Language is undoubtedly the most important part of a culture. Therefore, if you want to get to know and understand a society and culture, the language will be one of the best starting points. However, culture is not just language; it includes art, food, entertainment, sports, and much more. These elements of culture always find their way back into the language.
It is precisely for this reason, if you want to improve your skills in a foreign language and make sense of what you learn, it is useful to experience the other elements of a culture as well.
With this in mind, we organize various activities on an individual or group basis with our students. These include trips to see Turkish cinema, theater, and museums and also workshops on traditional Turkish glasswork, ceramics, painting, paper marbling, and of course food! As you can imagine, our most coveted event is cooking and eating.
At first, we visit the neighborhood street markets with our students, where we shop and practice our conversational skills. We say, “Bir taşla iki kuş vuruyoruz!” – “We are shooting two birds with one stone!” (A phrase familiar to Turkish and English speakers alike). Then we go to our cooking workshops and cook Turkish cuisine together. Finally, we eat with gusto and drink delicious Turkish coffee.
When planning such events, the needs and interests of our students are always central to our plans.