One problem with Pimsleur is that it really needs an uninterrupted thirty minute stretch to work on a lesson. Also, they recommend not doing more than one lesson a day.
Yes, there are now flash card drills and a few games in Pimsleur. But after doing every side activity possible, you still run into the small pieces of time that you’d like to use to accomplish something, but nothing seems to fit.
So I’m also working on the French Tree in Duolingo. I’m setting a goal of two sets a day. That shouldn’t be too hard to work on. The only issue is that I already did some stuff a long time ago, so I’ve got credit on the tree already. Oh well. I’ll strengthen what I’ve got for a while, and then move forward.
Since I was last on Duolingo, they’ve updated the tree with new words and lessons. They’ve also made minor changes to the activities. So it’s both new and old.
One thing I’ve noticed is that since the last time I was in Duolingo, there have been significant changes to to site. Now you earn crowns when you finish a lesson. Those crowns never go away. Once you’ve gained one crown, you can go on to the next lesson.
If you’re using Duolingo as your primary course, I’ve been told that you shouldn’t go to the next course with only one crown. But I’m using Pimsleur as my main course, and Duolingo as a supplement. So my plan is to do one strengthening session and one session at the next level of the tree every day until I’ve completed the tree at one crown. Them back to the top and complete it at two crowns. Etc.
At least that’s my current plan. Once I complete Pimsleur Level Five, obviously things will change. Plans may change earlier. We shall see. At least I’ve got a plan.
On the Road 