Thread: shouldn't be

Trying to explain Russian grammar with Russian questions is hardly helpful to foreigners

I know. However how should they understand our cases and don't use them like we do? When we study english verb tenses, we try to think in these categories, not in our.

Originally Posted by Звездочёт

I know. However how they should understand our cases and don't use them like we do? When we study english verb tenses, we try to think in these categories, not in our.

Do you think of questions to conjugate words into their correct forms when you speak? No, you don't. You just do it from your experience and from intuitive knowledge of what each case/verb tense/preposition etc. means. That knowledge comes from hearing, remembering and then repeating the familiar constructs over and over again. Over time your brain makes out similarities between different constructs facilitating your understanding of them even further and making it easier to apply them in a wider varity of situations. This is how you learn a language.

Conjugation questions are irrelevant.

I don't know how our brain works with cases. It is mystery for me. Of cause you are right: russian questions is hardly helpful for foreigners.


However:

Originally Posted by iCake

Do you think of questions to conjugate words into their correct forms when you speak?

Yes, sometimes, when I doubt. And it works greatly. Why?

Originally Posted by Звездочёт

I don't know how our brain works with cases. It is mystery for me. Of cause you are right: russian questions is hardly helpful for foreigners.


However:

Yes, sometimes, when I doubt. And it works greatly. Why?

Explanation was fine. I understood everything.

Originally Posted by Звездочёт

I know. However how should they understand our cases and don't use them like we do? When we study english verb tenses, we try to think in these categories, not in our.

Originally Posted by Звездочёт

I don't know how our brain works with cases.

Sorry, but those two are contradictory.

First you express a thought that asking conjugation questions is how native speakers proccess cases. So there is some use in those questions to foreigners as they help them think as we do when composing Russian sentences.

Then, you state that you don't know how our brain proccess cases.

As to why I asked if you use conjugation questions when speaking Russian. Well, that's entirely because of your question that is quoted in this message. To be more specific, the first quote.