Comprehensive Study Notes for 3-Week Intensive Yonsei Korean 2: Lessons 1 and 2

Profiles of Key Figures and Participants

The study material introduces five main individuals with diverse backgrounds. Yuri is a Japanese university student. Xiao Ming is a Chinese office worker. Young-ju is a Korean university student. Michael is an American graduate student. Stefan is a German office worker. These characters appear throughout the exercises to illustrate real-world applications of the Korean language.

Lesson 1: I Am an Office Worker (제1과: 저는 회사원입니다)

The primary learning objective of this lesson is to enable students to introduce themselves effectively in Korean. This includes stating one's name, nationality, and occupation.

Vocabulary focuses on work and occupations. Key terms include:

  • 회사 (Company)

  • 다니다 (To attend/go to a place regularly)

  • 선생님 (Teacher)

  • 회사원 (Company worker/Office worker)

  • 은행원 (Bank employee)

  • 학생 (Student)

  • 의사 (Doctor)

  • 가수 (Singer)

  • 배우 (Actor)

  • 운동선수 (Athlete/Sports player)

Grammar Point 1: -입니다 and -입니까? This is the formal polite form of the copula "to be." "-입니다" is used for declarative statements, while "-입니까?" is used for questions. Examples provided include:

  • 저는 샤오밍입니다. (I am Xiao Ming.)

  • 샤오밍 씨는 중국 사람입니다. (Xiao Ming is Chinese.)

  • 이것이 무엇입니까? (What is this?)

  • 오늘은 무슨 요일입니까? (What day is it today?)

Grammar Point 2: -습니다/-ㅂ니다 and -습니까?/-ㅂ니까? This is the formal polite sentence ending used for verbs and adjectives. "-습니다" or "-습니까?" is used when the stem ends in a consonant. "-ㅂ니다" or "-ㅂ니까?" is used when the stem ends in a vowel. Examples provided include:

  • 공원이 깨끗합니다. (The park is clean.)

  • 만나서 반갑습니다. (Nice to meet you.)

  • 누구를 만납니까? (Whom are you meeting?)

  • 책이 어디에 있습니까? (Where is the book?)

Specific Tasks and Conversations for Lesson 1

In Speaking Task 1, a dialogue is presented between Yuri and Simon:

  • Yuri: "First time meeting you (처음 뵙겠습니다). I am Yuri."

  • Simon: "Hello? I am Simon."

  • Yuri: "Simon, what work do you do?"

  • Simon: "I work at a bank (은행에 다닙니다)."

  • Yuri: "I am a university student. Nice to meet you."

Other profiles intended for practice include:

  • Yuki: Japanese, attends Keiyu University.

  • Michael: American, attends Yonsei University Graduate School.

  • Wei: Athlete.

In Task 2 (Listening and Speaking), specific comprehension checks are provided:

  • Is Yuri Japanese? (True)

  • Are the two people meeting for the first time today? (True)

  • Is Xiao Ming an office worker? (True)

  • Is Rie a Chinese teacher? (False)

  • Where does Miseon work? Options include: Bank, Office, Hospital, School.

  • What does Michael study?

Task 3 (Reading and Writing) features a passage by Stefan regarding his background: Stefan welcomes the reader. He comes from Germany. His mother is Korean and teaches the Korean language in Germany. Stefan is an office worker at a computer company. He is currently learning the Korean language at Yonsei University because he wants to speak Korean well.

Lesson 2: How Long Does It Take from Home to School? (제2과: 집에서 학교까지 얼마나 걸려요?)

The learning objective for this lesson is to express how to get to a destination and the time required for the journey.

Key Vocabulary:

  • 날마다 (Every day)

  • 어떻게 (How)

  • 얼마나 (How much/How many)

  • 시간 (Hour/Time)

  • 걸리다 (To take time)

  • 버스 (Bus)

  • 지하철 (Subway)

  • 택시 (Taxi)

  • 기차 (Train)

  • 비행기 (Airplane)

  • 배 (Boat)

  • 자전거 (Bicycle)

Grammar Point 1: 으로/로 This particle indicates direction (to/towards) or a means/instrument (by/using). "-으로" is used if the noun ends in a consonant (except "ㄹ"), and "-로" is used if it ends in a vowel or "ㄹ." Examples provided include:

  • 이 버스는 남산으로 갑니다. (This bus goes to Namsan.)

  • 저는 학교에 버스로 옵니다. (I come to school by bus.)

  • 한국 음식은 수저로 먹습니다. (Korean food is eaten with a spoon and chopsticks.)

  • 교실에서 한국말로 이야기하세요. (Please speak in Korean in the classroom.)

Grammar Point 2: 에서 ~ 까지 This construction marks the starting point and the end point, typically for space or time, translated as "from ~ to." Example: 집에서 학교까지 (From home to school).

Specific Dialogue and Application for Lesson 2

The conversation between Yuri and Stefan details a daily commute:

  • Yuri asks Stefan how he comes to school every day.

  • Stefan responds that he comes by bus.

  • Yuri asks how long it takes from home to school.

  • Stefan says it takes about one hour.

In the exercises, Rie provides her routine:

  • She comes to school daily by subway.

  • There are many friends from various countries at school.

  • She speaks with friends in the classroom in Korean.

  • They do not speak in Japanese.

  • She eats lunch at 1 o’clock1\,\text{o'clock}

  • Afterward, she goes to Myeong-dong to her part-time job.

  • In April, she travels to Japan by airplane.

Quantitative Data and Specifics

The materials specify time durations and calendar specifics as follows:

  • The duration from Stefan's home to school is 1 hour1\,\text{hour}

  • The month Rie travels to Japan is 4 월4\,\text{월}

  • The lunch time for Rie is 1 시1\,\text{시}

Questions & Discussion

Within the "Listening and Speaking" and "Speaking" sections, several questions are posed to students to encourage interaction:

  • "What are the people doing?"

  • "How do you greet people?"

  • "How do you come to school?"

  • "What transportation do you use often?"

  • "What is your name?"

  • "What country are you from?"

  • "What work do you do?"