Ukrainian Phase 1, Unit 01

Learn to Speak and Understand Ukrainian with Pimsleur Language Programs

By: Pimsleur

Narrated by: Pimsleur

Length: 43 mins

Publisher's summary

The Pimsleur® Method has worked for millions all over the world. Totally portable, simple to use, Pimsleur works so you don’t have to. Ukrainian Phase 1, Unit 1 contains 30 minutes of spoken language practice, with an introductory conversation, and isolated vocabulary and structures. Detailed instructions enable you to understand and participate in the conversation. The lesson contains full practice for all vocabulary introduced in this unit. The emphasis is on pronunciation and comprehension, and on learning to speak Ukrainian.

Download the accompanying reference guide.

©2008 Simon & Schuster (P)2008 Simon & Schuster

Critic reviews

"Pimsleur programs provide plenty of positive reinforcement that will keep learners on track, and we found that Pimsleur gave us more proficiency and confidence in speaking the new language than any of the other language programs we reviewed." ( AudioFile magazine)

Garbage!

Not helpful. Extremely difficult and boring. A doctor developed this? Must be a quack or not familiar with proven learning methods.

The best learning method I've ever used

Pimsleur is by far the BEST way to learn a new language, if you have a decent ear and some patience. Yes, this one starts with very basic stuff (another reviewer called it "boring"), but it builds quickly. I have now completed Ukrainian lessons 1 - 20, and just started lesson 21. It is amazing how effective the "listen and repeat" format is. For those who say it's difficult - well, everyone has different definition of that. It seems like a very logical language to me, and the way you're introduced to new words (and prefixes, suffixes, genders, numbers, etc.) as the course goes on, means that you also learn how to apply concepts that haven't specifically been taught yet...so you're making mental connections you don't even know are happening until suddenly you realize they're already there in your brain!

The hardest part for most English-speaking students will probably be that there are certain sounds that occur frequently in Ukrainian but that we don't use much in English (e.g., the word for "what" is pronounced "shh-cho" - like the end of the word "fresh" and the beginning of the word "chose" - and we don't have words in English that begin with that combination of sounds). However, our mouths are perfectly capable of making those sounds, so it's not actually hard.

I agree that sometimes the native speakers on the recording speak faster than I would like. When that happens, I slow the speed down to 0.75x and listen a couple times until I get it. Then I adjust back up to 1.0x regular speed and it's fine after that.

I took the Pimsleur Spanish course a couple years ago...I completed Units 1-30 in Spanish Levels 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. I became extremely conversant, and my accent is nearly flawless. Native Latin American Spanish speakers think I can speak fluently, because I pronounce everything so well. That is 100% thanks to Pimsleur.

I've also taken Pimsleur courses in French Level 2 and Italian Level 2 - every bit as good as Spanish; I just haven't finished them yet. And so far I'm having the same results with Ukrainian.

HIGHLY, HIGHLY RECOMMEND Pimsleur language learning courses.