This article was originally posted on WomenLearnThai.com.
Just how fast can you learn how to read the Thai Alphabet?…
Seriously, can you learn how to read the Thai alphabet in ten days? Two weeks? Sixty minutes? Sure. Well, all except for the 60 minutes promise (but it sounds good).
And before you get all fluffed up about what seems like a load of hype, with the right materials you can indeed learn how to read the Thai alphabet in record time. I did. You can hear all about it in The Easy Way for Beginners to Read and Write Thai.
Actually, with the right teacher and materials, you can start reading the Thai alphabet in a matter of minutes. But when you finish learning the entire 44 consonants, 21 vowels, and all the extra fiddly bits is totally up to you.
Anyway, for this review I’m looking at the top standalone courses for learning how to read Thai: Read Thai in Two Weeks (by Brett Whiteside of Learn Thai From a White Guy), Read Thai in Ten Days (by Bingo-Lingo), and 60 Minutes Thai Alphabet (the method that saved my sanity).
Read Thai in Two Weeks…
Brett: Have you struggled with boring Thai books and lessons and still can’t talk to anybody or understand anything? Have you been frustrated by the fact that no one can just explain stuff simply? Are you still waiting for it to ‘click’ so you can start having real conversations in Thai? I’ve been there. I’m a foreigner who went all the way from zero to fluent and I want to show you how I did it. I’ll also steer you away from the loads of time-wasting, frustrating mistakes that almost everybody makes. I’ve already struggled through them and I want to make sure my students don’t have to.
When struggling to learn tones and pronunciation, Brett created his own materials to teach himself Thai. After many adjustments to get it just right, and having great personal success himself, he designed a course to teach Thai to hundreds of expat students: Read Thai in Two Weeks.
Review: To give you a quick whip round this course, the introduction covers the intent of the course and instructions to setup Anki. The lessons are given in small, manageable chunks, each with audio files and mnemonics. Some have drills and/or exercises at the end of each lesson (these have audio as well). To test if you are ready to carry on with the next round of lessons, after the first 15 lessons there’s a quiz on hearing, writing, and the tones and vowels previously covered. A second quiz tackles the rest of the already covered tones and low class consonants. After eight more lessons (drills and exercises included – so no, you don’t get let off lightly) there’s a quiz on numbers. Thirteen more lessons are followed by a “What Now” exam, but no sweat as you’re already a superstar with the constant drilling, exercises, and questions asked throughout the course. To absolutely make sure you’ve learned what you should, a further six drills follow. A final lesson covers simple sentence structure.
The strength of this course is that being online it can offer clickable audio files, as well as quizzes, drills and exercises to test what you’ve learned (or not). Another plus are the mnemonics (memory hooks) to help get the materials down solid. Anki files with audio, as well as the free (to the public) iOS and Android apps tailored to the course, make sure you can continue your studies wherever you are. Note: the Android app has quizzes while the iOS doesn’t (hint, hint).
When it comes to getting getting Thai lessons into your head mnemonics are a powerful tool. There are several ways to use mnemonics – graphics pre-drawn and ones you create yourself. In my experience they both work. In this course, except for the Middle Class Story, detailed descriptions lead you to create personalised visuals using your own vivid imagination. The more vivid, the more personal, the better.
The clearly recorded sound files (female, with a voice that isn’t high or whiny) for each lesson show what the lessons are supposed to sound like. A heads up. For the majority of the course there’s only audio so forget about using the crutch of transliteration.
Brett’s experience as a student as well as a teacher of Thai shines through with the many insightful tips to help with concepts and remembering strange character shapes. The constant reminders to re-study what you don’t know are needed. And just incase you’ve forgotten, every so often he reminds you to go off and practice using the custom-made Anki cards that come with the course, or to play around with the free Alphabet apps.
While Brett is obviously not physically present, the way the course is written it’s as if he’s looking over your shoulder, advising you every step of the way. And his liberal use of humour, often with an “ah hah!!”, keeps the mood light throughout the course.
Price: $97 (orig $147) with 30 day money-back guarantee.
Product: 40 online lessons plus three quizzes and six drills all with audio recorded by native Thais (not T2S), 600+ Anki flashcards with audio (ditto), iOS and Android apps.
Website: Learn Thai From A White Guy
Facebook: Learn Thai From A White Guy
YouTube: Learn Thai From A White Guy
Twitter: @LTfaWG
Blog: Learn Thai
Interview: Bangkok Podcast: Learn Thai From A White Guy
Android App – FREE (includes quizzes): Learn Thai From A White Guy
Read Thai in 10 Days…
Bingo: The selling points of this course are simplification, understanding, and organisation.
Simplification: Many Thai script teaching courses don’t handle rules well. For example, the tone rules. Instead of using bloated tables or cumbersome-looking tone flow charts, RTITD organises tone rules into one principle (plus the default tone for each tone mark) and three exceptions. The course also has a different take on Thai vowels. RTITD simplifies the ‘traditional’ number of vowels from 32 vowels (plus 10 vowel changes) to 22 vowels (4 of which have two forms), and treats vowel shortening and vowel-less words as separate.
Understanding: People may forget what they remember, but they will never forget what they understand! RTITD doesn’t rely on sheer effort to purely memorise individual character’s sounds when at initial and final position, it tells you WHY they are the way they are. The course also explains the nature of the Thai phonological system, that there are no unreleased finals, and which initial sound will become which final sounds, and much more.
Organisation: By prioritising what’s essential, the entire course is carefully structured in such a way that makes sense. Lesson by lesson, what learners have previously studied is repeated and combined with the new materials being introduced.
For reading skill reinforcement, the approach draws from the principles of spaced repetition. Words chosen for the reading practice exercises are not random, but appropriately distributed throughout the course. Using this method, students quickly gain confidence in their ability to read Thai.
Review: This course gets into a large amount of detail (more than most), which clearly demonstrates Bingo’s experience with teaching Thai to expats.
The materials come in two downloads: a pdf and a folder with audio files. Due to the pdf format Bingo uses transliteration with a pronunciation guide to approximate the Thai sounds, but advises students to depend upon the accompanying audio files instead.
The course starts out with a bit about Bingo, followed by a brief overview of the history of the Thai script, and then a pronunciation guide to help you through the unfamiliar Thai alphabet. Immediately after are first five lessons followed by an overview. Four more lessons follow, and after that, another overview. On lesson ten, the last day of the course, you get tips and tricks to help recognise the Thai alphabet. Before starting the course my advice is to go straight to the last lesson, especially “Same Same But Different”, where you learn how to recognise different attributes of the Thai alphabet. Finally, the Appendices sums up the rules, presents the Thai dictionary order, shares more samples of Thai fonts, and finishes with a Thai-English glossary.
Each lesson begins with an outline of what you can expect to learn in that lesson (topics that logically go together are grouped together). The sub-topics have an explanation, what to memorise (with audio), writing lessons with practice sheets, in-depth explanations and tips, and self-driven quizzes with answers partially hidden from view by being upside down. At the end of each lesson is an overview of everything covered in that lesson. The in-depth tips help immensely with ‘seeing’ as well as understanding what’s going on. If students cannot easily get through the overviews at the end of each lesson Bingo often reminds them to go back and study.
In the lessons teaching consonant and vowels there are samples of typical fonts, stylized fonts, and cursive fonts. Memory aids have been created for the mid-low-high classes (as groups) and the principle of tones (but not the tone marks). The recordings use the male voice (Bingo’s).
Price: $17.99 (orig $49.99)
Product: 170 page ebook + audio files
Website: Read Thai in 10 Days
YouTube: Read Thai in 10 Days
Twitter: @readthai
60 Minutes Thai Alphabet…
60 Minutes: Stop struggling with the Thai alphabet right now. Use this system, and you will be able to read within minutes! This is the original memory system for the Thai alphabet, and has sold thousands of copies since 2005. We have been featured in the Bangkok Post, The Nation newspaper and major blogs like WomenLearnThai.com and ThaiVisa.com
Seven years of development have been invested in this ground-breaking system, which will allow you to relate almost immediately, to one of the most difficult alphabet systems. We have devised a visual memory system that relies on simple images, to enable you to immediately learn the sounds and shapes of the Thai letters.
Review: This exact ebook is sold all around the internet at different websites under different names, some going so far as to list themselves as authors (cheeky buggers).
There’s a valid reason why this small course is so popular – the visual mnemonics work quickly to teach the shapes of the Thai consonants, vowels and Thai numbers, the tones, as well as the different initials and finals.
While I applaud 60 Minutes Thai Alphabet strongly (it rescued me from head-banging frustration) the lack of audio is indeed a weak point. But as there are many free apps and websites with audio files, not all is lost. You just have to work a little harder.
With only a small pdf sans audio, another downside is the present price ($19.99), compared to what Read Thai in Ten Days offers ($17.99). But if you wait it out, the price often drops.
Price: $19.99 (orig $49.99)
Product: 39 page ebook
Website: 60 Minutes Thai Alphabet
The wrap: The Thai alphabet in 2 weeks, 10 days, 60 minutes?…
The reason I chose to review these three courses in particular is because each have individual strengths that makes them the best of the standalone courses on the market. And after going back and forth between Read Thai in Two Weeks and Read Thai in Ten Days to double-check, I believe that more than ever. So, here you go, my thoughts… peppered with many “If’s”.
- If you’ve tried to learn how to read the Thai alphabet and failed miserably (as I did), then start with 60 Minutes Thai Alphabet – but don’t stop there.
- If you need readymade mnemonics, again, start with 60 Minutes Thai Alphabet (ditto on the not stopping).
- But if you’d much rather create mnemonics personalised to your own way of thinking and understanding, then grab Read Thai in Two Weeks.
- If you learn best by a hands-on approach of working through a multitude of online quizzes and exercises, then Read Thai in Two Weeks would be the top consideration.
- If money is an issue, then Read Thai in Ten Days will get you there.
- If a touch of spaced repetition is how you learn best, then go with Read Thai in Ten Days. But remember, with all those drills and exercises, Read Thai in Two Weeks also repeats the lessons learned.
- If you need an instructor with experience in language learning and teaching Thai, who can clearly and simply explain the intricate details of the Thai language, then both Read Thai in Two Weeks and Read Thai in Ten Days are excellent.
Here’s another ‘IF’. If I had to do it all over again, I’d start right away with 60 Minutes Thai Alphabet with a Thai alphabet app by my side. After I felt comfortable with all those strange squiggles, I’d study using both Read Thai in Two Weeks and Read Thai in Ten Days.
But in saying that … product jumping can be a deterrent when learning a language (owning most everything for studying Thai has been a hindrance for me, not a help). So IF I had to choose between Read Thai in Two Weeks and Read Thai in Ten Days, with my visual-spatial learning style I’d do better with a course heavy in mnemonics, quizzes, drills and exercises, as well as clickable audio. So it’d have to be Brett’s Read Thai in Two Weeks.
Read Thai in 10 days is a must! Bingo did a great job with this book.
Its cuts through all the clutter and goes straight to the heart of learning.
If you want to read Thai you just have to read. Bingo gets you there quickly and makes Manii books a breeze; granted you keep up with vocabulary.
The only shortcoming IMHO is there isnt enough practice sentences or short stories.
Of all the reading and writing books from the various schools I have attended, this book is the only one I use if I need a quick general reference. Its beyond basic but not intimidating at all.
One of the better investments in Thai learning books I have made.
Super farang friendly oriented book
wout, if you are struggling then 60 Minutes Thai Alphabet might be just what you need. It worked fast with me (and I tried other methods first).
Hi, Catherine,
As a part of my 30 before 30 challenge ( to learn the basics off 30 languages before I turned 30. 3years and two months left.) I want to learn thai but the alphabeth is a huge block. I have always been a fast learner with foreign alphabeths, greek in 45 minutes, russian in a few hours, korean in less then an hour, both kana’s of Japanese in a few hours and although Hebrew and Arabic took considerably longer – I had to follow the speed of the rest of the group. – I thought thai wouldn’t be too hard. So I took a session with an italki teacher and in 45 minutes I could read a few words or bluff myself through with and educated guess. But I still don’t know the alfabeth I had bought bretts course but after the first few chapters it became boring and dreadful to continue. I guess I am not good at focussing on only 1 thing for more then a few days. I am using wanikani, tuttle and chinese skill for chinese and japanese, of which the first two use mnemonics and the last two use visual aids.
What done you think would work best for me? The 60 minutes thing?
Kind regards, wout.
Thank you Tom. I did know that Bangkok Podcast interviewed the top Thai learners around but haven’t listened to the podcasts yet so wasn’t aware. Ta 🙂
Very good review as usual Catherine. The comments were also informative.
Note: Brett Whiteside along with others fluent in Thai have been interviewed on Bangkok Podcast. Rikker Dockum was interviewed several times on the Podcast. Your WLT Blog was mentioned as the resource place for Thai learners to go to. Didn’t know if you were aware.
That’s fantastic to hear Katia. I’ve send your comment to Arthit and he’s grinning all over.
Based on your reviews here, Cat, I decided on “Read Thai in 10 Days.” It was a great choice. I am taking longer than ten days to go through it so I really get this stuff down, but the further I go in the book, the more I like it. Things are explained well, there are mnemonics for remembering classes of consonants, everything seems clear, and the text isn’t quite as dry as some.
I had already been working on learning to read on my own, so I didn’t start here from scratch, but even things that are review for me are very helpful.
Very much worth the price.
(Based on Tod’s glowing review of Duke Language School, I was already leaning toward becoming a student there if I manage to get to language school once I’ve moved. This book has cemented the decision.)
Hi Philip, to understand any language takes a knowledge of vocabulary. These courses teach you how to read the Thai alphabet using small words. It’s up to you to increase your vocabulary and how the language works.
If you are in Thailand, anywhere. And there are conversation groups in the larger cities. If you are elsewhere, find a Wat as they often have classes. Skype is a great way to learn as well, either with a Skype teacher or language exchange.
Hi Catherine
Thanks for the review. I’m a little confused though: at the end of each of these courses, is it true that I will be able to read Thai, but without any real understanding? And if so, where should I go to learn how to actually communicate with Thai people? Or am I missing something somewhere?
Many thanks
Philip (occasional visitor to Thailand)
Martin, good luck with your studies. There are many other sites to help with learning the alphabet as well. After your project is finished and you have more time, check out my Free Thai Resources section. Beware, you can easily get stuck in there (there can be too much of a good thing).
Hello Catherine.
Yes, I will do that. But actually I think 10 days is not realistic for my current situation. It seems that I skipped the passage on the website where Bingo explains “with only a *few hours* a day for less than 2 weeks” you can learn it. First I have to finish some projects with a deadline, and I do not have a *few hours* spare time every day. Gosh! Until now I just arrived in the chapter for the third day. 🙂
Anyway, I will come back later, and report about my progress and experiences with this book when it is done.
In the meanwhile I am also listening to the alphabet song (a musical version of the alphabet poem) over and over again. I believe one day it could be useful to know it. Thanks for your translation of the lyrics in another blog post…
Best regards, Martin
“Can you put CTF in the picture as well? Before? After? Instead? :)”
CTF goes beyond learning the Thai alphabet. Personally, I’d use CTF along with whatever course you are studying. It’s in a league all its own.
Martin, apologies for being tardy in my reply. The email alert for your comment went to spam.
I love Pimsleur’s Thai course. I didn’t at first (I was driven to distraction with all the courses created for men only and Pimsleur’s Thai was the final straw. Actually, it’s why I created WLT). But once I gave it a decent try, I was hooked. The phrases are not quite right (a common problem with Thai materials). But, to quote myself, “Pimsleur’s gets the Thai into your head and out of your mouth”.
I like Assimil as well. Infact, I have both Pimsleur and Assimil typed out. I learn best if I can read Thai script (my brain doesn’t connect with transliteration or audio only). I do have Linguaphone but I haven’t bothered to do anything with it.
I agree. 60 minutes Thai Alphabet has a miserable design. I’m a designer as well, but I was so frustrated trying to learn the Thai alphabet (I was suffering from horrible insomnia at the time) that I was driven to try anything. I’m glad I did too. It cracked the Thai alphabet for me and I was able to quickly move on from there.
After you’ve finished Bingo Lingo, please come back and let us know how you got on. I’m always curious!
Hi Catherine,
now I realize that I was focused too much on the topic “reading”. After clicking on the link named “Read Thai in Two Weeks” (next to the book cover in this article) I was looking around to find this “reading” course on the site. But, it brought me to a page with a big red headline “Speak Thai in 10 Hours with my Online Course”. I thought I am on the wrong page, because I expected something about “reading” and “in 2 weeks”, and not “speaking” and “in 10 hours”. My selective perception filters seem to work very well. 🙂 Two seconds later I already purchased the the other book.
Anyway, I had another look on that page, and I think I will not miss too much. I already know Anki well from learing Chinese, and already decided to start learning one day with the books Benjawan Poomsan Becker when I bought them two years ago in a bookstore in Bangkok. I think this day has come now… They will be accompanied by pronounciation lessons from Pimsleur (hint: for an audible subscriber in Germany it is very affordable; 5 lessons for 10 Euro, 30 lessons for about 60 Euro) and by Mr. Smyth’s books. In my opinion Pimsleur seems to be one of the best regarding pronounciation, though I would never want to learn 30 or more lessons with this slow method. Due to the fact that Assimil obviously “forgot” to print the dialogues in Thai script (this is not the case with other languages like Chinese or Russian), I find the Linguaphone (complete) course also quite attractive. But maybe I better save my money for my next holiday trip in Thailand. Let’s see!
After I skimmed through both books, “60 minutes” and “10 days” I must say, that I feel better with the book from Bingo Lingo. It has a professional look & feel like I expect it from a book of this kind and the quality of the supplementary audio files is very good as well, while the other one has no design at all (sorry, my personal opinion as a professional magazine designer is that it looks like “selfmade”). I feel, that the “10 days” is ideal for my personal learning style, but I’ll judge about the contents and the outcome later. 🙂
Have a nice Sunday! Best regards, Martin
Hi Martin, I checked and Read Thai in 2 Weeks is still online. Try again?
Thank you for sharing the French version! I’ll add it to my resources page.
I also want to mention at least, that I just found a free resource here: http://discoverytrade.free.fr/learn_thaifr.htm
Let’s see how well is still my French that I didn’t use anymore for decades 🙂
I like your weblog. As a beginner in Thai I can find many good tips here. Unfortunately Read Thai in 2 Weeks seems not to be available anymore under the given link. Now I consider to get the other two.
Great article, thanks! Leaving a comment to get notifications about your reply to Dmitry…
Yes, Cracking Thai Fundamentals
Hi Dmitry. CTF – do you mean Cracking Thai Fundamentals? I’m confused 🙂
Hi Catherine,
Can you put CTF in the picture as well? Before? After? Instead? 🙂
I know some letters and a few words in Thai. And I really worried about pronunciation – I think, I speak Russian English in fact, and Thai so different…
True. It also depends upon how much material is supposed to be covered. Learning to read the Thai alphabet doesn’t have to be a painful process, nor does it need to be stretched out over years (which is what’s happening). I had a mental block that was overcome once I stopped fighting and started ‘seeing’.
Thanks for this! I’m really intrigued by the idea of these sort of claims because, of course, it totally depends on the amount of time in that 60 minutes, 10 days, or 2 weeks that you devote to doing what it says on the tin! I’m bookmarking this for when I feel like giving Thai a go! 🙂