RUSS 101: BEGINNING RUSSIAN

Hunter College, CUNY, Fall 2016

M, W: 5:35-6:50 (1337 HW)
Professor: Yasha Klots (1403 HW)
Email: yk642@hunter.cuny.edu
Office Hours: M, Th: 2:00-4:00 pm, or by appointment

Course Description and Objectives

Russian 101 (Beginning Russian) is the first of two introductory-level

courses in Russian. Russian 101 is offered in the Fall semester, and its
follow-up course (Russian 102) is offered every Spring. Students who
successfully complete the 101-102 sequence will continue in Russian 201
and then in Russian 202. Completion of the two sequences fulfills the
foreign language requirement. The goals for the first year language
program include development of the following: mastery of the alphabet,
basic vocabulary and of the forms and syntax essential for reading and
oral comprehension. Elementary writing skills are taught at this stage as
well. In addition, the program introduces the students to some elements
of Russian literature, culture, and history. Furthermore, students are
taught vocabulary, forms, and syntax through the limited introduction of
original texts. In assessing the beginning students knowledge a number
of instruments are used. These include quizzes (both written and oral),
homework, tests, class participation/response, in-class writing exercises.
Close attention is given to assessing the student's knowledge of
vocabulary, forms, and syntax in context. These tools include
comprehension questions, transformation exercises, substitution
exercises, translating sentences and/or passages, translating English
sentences into target language. Tests include material that the student
has not seen before to assess the students ability to apply knowledge to
new contexts. They also include previously studied and memorized forms
and vocabulary in context. Classroom drills that involve the whole class
together as well as those that involve one student at a time are utilized
for practice and ongoing assessment by both teacher and student. Oral
examination designed to test students progress in oral comprehension,
reading, and speaking is given at the end of each semester. The final
exam will also include a written part.

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 Required Textbook

Marita Nummikoski. . A Communicative Approach to

Russian Language, Life, and Culture. 2nd ed. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley,
2012.
Marita Nummikoski. Student Activity Manual. . Activities
Manual. A Communicative Approach to Russian Language, Life,
and Culture. 2nd ed. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, 2012. (SAM)
The audio component of the edition online: http://bcs.wiley.com/he-
bcs/Books?action=index&itemId=0470646322&bcsId=6425

Course Requirements and Grading

Assignments and class performances are based on an expectation of

approx. 2 hours of home preparation for each class. Attendance is
mandatory, as well as lab practice (at least 1 hour per week). Students
with more than 4 (four) unexcused absences will have their grade
lowered according to the number of absences. The final grade for the
course will consist of the following:

15% class attendance and lab practice

20% class participation
25% written homework
20% tests and quizzes
20% final exam

Academic Integrity

Hunter College regards acts of academic dishonesty (e.g. plagiarism,

cheating on examinations, obtaining unfair advantage, and falsification of
records and official documents) as serious offenses against the values of
intellectual honesty. The college is committed to enforcing the CUNY
Policy on Academic Integrity and will pursue cases of academic
dishonesty according to the Hunter College Academic Integrity
Procedures.

Office of AccessABILITY

In compliance with the American Disability Act of 1990 (ADA) and with
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Hunter College is
committed to ensuring educational parity and accommodations for all
students with documented disabilities and/or medical conditions. It is
recommended that all students with documented disabilities (Emotional,
Medical, Physical and/or Learning) consult the Office of AccessABILITY
located in Room E1124 to secure necessary academic accommodations.
For further information and assistance please call 212-772-4857.

The textbook is available at the Shakespeare Bookstore. You can also use the
electronic edition, provided that you have it in class and submit homework assignments
as hard copies.

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 SCHEDULE

UNIT 1

Aug. 29 Introduction. Russian alphabet. / ? Visit

to the lab.

Aug. 31 Russian alphabet (cont.) and cursive writing. Pronunciation.

Personal names. ?. YES/NO questions. Reading
street signs.

Read pp. 1-13 (Textbook) and listen to the recordings online

Practice writing Russian letters (handout)
Read pp. 16-17 (Textbook)
Ex. 5 and 6 (SAM, p. 3)
Be prepared to tell your name and ask the name of your classmates

Sept. 7 YES/NO questions (cont.). Russian first names, last names

and patronymics. Professions. Basic adjectives. Formal and
informal address. Introduction to the category of gender.

Practice listening to Russian sounds and writing Russian letters:

www.russianforeveryone.com (go to Russian alphabet)
Ex. 1, 2, 3, 4 (SAM, p. 1-2), 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 (SAM, 4-12). Please
pronounce every word you
write out loud!
Be able to distinguish between 1) voiced / unvoiced, 2) soft / hard
consonants. Come up
with 3 examples of each (i.e., 3 pairs of words that have the same
consonant voiced and
devoiced, depending on its position, and 3 pairs of words that have
the same consonant soft and hard)
Professions: write 5 examples using the pronoun (it [is] ).
E.g.,
. Try combining them with basic adjectives. For this
exercise, use vocabulary in
the textbook on pp. 1-17 (though you can also use dictionaries)
Prepare for a short quiz on alphabet and cursive writing!

Sept. 12 Russian first names, last names and patronymics (cont.).

Masculine and feminine nouns and adjectives.

Ex. 1A, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8A-B (SAM, p. 14-17)

Listening exercises (SAM, p. 23-25): ex. 1-2, 7, 9

Sept. 14 Numbers (1-10). Basic math problems: ?

Greeting people.

Ex. 11, 12, 14A-B (SAM, p. 19-20)

Listening exercises (SAM, p. 23-25): ex. 3-6, 8

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Sept. 19 Numbers (1-10). Basic math problems: ?
Greeting people. Chapter review.

Ex. 13 (SAM, p. 20)

Bring a picture of your favorite Russian actor, writer, etc., and make a
small presentation
about him or her (say his/her full name, who s/he is, etc.)
Write down your phone numbers (please spell!)
Listening exercises (SAM, p. 25-26): ex. 9, 10

UNIT 2

Sept. 21 Test (Chapter 1). Describing foreign language skills. The

verbs , , ,
. Personal pronouns.

Ex. 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 (Textbook, pp. 27-33)

Go over your past h/w assignments and review for the TEST!
Read Textbook, Unit 2, pp. 38-42

Sept. 26 Personal pronouns in the nominative and accusative cases:

subject and object (cont.). Conjunctions , , .
Verb conjugation (cont.). Numbers (review).

Describe in several full sentences what languages you can speak

and/or understand. Please
write them on a separate sheet of paper in cursive! Prepare a
separate sheet with the same information about your friend, family
member, etc. (Min. 5 sentences each)
Written exercises: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6A-B (SAM, pp. 27-29)
Textbook Audio Files, #1 and #2 (Textbook, pp. 41-42)
Laboratory Audio Files, #1, 2, 3 (SAM, pp. 41)

Sept. 28 Family. Possessive pronouns. Patronymics (cont.).

Written exercises: 7A-B, 8, 9 (SAM, pp. 30-31)

Laboratory Audio Files, #4-5 (SAM, pp. 42)

Oct. 5 Introducing friends and teachers. Nouns of nationality.

Making compliments.

Written exercises: 10A-B, 11, 12, 13, 15 (SAM, pp. 32-35)

Textbook Audio Files, #2 (p. 51)
Oral Exercises: (download from Companion Site): #1-9

Oct. 6 Unit review.

Written exercises: 16, 17, 18 (SAM, pp. 35)

Laboratory Audio Files, #6 (SAM, pp. 42)
Oral Exercises: (download from Companion Site): #10-19

Oct. 17 TEST on Unit 2!

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 Written exercises: 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24A-B (SAM, pp. 36-40)
Self-Test (Companion Site, Unit 2)
Grammar activities (Companion Site, Unit 2) an excellent way to
review for the test!
Oral Exercises: (download from Companion Site): #20-27
Review the Unit and prepare for the test!

UNIT 3

Oct. 19 Naming things and describing them. Gender of nouns and

adjectives, and adjective agreement. " ... ?" and
"// ...?" The adjectival suffix "--"
(word building).

Read Textbook, pp. 68-71, and learn new vocabulary!

Written exercises: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 (SAM, pp. 43-44)
Oral exercises: 1, 2, 3 (with downloadable Word File; see "Companion
Site" under Ch. 3)
Laboratory Audio Files (#1)

Oct. 24 Numbers 30-50. Possessive pronouns (cont.). Combining

adjectives. The verbs "" and "". Dependent
clauses.

Read Textbook, pp. 71-72 ("Possessive Pronouns")

Written exercises: 6, 7A-B, 8, 9 (SAM, pp. 45-46)
Listening exercises: 1, 2 (SAM, p. 59)
Oral exercises: 4, 5, 6, 7 (with downloadable Word File; see
"Companion Site" under Ch. 3)

Oct. 26 Expressing and asking for opinions. Introduction to the

accusative case.

Written exercises: 10, 11, 12, 13A-B (SAM, pp. 47-49)

Oral exercises: 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 (with downloadable Word File; see
"Companion Site" under Ch. 3)

Oct. 31 Talking about possessions: " ?" "

?" etc. Equivalent of the verb "to have" and omission of
"." Describing the size of your family.

Written exercises: 14A-B, 15A-B, 16, 17 (SAM, pp. 49-51)

Oral exercises: 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19 (with downloadable Word File;
see "Companion Site" under Ch. 3)

Nov. 2 Chapter Review - 1.

Written exercises: 18, 19, 20 (SAM, pp. 52-53); 27, 28 (SAM, pp. 57-
58)
Laboratory Audio Files (#2)

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 Oral exercises: 20, 21, 22, 23, 24 (with downloadable Word File; see
"Companion Site" under Ch. 3)
Prepare for the TEST!

Nov. 7 Chapter Review - 2.

Written exercises: 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26 (SAM, pp. 53-56)
Oral exercises: 25, 26, 27 (with downloadable Word File; see
"Companion Site" under Ch. 3)

UNIT 4

Nov. 9 TEST on Unit 3! Begin Unit 4: Describing your city.

Nov. 14 "": describing your city and asking for directions.

"?" Expressing distance. Personal pronouns (cont.).

Read Textbook pp. 94-98 and learn new vocabulary!

Draw a map of your neighborhood and indicate what there is nearby
(in Russian, of course)
Ex. 1, 2, 3 (SAM, pp. 61-63)
Oral exercises 1, 2, 3 (with downloadable Word File; see "Companion
Site under Ch. 3)

Nov. 16 " ?" Describing your city (cont.) Expressing

location. Prepositional case. The verb "".

Ex. 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 (SAM, pp. 63-65)

Textbook Audio Files, Ex. 1, A-B-C (Textbook, P. 102; see "Companion
Site under Ch. 4)
Laboratory Audio Files, Ex. 1 (SAM, p. 85; see "Companion Site under
Ch. 4)
Oral exercises 4, 5, 6 (with downloadable Word File; see "Companion
Site under Ch. 4)
Grammar Activities: #1 (see "Companion Site")

Nov. 21 Describing your city (cont.). Demonstrative pronouns.

Ex. 9A-D, 10, 11 (SAM, pp. 66-69)

Laboratory Audio Files, Ex. 2 (SAM, p. 85-86; see "Companion Site
under Ch. 4)
Oral exercises 7, 8, 9 (with downloadable Word File; see "Companion
Site under Ch. 4)
Grammar Activities: #4-5, 6A-B (see "Companion Site")

Nov. 23 Nominative plural of nouns, adjectives and possessive

pronouns.

Ex. 12, 13, 14, 15 (SAM, pp. 70-71)

Grammar Activities: #3 (see "Companion Site")
Oral exercises 10, 11, 12 (with downloadable Word File; see
"Companion Site under Ch. 4)

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Nov. 28 Describing your house. The verb "".

Ex. 16, 17, 18, 19A-C, 20, 21 (SAM, pp. 72-76)

Textbook Audio Files, Ex. 2, A-B (Textbook, P. 109 see "Companion
Site under Ch. 4)
Oral exercises 13, 14, 15 (with downloadable Word File; see
"Companion Site under Ch. 4)
Grammar Activities: #7A-B, 8, 9A-B (see "Companion Site")

Nov. 30 Unit review.

Ex. 22, 24, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 31 (SAM, pp. 77-81)
Laboratory Audio Files, Ex. 3 (SAM, p. 86; see "Companion Site under
Ch. 4)
Oral exercises 16, 17, 18, 19, 20 (with downloadable Word File; see
"Companion Site under Ch. 3)
Grammar Activities: #10 (see "Companion Site")

Dec. 5 UNIT 4 - test!

Ex. 32, 33, 34, 37 (SAM, pp. 82-84)

Textbook Audio Files, Ex. 3: Vocabulary (Textbook, P. 123-124 see
"Companion Site under Ch. 4)
Oral exercises 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27 (with downloadable Word
File; see "Companion Site under Ch. 4)
Review for the test!

Dec. 7 Review for the final exam.

Units 1-2: "Self tests" and "Grammar activities" (online)

Units 1-2: Video interviews: please watch the videos and repeat
everything you hear verbatim (you should listen to the recording as many
times as you need to be able to hear everything distinctly)
Please go over "Chapter Review" exercises in the SAM!
Ex. 1, 2, 3 (Units 1-2): Please transcribe the audio files verbatim on a
separate sheet of paper (on BB)

Dec. 12 Review for the final exam (cont.).

Units 3-4: "Self tests" and "Grammar activities" (online)

Units 3-4: Video interviews: please watch the videos and repeat
everything you hear verbatim (you should listen to the recording as many
times as you need to be able to hear everything distinctly)
Please go over "Chapter Review" exercises in the SAM!
Ex. 4, 5, 6 (Units 3-4): Please transcribe the audio files verbatim on a
separate sheet of paper (on BB)

December 21, Wednesday, 5:20 pm

FINAL EXAM!

See you then, and good luck!!