TRH Community

A student asked me something a lot of you will know: "I know the grammar, but when I need to say something, my mind goes blank."

Knowing a rule is one skill. Using it while someone waits is another. The second one only grows if you practise it. So let's practise it. In small pieces.

Heads up: this is a long post. That's how we do things here. We go through it properly, with real examples, so you can use it today. Grab a coffee. It suits the topic.

Step 1. Pick a moment you already have

Coffee. Breakfast. The walk to work. You probably talk in these moments anyway, so just do it in Russian. Start with 30 seconds. Then one minute. Then two. Same topic every time.

Boring? A little. Effective? Very. Keep going with the same topic until one of two things happens: the words feel like…

I was just writing mine for the week and thought why not suggest this to you too, because most of you do it anyway.

Writing a to-do list is already a proper brain workout — figuring out priorities, breaking big goals into smaller steps. Do it in Russian and you're practising without even sitting down to "study."

Here's what I love about this one: you end up learning vocabulary that's actually yours, not from a textbook, but from your real life: Записаться на приём к стоматологу. Забрать детей из школы. Позвонить другу. Words you'll use again and again, which is exactly how they stick. You write Cyrillic every day without it feeling like homework, and slowly, without noticing, you start thinking in Russian rather than translating from English. That's the real win.

And here's the science bit: every time you cross something off, your brain gets a little dopamine hit.…

And a big welcome to some of our newer faces here in the community 👋

@James Griffiths @lauren.phillips2513

I just had a lesson with James and we wanted to do a quick refresher of cases. It made me think this would help everyone, not just him!

Here's a 1-minute cheat sheet using one very unimpressed cat (кошка) in all 6 cases. Same word (feminine), 6 endings, 6 tiny scenes — should help the differences click fast. Enjoy!

Nominative (subject)

Кошка ест мою пиццу.

I'll start.

I've finally launched this community! 🎉

My boys start nursery in September, which means that, for the first time in a while, I'll actually have a bit more time for the things I love. And Russian is a huge part of that.

So this week I'm getting this community off the ground, teaching, answering your questions and generally figuring out how to make this place useful and fun. 😊

And in the evenings, I'm watching For All Mankind. 🚀

https://www.amazon.co.uk/For-All-Mankind-Season-1/dp/B0DBSQ598C