Syllabus for Elementary Tamil FL 295 I 011
Class schedule: MWF 10-11am Engineering Graduate Research Center - EGRC)in Centennial Campus, Room 1236
Textbook:
Tamil for
Beginners by Kausalya Hart, University
of California, Berkeley,
1999.
Additional materials and websites:
1)
ccat.sas.upenn.edu/plc/tamilweb/
2)
http://www.unc.edu/~echeran/paadanool/
3)
A grammar of Spoken Tamil by Harold
F. Schiffman
4)
http://www.tamil.net/people/kalvi/welcome.htm
5)
http://www.kalvi.com/
6)
http://www.tamilnet.net.au/tamil_main/learning.html
7)
Class Notes
Each week has three classes, one each for
conversational/communicative (pronunciation) practice, written (script)
language practice and grammar and audiotape session.
Week of
Coursework
August
20 22
Introduction, history
and culture revolving round the Tamil
language; Simple conversations
like self-introduction, greetings, etc.
Introduction
of Tamil alphabet vowels and consonants; forming simple words.
Pages:
1
Assignment:
Practice to write tamil alphabet.
August
25
29
Nouns and
pronouns, personal and interrogative - reading and writing. Introducing
single-slot substitution drill.
Introducing
colors, numeral adjectives, singular and plural forms.
Sentences
involving nouns, interrogative questions and answers.
Pages:
2 - 4
Assignment:
Practice pronunciation, writing syllables and forming simple words
discussed in
class.
September
3
5
Use of few quality
adjectives; question formation by adding suffixes; the use of yes and
no;
Sandhi rules.
Pages:
11 - 14
Assignment:
Translating simple
sentences with the
above constructs, practice writing words.
September
8
12
Possessive form of
certain nouns formed by adding suffixes; use of demonstrative
adjectives;
pronominal forms of adjectives; sandhi rules involved in the formation
of
possessive forms of nouns and pronominal forms of adjectives.
Pages:
8 - 10
Assignment:
Translation and forming simple sentences with the above constructs.
September
15
19
Use of case
suffixes; introducing verbs, imperative form of verbs; use of present
tense and
adverbs. Increasing the number of words in the vocabulary.
Pages:
15 - 20
Assignment:
Translate words in the taught vocabulary and practice pronunciation and
simple
sentences involving suffixes.
September
22
26
Existential
sentences - sentences with locative expressions, making existential
sentences
with negative marker; conversational practice involving location of
objects,
residence, places, etc.
Pages:
24 - 30
Assignment:
Forming/translating sentences with the verb meaning be.
September
29
October 3 Use
of infinitive form
of verbs/ impersonal form of verbs, question formation by adding
certain
suffixes to the impersonal verb forms. Practice verbs and continue with
pronunciation and forming simple sentences involving impersonal verbs.
Pages:
34 - 40
Assignment:
Forming sentences that contain imperative verb forms and impersonal
verb forms.
October
6 8
Revision of what was
done until Oct 3rd on Oct 6th.
Quiz
on Oct 8th and class closed until Oct 12th due to
Fall
break.