Davidson Russian Courses RUS 101	Search • Contact Us

Course Materials

• Richard Robin et al. Голоса: A Basic Course in Russian. Book 1. 5 ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2012
• Accompanying Workbook
• Pearson MyRussianLab
• Accompanying Website
• Edwina J. Cruise. English Grammar for Students of Russian. The Olivia and Hill Press, 1993 (on reserve)
• Russian-English dictionary, such as Oxford (online through Davidson library)
• Russian@Davidson links page:Web-based study tools, literature in Russian, newspapers, video, radio, etc.

Course Overview

You will begin the semester by mastering the Russian alphabet: Within three weeks you will be able to read and write Russian letters without a second thought and will move on to speaking, reading, and writing real Russian! By the end of the semester you will be able to converse on familiar topics about yourself, tackle short written texts, and understand basic audio and video segments. Throughout the semester we will concentrate on developing oral proficiency with exercises designed to help you function in your travels to Russia and conversations with Russians at home and abroad. Finally, the course will integrate learning about Russian culture -- both the famous artistic and political figures as well as the everyday "small c" culture of Russian customs, education, family life, etc.

Please come to class prepared! Take advantage of opportunities to speak! Have fun!

Course Policies

Attendance: You will meet three times a week with Professor Ewington (M/W/F) and twice (Tu/Th) with your AT, Daria Sidorova, who joins us this year from Saratov, Russia. Attendance at all sessions is required. You are allowed three absences in the MWF sessions and two AT absences. Additional absences will negatively impact your final grade. If you are absent on the day of a quiz or exam there will be no make-up. Please use your absences wisely. If you have a family or medical emergency, please let me know as soon as possible.

Participation: Daily participation is required and will be evaluated on the level of preparation and participation in individual and group activities, as well as effort made to avoid English. Remember to bring your workbook and textbook to class each day.

Classroom etiquette: Do not chew gum or eat during class or AT sessions. Remember to silence and put away cell phones before class.

Russian Table (optional): Professor Ewington, Daria, and Professor Erman welcome you at Vail Commons for Russian Table/ Русский стол on Thursdays from 11:30-1:00. Join us for this informal and fun way to practice your Russian and meet other students involved with Russian at Davidson. First-year Russian students are highly encouraged to attend and get a sense for the melody of spoken Russian.

Moodle: Announcements about news related to the class and "help sheet" files will be posted to Moodle.

MyRussianLab: This new 2012 edition of the textbook includes the MyRussianLab interactive site. Most of your homework will be submitted directly through MyRussianLab. We will discuss MyRussianLab in more detail on the first day of class.

Facebook: You are invited to friend "Davidson Russian" on Facebook. Our Facebook page is a good place to read about upcoming events, interesting articles or exhibits, and meet our current students as well as alumni and former AT students from Russia.

Russification: You should "Russify" your computer right away in order to read Russian on the internet and type in Russian in your own documents and searches. Look here for help Russifying your Mac or here for help with a PC. MyRussianLab also has information on Russifying your computer.

Homework (Домашнее задание):
On MWF homework is due at the beginning of class. On Tuesdays and Thursdays any handwritten homework must be submitted by 3:00 p.m. in the box on my office door (Chambers 3258), but homework submitted through MyRussianLab will be due at 11:00 p.m. The MRL calendar of assignments will include due dates and times.

• The detailed schedule for each week can be located by selecting the links at the bottom of this page. Please read the assignments carefully, keeping in mind the following abbreviations and words:
  • MRL: MyRussianLab website
  • РТ (рабочая тетрадь): workbook
  • У (учебник): textbook
  • сделайте письменно: in written form
  • сделайте устно: orally
  • стр. (страница): page
• Late work will not be accepted. Please read the syllabus carefully!
• At the start of each new unit you are assigned to make flashcards. These will not be submitted. You should feel free to make them the old-fashioned way (index cards!) or use any number of iPhone/iPad/Android flashcard apps.
• Before submitting homework please double check:
  • Are you looking at the right day?
  • Have you completed all questions on the correct exercises? Verify page numbers, exercise numbers, and У vs. РТ, письменно vs. устно.
  • All answers should be in Russian unless otherwise specified.
  • If you have written directly in the workbook, consider whether you will need the other side of the page for the next day’s assignment. Some students find it easier to get in the habit of photocopying the workbook pages for their homework or writing out answers on a separate piece of paper.
  • When using notebook paper, please skip lines to allow room for comments.
  • Loose pages must be stapled. Each of you will be provided a mini-stapler to keep in your your bookbag for this purpose.
  • Please complete all assignments, quizzes, and tests in pencil and erase, rather than scratch out, any changes.
  • Include your name on all pages and pledge all work.
  • You are responsible for oral homework, although it will not be submitted.

Other Graded work:
There will be no make-up for missed quizzes or tests except in the case of a true emergency (to be determined by me in consultation with the Dean of Students Office).

• Class Work: Beginning in unit 2 there will be regular "check-ups," such as vocabulary quizzes or dictation. These will not receive letter grades, but do count toward participation.
• Unit tests (контрольная работа): All unit tests are comprehensive, meaning they include material not only from the most recent unit, but from preceding units as well. In addition to grammar, translation, vocabulary and other written exercises, tests include reading comprehension and an oral component. Unit tests will be scheduled for AT sessions.

Honor Code: All work must be pledged. For the workbook or any other written homework you should feel free to consult your notes, the book, dictionaries, or other grammar books that might help you. You are encouraged to discuss problems that you don’t understand with your fellow students (this might include study sessions for exams), but you should not collaborate on the answers to specific assignments.

Disabilities: If you have a documented disability on record at Davidson and would like to have a reasonable accommodation made for you in this class, please see me as soon as possible at the beginning of the semester.

Evaluation

Schedule

1. 27-31 августа. Русский алфавит [Russian alphabet]
2. 3-7 сентября. Русский алфавит
3. 10-14 сентября. Русский алфавит; Урок 1:Немного о себе
4. 17-21 сентября. Урок 1
5. 24-28 сентября. Урок 1; Урок 2: Что у меня есть?
6. 1-5 октября. Урок 2
7. 8-12 октября. Урок 2
8. 15-19 октября. Fall Break; урок 2; Урок 3: Какие языки вы знаете?
9. 22-26 октября. Урок 3
10. 29 октября-2 ноября. Урок 3
11. 5-9 ноября Урок 3;Урок 4: Университет
12. 12-16 ноября. Урок 4
13. 19-23 ноября. Урок 4; День благодарения (Thanksgiving)
14. 26-30 ноября Урок 5 : Распорядок дня
15. 3-7 декабря. Урок 5
16. 10-12 декабря Урок 5; Review for final exam