Classes

Saskatoon Norwegian School (NorSkole)

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Saskatoon Norwegian Cultural Society is pleased to offer Beginner and Intermediate Norwegian Language classes starting September 2022. This is a fun way to learn a language, meet new people and learn about Norwegian culture.

Language class registration: Both the Beginner the Intermediate classes start on September 12, 2022. The Beginner class begins at 7:00 pm, while the Intermediate class begins at 6:30 pm at Evan Hardy Collegiate. Teacher for beginners is Amanda Lawrence, and teacher for intermediate is Line Bell. Signs will direct the students to the correct classrooms on the night of registration. Students are welcome to park in the parking lot to the north side of Evan Hardy.

The address is:

Evan Hardy Collegiate, 605 Acadian Drive, Saskatoon, SK S7H 3V8

The cost per term is $120 for adults and $50 for anyone 18 years old or younger. In addition and annual membership fee of $25 for a single, and $35 for a family membership. We will have a break over Christmas and resume in January.

If anyone has questions or would like further information, please contact Jennifer Stanley at 306 477-1869 or e-mail jennifer.stanley@shaw.ca.

We look forward to seeing new and returning students at registration time.

The Saskatoon Norwegian School (NorSkole) is a non-profit, community-based organization, sponsored by the Saskatoon Norwegian Cultural Society. It has been offering classes continuously since 1983. It is one of about 29 heritage language schools instructing classes in about 25 different languages on evenings and weekends, mainly in classrooms made available free of charge by the Saskatoon Public School Board of Education.

Approximately 1,000 students take these heritage language classes, instructed by typically 120 – 140 instructors. Many volunteer their time. Enrollment typically totals 40 – 50 children, youth and adults. Various classes include language, folk dance, culture and song for ages from five to adult.

SNCS provides overall management, operational funding and audited financial accounting for the Norwegian school. Any school-year deficits are covered by SNCS and any surpluses are applied to financing the next school-year. Some funding is also provided by SOHL (Saskatchewan Organization of Heritage Languages) via Sask Lotteries and Sask Culture.

Classes are held in evenings beginning the first Monday after Labour Day, when registration also takes place. Classes are offered in two terms, the first running from September to December, the second running from January to April. Each class is dependent on sufficient students and availability of instructors. All classes require membership of students in the SNCS. Membership cost per year is $25 per student or $35 per family, and is payable at the time of registration.

Students Wishing to Register after Classes Started

Some ask: “Can I start late?” The answer is yes, but some conditions apply.

The lessons are structured, so late-starters cannot expect to infringe much upon the instructor’s time in class to help them with catch-up. However, the study materials lend themselves to study and catch-up at home. Registering up to one month late should not be too difficult for a student to manage. After that a determined effort is required. If a student has missed most of Term 1, a determined effort over the Christmas break can make it possible to merge into Term 2 without becoming a burden for the class.

Students who have some Norwegian skills are welcome to register for the Intermediate Class.

Classes

Youth~Adult Beginner Course

This course teaches how to read and write basic Norwegian (Bokmål), and to understand easy basic Norwegian when spoken slowly. A fair degree of fluency can be developed by extra study of the course material at home, and/or by attending the Intermediate Conversational course.

The course comprises about 28 lessons through to the end of April on Monday evenings at Aden Bowman Collegiate. When there is school holidays we also take holidays.

The course makes use of:

A study workbook, with two companion CDs to aid extra listening and pronunciation study at home. This section teaches the language structure and how to compose and understand sentences, vocabulary and pronunciation.
A dialogue section for reading, pronunciation and listening comprehension, with two companion CDs.
A section with 15 traditional popular folk songs for listening comprehension and vocabulary enhancement, also with a CD.
A section of 45 color-illustrated Norway Notes on places of interest, crafts and other items of cultural interest plus extra material as time permits.
It is also recommended to use two free language sources on the Internet, such as Duolingo and Karin, Norwegian Teacher on You Tube.

Many students choose to repeat the course, both to stay in touch with the language and to improve proficiency. Students may also participate in the Intermediate Conversational Course given on Tuesday evenings.

Intermediate Conversational Course

This course comprises 24 two-hour sessions on Tuesday evenings. These sessions are more of a social event for students who wish to both stay in touch with the language and improve their proficiency. Each session usually begins with each student describing in Norwegian an activity or an event they had the previous week. Other students ask questions. English words are used where vocabulary is lacking and the translations are discussed. The rest of the session is quite varied with activities both interesting and humorous. The emphasis is on having fun with communication rather than the exactness of the Monday course, although students try to do their best.