation"), demanding all Lingonauts to be at their stations.
The spacecraft captain (usually called "class instructor"; a native speaker of German who is also capable of giving Japanese and Englsh explanations) will coordinate the trip by organizing the necessary fuel ("texts, tests, supplementary material") and serving you as a navigator whenever course corrections are needed, ensuring everyone will have a pleasurable and fun voyage across the known universe.
Up, up, away and beyond the Milky Way!
Our mission control center is located at:
Nagoya College of Foreign Languages (NCF, "Meigai")
Nagoya Daiwa Bldg., 9F
16-16 Tsubaki-cho, Nakamura-ku
Nagoya City 453-0015
Communicate via the following trans-warp channels:
TEL (052) 452-8786
MAIL info@meigai.com
More info is available on the space-wide web site:
Lift-off for space travel (NCF German Conversation Classes):
Available on request Monday – Friday, 10 a.m. – 7 p.m. (90 min)
Package including 10 interstellar stops ("classes")
Crew size:
3-8 persons per ship ("semester")
(Caution: We would like to request your understanding that the conversation classes may be cancelled if the minimum number is not reached!)
Your qualifications:
Sufficient level of confidence to converse in German (e.g. experience abroad, extensive study and practice), willingness to improve, open-mindedness, a good sense of humor, curiosity, lust for fun...
Become a Lingonaut today!