My daughter is going to be a foreign exchange student next year and it looks like she is likely to go to Czech Republic.
Can anyone recommend language tapes for her to get a jump on learning Czech?
How about any books for learning more about the history and the culture of the country? She will be 16 when she goes so she is especially interested in learning about schools and teenagers. Thanks.

Have you/she looked at a Fodor's book yet?

An easy to read and concise book is "Culture Shock , Czech Republic" published by Graphic Arts Center Publishing Company, Portland, Oregon. It is really directed more at someone who is going to settle into Czech life, but it has some interesting and concise summaries of Czech history, language, culture, and other topics.

www.locallingo.com and www.livingprague.com offer audio language practice

the livingprague website is incredibly useful for anyone planning a trip to Prague

See if there's a Let's Go guide for Prague, it is written by college students.

My son did a study abroad at the Charles University in Prague a year and a half ago. Trust me-the Czech language is VERY difficult to learn and even the college did not insist that they take a whole semester of it due to the difficulty. He did a 3 week intensive"basic" to get around and did alright. There are tapes and books at places like Barnes and Nobles,Borders that you can order.Everything like clothes and food is very cheap there although since entering the EU things are changing.He loved Prague especially because he was able to tour to many unigue places like Poland,Hungary,Lithuania,etc.Since he has gone to Prague there are many many books out on the Czech Republic-even Rick Steves has one now! Don't be a bit surprised if she comes back a beer drinker as it is the cheapest thing to drink there.

From my (admittedly minimal) efforts to learn some Czech, I don't see why it would qualify as a uniquely difficult language.

I think it is not worth the investment in the &quot;high priced&quot; choices... like Pimsleur, for example. I would recommend the AV section of the biggest public/university library near you. Start with borrowing before buying, and consider trying all the brands you can choose at all the relevant locations. Ultimately, a good <i><b>book</b></i> would no doubt be a worthwhile investment (and a dictionary also). I would ask the (modern foreign) language teachers at her high school to help you evaluate one or more of the major brands you can find on a site like amazon, as they likely will have opinions on language learning skills and approaches. Is she enrolled in any foreign language this semester? If not, and if it's not too late, I wouled recommend trying to do something about that - - even if it means joining first year/second semester and playing &quot;catch up&quot;.

Best wishes,

Rex

I would agree with Rex--any classes that she might be able to take before she gets here will be mighty useful!

My husband and I have been here for about five months, and, due to travel to other countries, we have not quite made the inroads we would like, but Czech is a very difficult language--not in learning the vocabulary so much as in learning the grammar. Anything she can learn either way will help tremendously when she arrives.

Also, I would look at the book Culture Shock in the bookstore and then leave it there. We bought a copy before we came, and because of the pace of changes in this country over the last fifteen years, quite a bit of the info is outdated--especially about groceries, etc. I will say that the aspects pertaining to culture, history, etc. were helpful.

Will she be in Prague as I assume or somewhere else?