The accidents and bad reputation of Polish

Every language has something that keeps those who want to learn it awake at night. In one language, it might be irritating articles, in another, intimidating tenses, in still others, impossible sounds, or a terrifyingly complex sign system.

In Polish, we don't have articles, nor do we suffer from an excess of tenses. Even phonetics can be handled... after all 😉 And it would be so beautiful if it weren't for cases. It's thanks to them, or rather because of them, that Polish has earned a reputation as a language not very learner-friendly. Intimidating tables, an overwhelming number of endings, and numerous exceptions and alternations effectively discourage even the most motivated from learning Polish.

The change through chance, what it is, everyone can see...

Exactly, what is it? From a student's perspective, it's complicated and completely unnecessary. But it can't be that bad! There's definitely something positive we could tell our students about declension. It's true, there is one piece of information... in Polish, we have Just seven cases. There could have been definitely more 😉

And that's it for the positive news... Okay, there's one more piece of semi-good news about case declination that can be shared with students. Some noun and adjective endings are repeated in different cases. But is that really a good thing? On the one hand, it makes things easier for students—fewer endings to memorize. On the other hand, such repetition of endings makes things confusing for them.

The fact that nouns, personal pronouns, adjectives, and adjectival participles are declined by case is shocking for every student, but they eventually come to terms with it. However, when they first discover that numerals should also be declined by case, they experience moments of doubt about the point of continuing. The temptation to abandon Polish and start learning a "normal" language is often hard to resist. Therefore, our task is to make students' exposure to declension as easy and enjoyable as possible. It's also worth closing the windows and doors in the classroom beforehand... just in case someone wants to escape 😉

How to decline nouns by case? A brief overview of the cases and the difficulties they cause.

It's time to take a closer look at our dirty seven and the obstacles they throw at our students.

Denominator

The first and most important, one might say the king of grammatical cases. Nothing can be done without it. It introduces genders, shows who does the action, names things, and introduces people. The singular doesn't pose much trouble for students, and the plural isn't too bad either, except for masculine personal nouns, of course. These, as some of my students say, are truly "hard-core" 😉

You can find more about the nominative case here: The nominative case - the king of Polish cases

Genitive

The undisputed master of difficulty. From the very beginning, he's hostile towards his students. To warm them up, he presents them with a dilemma: "a" or "u"? When giving quantities, he teases them with inconsistencies: a kilogram of peppers (not peppers), but a kilogram of lemons (not lemons). Those at a slightly higher level are attacked by a gorgeous table of "how many" and "how many"? But his greatest maliciousness is his influence on the form of the verb in a sentence. And that's enough to make any foreigner learning Polish truly detest him.

Sounds interesting? You can find more information about the genitive case here: The Genitive Case - the undisputed star of the Polish declension .

Viewfinder

Some people think they can live without it. You could say, "I bought a present for my mother" instead of "I bought a present for my mother." Especially since a student has already put a lot of effort into mastering the genitive, they'll want to have as many opportunities to use it as possible. It's just hard to give compliments without the dative 😉

What else can you use a crosshair for besides compliments? Check it out here: Crosshair - a somewhat forgotten case

Accusative

Students have mixed feelings about it. On the one hand, they like it because, compared to the genitive or locative case, it doesn't cause them as many problems. On the other hand, they find it difficult to understand its function. They're also put off by the long list of verbs to memorize and the fact that they have to switch to the genitive case for negatives anyway.

You can find more about the accusative here: The Troublesome Accusative

Instrumental

It's one of the easiest topics in Polish grammar, and when it comes to cases, it's definitely the most student-friendly. It has easy-to-remember endings, few exceptions, and is very practical. It gives beginners the feeling that they can already communicate a lot. It allows them to talk about themselves and others, about their interests and who they like to spend time with, how they like to travel, and what they drink their coffee with. All the fun!

You can read more about the instrumental part here: The instrumental part - a favorite of teachers and students

Locative

At first glance, the locative case doesn't seem so bad. Well, only at first glance 😉 Because even after just a second, it's clear that declining a noun in the locative case is quite a challenge. We can easily give the alternation table first place in the category of intimidating students. All these alternations can make your head spin, and to make things even better, feminine nouns have decided to make it even more difficult and add their own alternations, different from those in the masculine and neuter genders. As if that weren't enough to remember, students also have to learn specific prepositions, because the locative case requires the use of a preposition to describe a location. And now for the most disappointing part: not every location in space can be described using a locative case.

Want to read more about the locative case? Check it out here: Locative case - be afraid!

Vocative

Some claim that only teachers use the vocative case anymore. And although this is a rather exaggerated statement, there's a grain of truth to it. We're well aware that the least frequently used cases are the vocative and dative. Increasingly, the vocative is being replaced by the nominative in many words, and the dative is being replaced by the genitive. Can our students communicate without knowing the vocative? Of course. So is it even worth introducing? Absolutely! Why? Because they'll need it in both formal correspondence and everyday situations. Used in direct speech, it imbues them with an emotional significance that's hard to find in other cases.

The most common mistakes when learning cases.

Learning case studies is undoubtedly the greatest challenge for both teacher and student. If approached incorrectly, it can effectively discourage even grammar enthusiasts from continuing their studies. Let's take a look at some of the most common mistakes made when learning case studies.

Terminology overload

Many students have great difficulty with even simple grammatical terms and categories and fail to distinguish basic parts of speech. Especially if they have never studied any other foreign language before. Even such simple information as the fact that a noun answers the questions "who?" and "what?" and an adjective "what?" and "what?" can be insurmountable for many. If we are not teaching Slavic languages, explaining that the accusative case answers the question "who?" and "what?" is also not very helpful. For many foreigners, this is pure abstraction. Most students also fail to understand that the accusative case serves as a direct object. We should not expect our students to be able to determine which words are part of an utterance. Terms like adverbials and attributes will not help in mastering case.

Lack of context and grammar for grammar's sake

The information that cases are used to express relationships between the components of an utterance won't make much sense to the average student. If such a system doesn't exist in their native language, it's hard for them to imagine it. It's better to focus on the functions of cases, the contexts in which they appear, and the verbs with which they combine. We should strive to simplify the grammatical knowledge we provide our students as much as possible. To make it easier to digest. ;) Let's also remember that cases should be merely a tool to help students communicate in Polish. Nobody learns a language to fill in gaps in exercises in their free time 😉

Too much at once and too high expectations

This is the most common mistake young teachers make. They often give their students so much knowledge at one time that it would last them a whole month. And cases should be eaten with a spoon. The very fact that most words in Polish are declined for some reason is so shocking to many students that it takes them a while to come to terms with it 😉

Let's be honest, case declination in Polish is an issue that sets the bar high for both students and teachers.

How to effectively teach Polish declension?

We've already agreed on what not to do, so now it's time for some practical tips.

Spread the knowledge!

Start by explaining that words decline for number and case, and this inflection is called declension. Then, gradually and creatively demonstrate how nouns decline for case. Not all of your students will be ready for simultaneous adjective and noun declination right away. Don't immediately bombard them with all the exceptions and irregularities.

And remember, honesty pays off. There's no point in telling students that a particular case is easy. It won't help them; it will likely create complexes and discourage them from further work. Don't try to convince them that all grammatical cases are equally important. Don't worry that if you honestly admit that the vocative and dative cases are the least frequently used, students won't want to learn them.

Show understanding!

Often, when we have several or even a dozen years of experience under our belts, we fall into a rut and find it difficult to put ourselves in the student's shoes. If others have learned, then they should too, right? However, all it takes is starting to learn something yourself to quickly rediscover how difficult beginnings can be. Especially when learning a language so different from our native language.

It's worth complaining a little with your student sometimes. Or at least listening to them. Let's agree with them when they say that the fact that almost all words are declined in Polish is a bad joke. Let's be empathetic when they confide in us that the free word order drives them crazy, because how is they supposed to know which word is the subject?!

Look for creative methods!

What would you say to assigning human characteristics to each case? They will immediately become much more relatable and easier to understand. The genitive, for example, can be portrayed as a grumpy pessimist—he constantly says no and complains about the lack of everything. He's also a brilliant mathematician. He's constantly measuring, weighing, and calculating things. He especially likes large numbers. And he's very polite—he always remembers your wishes.

Make it easier to remember!

Use mnemonics to help students remember endings. Use visual materials to help students remember which verbs go with which cases. Your student will find it much easier to remember that the dative case goes with the verb "obeć" (to look at), among others, if they can visualize the verb. Don't forget about games and puzzles that will make learning the conjugation of a given part of speech more engaging.

Focus on communication!

Cases are merely a tool intended to help students communicate. Automation is important, but communication is even more important. Demonstrate the context and function of each case. Students should know that the locative case describes location, the dative case describes giving, and the vocative case is used as an appeal when addressing different people. Don't be afraid to use role-playing scenarios or role-playing. These will help your students see the usefulness of each case. Oh, and one more important note... remember that a student is not a dictionary; they don't have to be always correct 😉

And that would be it...

If you're still feeling unsatisfied and would like to learn more ways to teach not only effectively but also enjoyably, I have good news for you. More articles are coming soon, with more practical tips.

In the meantime, you can check out our Talks with Cases and Random Cards . Chats with Cases They contain 24 games for students at levels A2-B2. They will help you review and consolidate cases in a fun, engaging, and, most importantly, communicative way. The aim of the games is to show students that cases are an incredibly useful tool that allows them to express themselves more and, therefore, communicate better. Random Cards This is a visual material that will help your students remember the meaning of the most popular verbs and their combinations with specific cases. Cards will allow you to combine automation with language production. You can also use them to practice conjugation, tenses, and aspects. Both Conversations with Cases , as well as Random Cards will provide you with a lot of ideas for quite enjoyable lessons with declension 🙂