Counting On, Season Four Part 4

[fluffernutter]

9 hours ago, HarryPotterFan said:

Oh course it wouldn't offend Samantha, it's a great honor to have a penis. An honor us vagina possesser can't even begin to imagine. A penis gives you great wisdom and strength.

Derick manages to be a squib and a death eater at the same time. If he had magical powers his patronus would probably be a worm.

I snort-laughed at this. If Jim Boob had a patronus, it would be a donkey. 

[SapphireSlytherin]

6 hours ago, calimojo said:

adjust to being stateside again

This is hard, y'all. When you've lived outside the USA for any amount of time (say - more than a couple of months, even), coming back here sucks. :/

3 hours ago, Lurky said:

I guess I just assume that learning a language is a core skill just like history, geography, English lit etc.)

Three years of the same foreign language were required when I was in high school. I took Spanish and then promptly moved to Germany. That was fun, language-wise.

6 hours ago, calimojo said:

There is a side to Jeremy that doesn't add up.  He lived in the world, appreciates education, has a working mom and comes from a smaller family.  He seems to 'be his own man' and yet he is also a fame seeker.  Of all the movers and shakers in the religious community, why did he decide to hitch his wagon to a bunch of uneducated, unmotivated  yahoos like the Duggars.  For anyone to watch this show, and pay attention and still want to be a part of the family is the concerning part with Jeremy.  What is his end game?  That being said,  it is nice that Jinger is away from the TTH. 

While I'm hopeful he truly loves Jinger and wants to liberate her from the horrendous, oppressive lifestyle she was brainwashed into... He may have been motivated by the attraction for fame. He was a pro soccer/football player, so he was used to attention. Now he gets a lot of press without having to work for it. 

[Topaz]

1 hour ago, fluffernutter said:

I snort-laughed at this. If Jim Boob had a patronus, it would be a donkey. 

I once met a donkey called Jim Bob. At Carrisbrooke Castle on the Isle of Wight they have a well where the mechanism to draw up the bucket is worked by a donkey on a treadmill (looks like a giant hamster wheel).  They do demonstrations of how it works and have several donkeys, who all had J names iirc.  Maybe one was Jim Bob in his animagus form.  Anyone know a spell to stop him changing back?

 

[minniestwin]

4 hours ago, Lurky said:

Re the Babes learning Spanish.  They were both Homeschooled, right?  And Spanish is the 2nd largest language spoken in the USA, & bigger than English in terms of global speakers, so I would have expected it to be the language they learned at 'school' - but do USA folk think they would have been taught another language instead, or just not taught a language at all?

Twenty-two years ago when I graduated in Florida we were required to take two years of a "foreign language" to graduate.  At my particular school we could take Spanish, French, Latin or American Sign Language to meet this requirement.  I actually took two years of Spanish and two years of Latin.  However, I just learned from my best friend who's son is starting HS and the foreign language requirement is no longer necessary for a general High School diploma.   I'm not sure when this rule changed here because all three of my daughters have gone through the International Baccalaureate program which actually requires four years of a foreign language (they all took Spanish). 

So I guess my answer to this would be it would depend on where you lived in the US as to what the requirements regarding a second language.

[backyard sylph]

4 hours ago, Lurky said:

Re the Babes learning Spanish.  They were both Homeschooled, right?  And Spanish is the 2nd largest language spoken in the USA, & bigger than English in terms of global speakers, so I would have expected it to be the language they learned at 'school' - but do USA folk think they would have been taught another language instead, or just not taught a language at all?

(I know, I know, I'm using the word "taught" when for the Duggars I should say "were given booklets to try to read in the chaos of their homelife & filming", and this is where I'm going wrong!)

(In the UK, language skills and expectations are execrable compared to pretty much every other European country, but until recently, we were all expected to learn at least 1 language, even if only for a few years, at Secondary school (11-16/18), so I guess I just assume that learning a language is a core skill just like history, geography, English lit etc.)

Honestly, it isn't about being homeschooled. Well, I mean, it probably is in her case, and it can be in his case, but very few people I know who learned Spanish or French in school can do anything more than ask where the bathroom is or count to ten. It's much better in the regions where you encounter native speakers, but that's not most of the country. I took two years of high school French and one in college, and yet, without any immersion, cannot understand much when it's spoken. I can read basic writing, and form basic sentences. But that's because I keep wanting to.

On the other hand, my brother moved to Quebec in 1974, and now talks in three languages up there, just because he's around it all the time. The people here who are bilingual live around it, or have family members who speak it or just a terrific level of interest in it.

[Jana814]

I never took a foreign language in High School. It was not a requirement for graduation. I have clients who kids go to the school I went to. It is now a requirement for graduation.  

[unspoken]

I graduated from ebil public school in 2007 and the requirement was three years of one foreign language or two years of two different foreign languages. We had the options of Spanish, French, and German. I took four years of German. I would never be able to carry a conversation though. I then took two semesters of Spanish in college, and I can't speak any of it (and I got all A's or B's in both languages). 

My husband on the other hand, was homeschooled and took 6 years of Latin. 

I think the biggest difference for many Americans is the lack of immersion as someone else stated up thread. I also think we tend to start learning languages at a later age which makes it harder to achieve complete fluency. 

[HarryPotterFan]

1 hour ago, Topaz said:

I once met a donkey called Jim Bob. At Carrisbrooke Castle on the Isle of Wight they have a well where the mechanism to draw up the bucket is worked by a donkey on a treadmill (looks like a giant hamster wheel).  They do demonstrations of how it works and have several donkeys, who all had J names iirc.  Maybe one was Jim Bob in his animagus form.  Anyone know a spell to stop him changing back?

 

Bwahaha J names? Are those donkeys the Duggar family? 

[VineHeart137]

I also graduated in '07 and the requirement in my state was two years of a foreign language. I took American Sign Language.

[mtc3659]

I took 4 years of Italian in high school. Then a few years later, took 1 semester of Italian in college. I didn't remember a lot from high school so I took Italian 1. It was my favorite A in the class. I ended up helping a couple classmates out who were struggling. 

[HarleyQuinn]

My high school had no requirements for foreign languages, yet you couldn't graduate unless you took a swimming class.

I wish American schools started foreign languages earlier and made them a requirement. I've been using Duolingo to teach my kids German, it's just a fun little vocabulary game. It's nothing extensive but it's good enough for a young age. 

[JMO]

I just finished watching the episode.  Did anyone else catch that they blurred Jill's knee when she was sitting and folding laundry? Also, they clearly played with the timeline since she wasn't visibly pregnant when she got the carotid ultrasound and then the results.  They probably filmed that in the fall when they filmed the original doctors visit that the bruit was detected at. Finally,  I want to know what large textbook Jill was reading and high lighting while waiting to go to get the ultrasound done. 

As for Joy making cheesecake, that looked like the standard cherry pie filling topped cheesecake. No snark about using manufacturer's recipes, I've always found them tasty, but I love that it's a Forsyth family secret recipe. 

[ladybug15]

16 minutes ago, HarleyQuinn said:

My high school had no requirements for foreign languages, yet you couldn't graduate unless you took a swimming class.

I wish American schools started foreign languages earlier and made them a requirement. I've been using Duolingo to teach my kids German, it's just a fun little vocabulary game. It's nothing extensive but it's good enough for a young age. 

HarleyQuinn how old are your kids? My boys are 10 months soon, we are exclusively speaking to them in Polish. I figured English they can learn in school. But I am debating teaching another language as well like Spanish in few years.

 

My 4 year old niece lives in Barcelona, Spain. Her father is Italian, her mom is Polish. They speak English to each other. She goes to English nursery/prek. Currently can speak 3 languages, when she will go to school she will also add Spanish and Catalan. I could bet she will be quite fluent in all of them too, especially as her father is great with languages.

[DawkinsFanGirl]

I realize I’m probably far too hopeful but:

When J&J were quizzing each other on Spanish words, Jinger said that bebé is an important word for her to know. I was 99% sure she was going to say something like “because we’re hoping to welcome our own little one soon!” but she didn’t! She said it’s important because she and Jeremy call each other babe.

I know this isn’t “proof” that they are somehow trying to prevent pregnancy or anything like that. But it was still extremely refreshing to hear a Duggar woman/couple NOT jump right to the standard “hoping to welcome a little one as soon as the Lord sees fit” blah blah even though it would have made (semi-)sense in that conversation.

[DillyDally]

22 minutes ago, JMO said:

Did anyone else catch that they blurred Jill's knee when she was sitting and folding laundry?

Yes! I thought I must have imagined it, but I saw that, too. (But I was too lazy to replay that scene. Like the rest of the episode, it was boring enough to sit through once). So weird!

[HarleyQuinn]

16 minutes ago, ladybug15 said:

HarleyQuinn how old are your kids? My boys are 10 months soon, we are exclusively speaking to them in Polish. I figured English they can learn in school. But I am debating teaching another language as well like Spanish in few years.

 

My 4 year old niece lives in Barcelona, Spain. Her father is Italian, her mom is Polish. They speak English to each other. She goes to English nursery/prek. Currently can speak 3 languages, when she will go to school she will also add Spanish and Catalan. I could bet she will be quite fluent in all of them too, especially as her father is great with languages.

The one I'm teaching is 5, I probably should've started younger but he wouldn't sit still  

[Antipatriarch]

34 minutes ago, HarleyQuinn said:

I wish American schools started foreign languages earlier and made them a requirement. I've been using Duolingo to teach my kids German, it's just a fun little vocabulary game. It's nothing extensive but it's good enough for a young age. 

I wish they did too! The younger the better... young kids soak up languages easily, it's harder when you're older. And a good language teacher will incorporate some of the culture too, which is really good in these overly tribal and insular times.

I use Duolingo too, as a way of trying to keep my H.S. French vocabulary fresh. It's a neat little app, but yeah, not extensive enough to really learn a language by itself.

[Jessie E]

42 minutes ago, JMO said:

As for Joy making cheesecake, that looked like the standard cherry pie filling topped cheesecake. No snark about using manufacturer's recipes, I've always found them tasty, but I love that it's a Forsyth family secret recipe. 

I noticed the pie filling as well. I do a lot of baking in my free time. It's a strong passion of mine. I had a bit of a chuckle at the "forsyth family secret recipe" too. From what I could see, it was just your standard cheese cake recipe; nothing seemed special about it. But like we mentioned on here earlier, its a TLC formula.  Jessa made the "family secret recipe" for apple pie & Jinger with the spaghetti sauce.

[2manyKidzzz]

Book learnin' for languages only goes so far. I got all kinds of As in four years of high school French, but cannot really carry on a conversation. On a trip to Paris awhile back, I was able to do a little asking for things and it was fun. 

But yes, immersion is the way to learn. And here in the US, we don't really have a platform for that. Living where the Babes do, I would think they could spend time with the member of their church and force themselves to speak Spanish. We don't know how fluent in English his church members really are or are not. You have to force yourself to only speak the desired language for periods of time.

[nickelodeon]

1 hour ago, JMO said:

As for Joy making cheesecake, that looked like the standard cherry pie filling topped cheesecake. No snark about using manufacturer's recipes, I've always found them tasty, but I love that it's a Forsyth family secret recipe. 

Yeah, if the recipe is printed on the back of every box of Philadelphia cream cheese, it's not a very well-kept "family secret."

[Buzzard]

6 hours ago, Lurky said:

Re the Babes learning Spanish.  They were both Homeschooled, right?  And Spanish is the 2nd largest language spoken in the USA, & bigger than English in terms of global speakers, so I would have expected it to be the language they learned at 'school' - but do USA folk think they would have been taught another language instead, or just not taught a language at all?

Silly @Lurky!  The bible was written in ENGLISH, dontcha know?  The Holy King James bible is the only version that matters, its in english, and thats all they need! Those other heathen languages arent worth learning, just enough to teach the silly brown people the proper language, ENGLISH!  Everyone knows that the Duggars true mission is to teach everyone God's chosen language, ENGLISH, and teach them all about their version of Jesus, the only true Jesus.

/sarcasm

[potato]

My ebil public school system had us learning Spanish from second grade, so we at least had a little bit of exposure from a relatively young age.  Later on, we had to take at least two years of a foreign language in order to graduate high school, where we could choose from Spanish, French, German, Italian, and Mandarin Chinese.  While two years isn't nearly enough to learn a foreign language, I feel like the effort you put into learning it really plays a key role in how much you actually learn.  I have taken various foreign language classes at different points of my life and the ones that I remember the best are the ones where I immersed myself in the language and culture outside of the classroom.  

I definitely recommend starting foreign languages with kids earlier rather than later in life.  Even though I was born in the US, my first language was technically Greek since my family would speak to me in Greek (I learned English shortly after).  My sisters and cousins and I were also forced to attend and graduate Greek school, but the program we were in only goes through the sixth grade.  While I still have room for improvement, I'm grateful to be more or less fluent in another language.

[Carm_88]

I did how many years of french? Started in grade 3, required to go to grade 9. So 6 years, and then 2 years of French in high school, so 8, add in 2 years of university to make it a decade of French and I'm still a stumbler. I understand it better then I speak it.  

[Born Skeptic]

2 hours ago, minniestwin said:

Twenty-two years ago when I graduated in Florida we were required to take two years of a "foreign language" to graduate.  At my particular school we could take Spanish, French, Latin or American Sign Language to meet this requirement.  I actually took two years of Spanish and two years of Latin.  However, I just learned from my best friend who's son is starting HS and the foreign language requirement is no longer necessary for a general High School diploma.   I'm not sure when this rule changed here ...<snip>

 

i don't think the Florida requirements have actually changed.  A student can graduate with a general high school diploma without taking a foreign language.  However every State University in Florida requires 2 consecutive years of the same foreign language in order to be considered for acceptance.  Most if not all in state private Universities do as well.  By not taking a foreign language, the student would be limiting their choice to community college (a/k/a State College), trade/career college, etc. Many guidance counselors advise all of their students to take at least the 2 year minimum.

 

[singsingsing]

10 minutes ago, Carm_88 said:

I did how many years of french? Started in grade 3, required to go to grade 9. So 6 years, and then 2 years of French in high school, so 8, add in 2 years of university to make it a decade of French and I'm still a stumbler. I understand it better then I speak it.  

It was grade 1 to grade 9 here. Still can't really speak it!