r/learnthai • u/EnvironmentalYak7772 • 3d ago
Studying/การศึกษา 100 hours Thai update - I guess I am learning Thai
I am about to hit 100 hours of Thai comprehensible input which puts me at the start of Level 2 using Dreaming Spanish levels (hours ×2 as I know no related language) or just after the start of Level 2 using Lengualytics.
Why am I learning Thai?
Over the past year or two I have gradually consumed more media from Thailand. I started with graphic novels/webtoons, then TV series, and then a book. I was rewatching one of my favourite series and I realised I was missing the meaning of some of the lines. I therefore got the urge to learn Thai.
Why am I using only comprehensible input?
I am not sure my reasoning for learning Thai is the best and I honestly thought I would get bored of it quickly. Also, I am familiar with CI as I learnt Spanish with Dreaming Spanish. However, with Spanish, I was not fully bought into only CI and did a small but pretty constant amount of grammar study alongside CI. Therefore I decided to try learning Thai by pure CI because:
The videos are free online
I have very few commitments in my life right now
It feels less like work and more like fun
My goals are currently around passive use of language (watching and reading)
I was interested in seeing how it felt learning using only CI compared with my experience with Spanish
How was level 1?
Despite having watched probably 30 TV series plus some related content over the past year, I started with literally 0 Thai words. Not even greetings. This is good evidence that you are wasting your time if you use NL subtitles for extensive listening!
At the start, it was really difficult and much more so than Spanish. The language is tough and the super beginner videos of DS are better CI quality. This is not meant to insult Comprehensible Thai: the B0 playlist is 4 years old now and I think DS has learnt so much in that time about how to make very accessible content.
Doing a full 30 mins was hard at first so I alternated 10 mins watching with chores, scrolling reddit for inspiration, or 10 mins watching a series with NL subtitles. (Thai CI people! I think there is a need for more shorter videos at super beginner level). Gradually I have increased my Thai concentration time but I don't expect to be watching endlessly for several 100 more hours.
How have I tracked my hours?
I started with a spreadsheet but I have changed that recently to using Lengualytics. Basically my motivation has ebbed and flowed and I wanted an easier way to track progress. Using Lengualytics has been a mostly positive experience. As an additional benefit, because there are so few Thai learners using it, I find the pressure to rate the difficulty as accurately as possible helps to keep me focussed on the video. I am sorry to future learners if I got the ratings wrong!
So far it have watched:
Comprehensible Thai Original Structured Absolute Beginner Course
Comprehensible Thai B0
Superbeginner Thai with KhrooYing
And I am working through:
Comprehensible Thai B1
Riam Thai Beginner Thai
Pure Listening Beginner Thai with Khroo Ying
How is my level now?
I can understand the general concepts in beginner videos. Because true super beginner videos are few, I only now feel the videos are at my level. I have also picked up the odd word in conversations in TV series e.g. two characters shopping and talking about colours of clothes.
I don't feel my progress after level 1 is that much different compared with Spanish but it might be too early to be noticeable. I am definitely worried that the low comprehensibility and the long videos might be having an effect.
Do I understand TV series more?
On a cultural level, I now understand the geography and foods of Thailand slightly. My first videos about foods were very confusing as I could only recognise about one fruit or vegetable per video. I am now paying more attention to foods in the series I watch.
I honestly did not expect to understand the “deeper meaning” of words until at least 600 hours and more like 1000 hours. However, at about 20 hours I learnt a word that sounds like Nam and then at 30 hours I learnt a word that sounds like Lom, then at 50 hours Fai kind of sounds like lights/electricity…. Does this mean Din is something like Earth? Was this obvious to other people who don't speak Thai and am I being an idiot? (probably). So yes, I now understand the meaning of some names at a superficial level, success!
What are my plans for Level 2?
It's scary looking ahead at the time it takes so I am trying to make it easy for each day at a time. For level 2, I will just keep working my way through the beginner playlists.
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u/Happy-Sundae9315 2d ago
Came from dreaming Spanish too. i stopped DS at 600 hours and started watching native content. I’m easily at 2000+ hrs now but I haven’t been tracking. At b2/c1 Spanish I’d say. Started Thai about a week ago and at maybe 15 hours - working my way through original structured absolute comprehensible Thai but will be using anki alongside for vocab and to learn the alphabet. Good luck!
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u/Give-me-gainz 2d ago
Congrats on 100 hours! Thats the hardest 100 hours done, every 100 hours from now on will likely be easier than the last. I’ve used this method and am at 1400 hours now. It gets easier and more fun the longer you do it. Just keep showing up and you’ll get there.
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u/Old-District5359 2d ago
What's your level now?
Did you try other methods too?
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u/Give-me-gainz 1d ago
I did pure comprehensible input. No idea if it’s the fastest way to learn, but I enjoy it.
My comprehension is not bad - I can get the gist of a decent chunk native content. My speech is pretty terrible. I feel like I’m missing important words whenever I speak, but my brain is slowly filling in the gaps.
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u/Single-Low9742 1d ago
Would love to give this a go. However a search on YouTube showed lots of confusing results.
Could someone send a link to the first lesson please?
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u/IssueRidden 3d ago
I'm curious, what's your native language and how has your experience learning Spanish with CI only been?