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START, 2/e | |||
The second edition of START provides an introduction to the sound and writing systems of Russian for English-speaking students. A CD-ROM is available which provides MP3 audio files and QuickTime movie files for both PC and Macintosh. The START program is designed to be used with any first year Russian textbook. | About the Author | Contents | Introduction | Ancillaries |
To view this clip, you will need to download and install QuickTime.
Book 2005 • 1-58510-132-X • paperback • 112 pages • 8½ x 11 • $16.95 CD ROM 2005 • 1-58510-199-0 • CD-ROM • $19.95 Site License 2005 • 1-58510-202-4 • $50.00
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Now available in the Second Edition for BOTH Windows and Macintosh platforms, the START Program (Workbook and CD-ROM) provides an introduction to the sound and writing systems of Russian for English-speaking students. Native speakers of Russian recorded the sound files on the CD-ROM (now provided in easy-to-use mp3 format for students to use on any computer or iPod); QuickTime movie files, also on the CD-ROM, show students how to write the letters of the Russian alphabet. Students use the materials at their own pace (going back and forth to hear sounds again or watch the writing of letters as many times as they need). The workbook carefully explains the fundamental concepts of Russian pronunciation with reference to English sounds and words: hard and soft consonants, voiced and voiceless consonants, regressive assimilation, and the reduction of unstressed vowels (in lesson 11). Self-quizzes and dictations are included at the end of every chapter so instructors can check students’ progress. The instructor’s manual includes the keys to all self-quizzes and dictations; instructors can photocopy and distribute them to students for students to check their own work. The START Program is designed to be used with any 1st year Russian textbook. A site license for academic use provides institutions with the right to install the sound and video files on a mainframe and distribute them thus electronically to students through a password protected system. This allows students who leave their CDs at home to be able to listen to sound files and watch the Quicktime movies through an institution's digital language lab. However, it doesn't replace the need for the textbook. Technical requirements: Sample Pages Table of Contents Note: Policy on examination copies for this text
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Benjamin Rifkin is Professor of Russian and Vice Dean for Undergraduate Affairs at the College of Liberal Arts at Temple University. He was until recently Professor of Russian, Director of the Russian Language Program and Chair of the Slavic Department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Rifkin is an ACTFL-Certified OPI Trainer in Russian and served as director of the Middlebury Russian School from 1999-2003 and as President of AATSEEL from 2003-2004.
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Introduction
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In order for you to learn the Russian sound and writing system efficiently, we will teach you the letters of the alphabet in 5 groups of 6-7 letters. In each odd-numbered lesson 1-9, we will teach you first how to read and pronounce the Cyrillic letters in romanface and italics. In the even-numbered lessons, you'll learn how to recognize and write in cursive those letters presented in the immediately preceding odd-numbered lesson. Using the Russian cursive script is essential because Russians never "write" in "print letters" the way Americans do. Print letters are reserved only for publication; cursive is the style that all Russians use when they take pen in hand. In Lesson 11, you'll learn how to pronounce multisyllabic Russian words. The Appendix consists of summaries of some of the important information that is built up in each of the first ten lessons and some information about alphabetical order in Russian. Audio files: The numbered audio files correspond to the numbered sections of the lessons in the manual that have an audio file for you to listen to. Listening to the audio files will help you master the fundamentals of Russian pronunciation. As you listen, you'll hear a male and female pronounce each sound. The two native speakers may, at times, seem to pronounce the sounds differently. Be assured that in such instances where the pronunciations seem to differ, in fact both pronunciations are within the range of normative Russian pronunciation. Video files: The video files correspond only to the even-numbered lessons of the book. These video files can be played on both Windows and Macintosh computers with the QuickTime plug-in. The video files depict the writing of the cursive letters of the Russian alphabet in various combinations (each letter in word-initial, mid-word, and word-final position with a variety of other letters before and after it). There are video files for most, but not all, of the writing samples in this manual.
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| Ancillaries For self-quizzes and their answer key, click here to fill out request form. These are provided free of charge.
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START: An Introduction to the Sound and Writing Systems of Russian, 2/e
