English conversation class teaches lessons about life and culture

Learning English is never easy. Especially when you’ve only been in the country for a few months. Especially when you’ve spoken a different language for your entire life.

But a group of Sammamish residents are finding it just a little bit easier thanks to Talk Time, a King County Library System program designed to help non-native speakers practice their conversation skills and learn some practical words and phrases.

The group meets every Tuesday at the Sammamish Library from 7-8:30 p.m. to talk, read, listen to music, and play games — and has room for more.

“The whole idea is very informal,” said Merv Montacute, one of the two volunteers who run the sessions. “The main thing is to get them to speak as much as possible, and get comfortable with it. And it’s not just a language-learning class; it’s a good culture-learning class too.”

The class, which is currently at about 10 people, has had members of all different cultures, nationalities, and ages pass through.

They cover a wide array of topics, from dating and marriage, to recent vacations, to family — anything is fair game. People also bring in food and photos, and share stories about their lives. One member even brings in a guitar to sing songs he has learned in English.

“I’ve actually learned far more than I’ve taught,” Montacute said. “It’s really very interesting to learn about other cultures and how they operate, especially those you might not be familiar with.”

Volunteer Roy Seliber agreed, and said that the diversity in the classes is one of the most worthwhile aspects.

“I’ve lived on the Plateau since 1990 and the increased diversity over the time I’ve been here has been amazing,” he wrote in an e-mail. “It makes the class very rewarding to be able to meet people from all around the world.”

And familiarity with English isn’t important to be part of the group; some people are almost fluent, while others may only know a word or two.

Priti Dharma, who came to the United States from India, praised the class as something that was instrumental in helping her learn English.

“After coming (to Talk Time) for a while, I felt very free to talk. It helped my confidence a lot,” she said. “Even if my English is not so good, my confidence is.”

Her time in the class even helped her land a full time job at a KinderCare.

Laura Mora, who is from Costa Rica but visiting her sister for a few months, said the small, informal sessions are much more beneficial than learning grammar and memorizing vocabulary.

“It’s not such a big group, so you get to speak a lot, and it’s very helpful,” she said. “I try to speak more every week. And meeting people here is great.”

The volunteers also help students learn about American culture and holidays — stuff like Thanksgiving, Memorial Day, and the Fourth of July.

And for students who may be taking citizenship tests, the group is there to help study and provide quizzes. Student Hank Liu recently sailed through his test with a perfect score on Inaguration Day.

“It’s really inspiring to see how motivated they are,” Montacute said. “They bring dictionaries, ask questions, and are constantly writing stuff down. The effort is just amazing.”

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