Instant Immersion Russian 2 CD-ROM Set (Jewel Case)

Our price:	$9.99
Manufacturer:	Topics Entertainment
Release date:	29 October, 2001

Average user rating: Average user rating: 3.5

Great intro to spoken Russian

If you are comfortable using computers, and you want a fun way to learn very basic Russian words and phrases, this is an excellent program for the money. Areas covered include numbers, colors, food, countries, shopping, etc. Fun quizzes and matching games as well. I recommend any of the Instant Immersion language cd's.

OK for speaking practice but missing continuity between CDs

I've been studying Russian independently for a while now, and I found the first CD in this set very helpful with pronunciation, though it does little for one's ability to recognize and read the Cyrillic letters (They are only shown in the practice section.) and even less for the ability to spell or to write. It is a good tool (and very inexpensive) to use for SPEAKING, if that is, indeed, your only intention or if you have an alternative method of learning to write and spell and read. The vocabulary is useful, though it does little to teach you to compose sentences on your own.

Now maybe I'm missing something, but I put the second CD in today, and I was VERY confused. There is no English translation that I can find, and there is a considerable amount of language used that is not covered in the first CD. I couldn't even find an Exit button to stop the program. On its own, I found this CD practically useless. Maybe there's something I didn't catch on to (and I tried using the Help button, but it was helpLESS.), and if anyone knows what it is, please post and let me know. I hope this helps! And if anyone can help me, I thank you.

Crawl before you walk, walk before you run

I am a newborn child, trying to grasp what all those sounds are that the bigger versions of me are making. I started out saying single words, doing a lot of pointing, and eventually, was able to put the words together. After 45 years, I seemed to have figured it out.

This program is the same way. Each lesson is broken down into groups of words, ie first words, numbers, colors, eating out, around the house, etc. Four pictures are shown, with writing in English, and spoken in Russian. On the next screen, you are given one Russian name and asked to chose what it means from the words 4 words listed in English. House? car? Boat? Taxi? Bathroom? Through constant repetition, the words finally start to stick.

Repetition is the way I learned to speak English when I was a baby and I believe that repetition is the way I will learn to speak Russian. Having both a man and a woman say the Russian words helps, too.

You have to crawl before you walk, walk before you run. The foundation must be built. Talk to a two year old. They don't say it right (yet), but they can get their meaning across. Hopefully, I will be able to do the same, minus the temper tantrums!

I gave this program 3 stars, since I feel the Rosetta Stone CD is better (although I think this is a good companion program) and I'm leaving 5 stars open for the ultimate, which I hope is out there.

Happy trekking!