Jennifer CP#1

Date/Time: May 6, 2017; 1:00-2:00PM

Location: Black Dog Café at Lake Ella

Topic discussed: Family, life in America vs. Saudi Arabia, food, likes/dislikes, learning English

Cultural and/or linguistic topics you and your partner learned: Differences between Saudi Arabia and America-food, marriage, kids, status

I had a wonderful time chatting with Badriya. Her English language goals are mostly focused on improving her speaking and writing. She also mentioned having a limited vocabulary. She likes to read, but gets frustrated because of her vocabulary limitations. I recommended starting with children's or young adult literature so that it wouldn't be so difficult and would allow her to enjoy it while learning. Badriya also mentioned, with regards to American/English spoken music, that it is hard to listen to when she can't understand the lyrics so she can't enjoy it. 

We talked about her life and family in Saudi Arabia. Her husband is working on his Ph.D. at FSU in Computer Science and she has a degree in Physical Therapy. She mentioned that she is a first time mom so we talked about my kids as well. I think her English is quite good. I could understand her 85-90% of the time. Most of the issues that arise are related to vocabulary or appropriate word choice/verb tense.

Culturally, it was interesting to learn that prior to her wedding, she and her husband had never met. They were only allowed to text or email prior to the ceremony. Women in Saudi Arabia are not allowed to drive. They also separate the genders in education so that classes are not co-ed. Badriya said that she likes that in America, women can do anything. :)

I look forward to meeting with her again.