Shockingly enough, Plei is me.

Also, Scrappy's link made my day.

Nothing has helped me get over my "Didn't get it the first time, it's hard, I'm no good at it" like teaching myself how to draw.

It's been fifteen years and I *still* struggle. And I cannot (yet) draw actual objects...that is, not superheroes...very well.

But I keep pluggin' away at it.

Take a look at HEMA's product page. You can't order anything and it's in Dutch, but just wait a couple of seconds and watch what happens. [link]

It's a Rube Goldberg Web page!

Plei is much like me. I really want to learn French, the better to help me do my research (not least because British authors, even recent ones, tend to assume an educated reader knows French, and will leave lengthy quotations untranslated, and it drives American me who only ever learned Spanish CRAZY). But I don't know how I'd make it stick in my brain.

I've been told by language teachers that I can learn, but probably best in an immersion setting.

This is mostly me with languages. I tried to study some Hungarian words and phrases, but until I heard it spoken around me, I didn't get it. Once I did hear it, I started picking up other words.

Great page, Scrappy!

But hopefully it'll be clear by the time I leave. While a lot came down in a small period of time, it isn't that bad. OTOH, other people...well, they are that bad.

I didn't know they'd shut down CSL - just that there were accidents at 1pm already. eiyiyi.

safe drive.

I'm definitely in the camp that was told early that I was smart (and talented and gifted and whatnot) and therefore expected everything to come easily. Still today I am interested in lots of things and have no fear about trying it, but then want to be instantly good at it.

Even things like laying tile. I was eager to learn, learned to be adequate, but then instantly wanted to be able to do it with the mastery and speed of the guy who has been doing it every day for his whole life.

OTOH, I was fighting prejudices, so I hated the assumption that I did well in school because I was naturally smart. I was always, how the hell do you know if I'm smart or not? Maybe I just give it a higher priority than you do and work really hard.

Signed, still wishes she had the knack for retaining languages not her native ones, will some day see about this immersion thing.

Are you a visual learner? In an immersion situation, there are a lot more visual cues.

No denying that everyone learns differently, etc., but it's the acceptabilty of the "can't" argument for certain things that drives me batty. Yes, people have innate abilities/talents for certain things (sports, art, whatever), but it also helps if you are taught the relevant skill set.

I can't draw to save my life, but, guess what, I was never taught. In elementary school and beyond, people were either "good" at art or not, no one thought to actually teach the others about drawing, etc.

When I started to really adapt my teaching to individual students it was amazing what people who thought they "couldn't do" language could actually do. Unfortunately, the time and effort that takes is a luxury that I couldn't always afford.

But I don't know how I'd make it stick in my brain.

Avec de la colle?

But I don't know how I'd make it stick in my brain.

Avec de la colle?

Nailgun?