Sparrow · Latvian A2 for the VVPP state-language exam · Session 2
You already decline: he / him / his
You have run a three-case system your whole life and never made a single mistake. This session shows you where it lives in English, and how Latvian does the same thing to every noun. Meet kas? ko? kā?
Šīs stundas mērķi · By the end you can
- Nosaukt trīs jautājumus: kas? ko? kā?, un trīs locījumus: nominatīvs, akuzatīvs, ģenitīvs.
[Name the three questions kas/ko/kā and the] [three cases (nominative, accusative, genitive).] - Atrast lietvārda trīs darbus: kas dara, ko redz, kā manta.
[Find a noun's three jobs: who does, whom you] [see, whose it is.] - Izvēlēties pareizo galotni pēc jautājuma.
[Choose the right ending from the question word.] - Lasīt galotni, nevis vārda vietu teikumā.
[Read the ending, not the word's place in the sentence.]
01Why this session exists
You are an adult professional living in Latvia. You can order coffee. But the exam does something harder: it moves the words around and asks who did what. Right now, the endings do not register in your ear, so you guess. On the exam you cannot guess.
The VVPP A2 exam has four parts. Each part is worth 15 points. You need at least 9 points in every part. Reading and listening both test one thing hard: can you tell the doer from the done-to? In Latvian that is not word order. It is the ending.
Here is the good news, and it is the whole session. You do not start from zero. English already sorts he, him and his, three jobs, three forms, and you never get it wrong. We start there. Then we show that Latvian does the same to every noun. The claim is not "Latvian is hard". The claim is "you already own this idea, on six words".
There is an exam voicemail from the language centre too. You will find it at the end of the listening section below (Dialogue 4). Listen first, then read it. It tells you when the class is, and what to remember: look for the ending.
02The point: he / him / his is already a case system
Read these two sentences out loud. He saw him. Now the wrong one: Him saw he. The second one hurts. You have never said it. That reflex is a case system, and you run it at 100%.
Step 1: English changes pronouns, not nouns
English almost never changes a noun. The word dog looks the same as doer and as done-to: the dog. But the pronouns do change. Look:
| Job in the sentence | English pronoun | You would never say… |
|---|---|---|
| [the doer (subject)] | [he, "He sees the cat."] | ["Him sees the cat."] |
| [the done-to (object)] | [him, "The cat sees him."] | ["The cat sees he."] |
| [the owner] | [his, "That is his cat."] | ["That is he cat."] |
Three jobs. Three forms. Zero mistakes. That is a mini three-case system, and it lives in your mouth already. Latvian only asks you to grow it from six words to every noun.
Step 2: the same three jobs have Latvian questions
Latvian names each job with a question word. Learn the three questions and you have the whole map.
| Question | The job | Like English… | The case |
|---|---|---|---|
| kas?[who?] | [the doer] | [he] | nominatīvs |
| ko?[whom / what?] | [the done-to] | [him] | akuzatīvs |
| kā?[whose / of what?] | [the owner] | [his] | ģenitīvs |
Say it: kas rhymes with "us". ko is a short "kaw". kā holds the long ā for two beats, say "kaah". That long ā is not decoration; it is a different word from ka.
Step 3: from the dialogues: the endings do the work
In Dialogue 1 (below), Līga makes exactly this move. She says:
„„[He]“ ir tas, kas dara. „[Him]“ ir tas, ko redz.“, [He is the one who does. Him is the one you see.]
Then Marks tests it on a real noun. In Dialogue 2 he hears one word take three shapes:
„Māsa, māsu, māsas. Trīs galotnes, trīs jautājumi.“, [sister (kas), sister (ko), sister's (kā).] [Three endings, three questions.]
The form table: one noun, three cases
| Question | draugs [friend] | grāmata [book] | suns [dog] | English pronoun |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| kas? | draugs | grāmata | suns | [he] |
| ko? | draugu | grāmatu | suni | [him] |
| kā? | drauga | grāmatas | suna | [his] |
| [The stem stays. Only the galotne (ending) changes.] [First ask the question, then pick the ending.] | ||||
Step 4: the English contrast: three traps to unlearn
English gives you the idea of cases for free. But it also gives you three bad habits. Each one has a fix.
| Trap (from English) | Wrong | Right |
|---|---|---|
| [1. No ending on the object.] [English keeps the noun flat, so you forget the -u.] | Es redzu draugs. | Es redzu draugu. |
| [2. Reading by position.] [You read left-to-right and give the first noun] [the "doer" job.] | Suni redz vīrs = ["the dog sees the man"] | Suni redz vīrs = ["the man sees the dog"] |
| [3. Adding an article.] [English wants a / the on every noun. Latvian has none.] | Es lasu [the] grāmata. | Es lasu grāmatu. |
In the plural, feminine nouns do not change at all
Everything above is the singular, and the -u you have just learned is the singular ending. In the plural Latvian splits in two.
Masculine nouns change: draugi becomes draugus, brāļi becomes brāļus.
Feminine nouns do not. The accusative plural is identical to the nominative plural, in all three feminine groups:
| Gender | Nominative plural (kas?) | Accusative plural (ko?) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| masculine | draugi (friends) | draugus | changes |
| masculine | brāļi (brothers) | brāļus | changes |
| feminine in -a | grāmatas (books) | grāmatas | same |
| feminine in -e | upes (rivers) | upes | same |
| feminine in -s | naktis (nights) | naktis | same |
So Es lasu grāmatas. [I read books.] is correct because nothing changed. Leaving the word alone is a mistake in the singular and the right answer in the feminine plural, so do not invent an ending that does not exist.
The exam-worthy line
In English, the place of a word tells you its job. In Latvian, the ending tells you its job, and the place is free to move. So on the exam: do not read the order. Read the galotne. Ask kas? ko? kā? and let the ending answer.
03Listen: the endings at work
Three short lessons at the Sparrow language centre, plus the voicemail you already heard. Līga (the teacher) and Marks (an English speaker, like you) build the point step by step. Listen first with the transcript closed. Then open it and read.
Dialogue 1Tu jau proti: he / him / his
Līga shows Marks that he/him/his is already a three-case system, and maps it to kas/ko/kā.
Transcript · Dialogue 1
LīgaLabdien, Marks! Šodien būs jauna tēma. Mēs runāsim par locījumiem.
MarksLabdien, Līga! Godīgi sakot, locījumi mani biedē. Galotnes mainās, un es apjūku.
LīgaNebaidies, lūdzu. Tu jau proti vienu tādu sistēmu. Tikai tu to nezini.
MarksKā tā? Angļu valodā lietvārdi nemainās. Vārds paliek vienāds vienmēr.
LīgaTā ir taisnība par lietvārdiem. Bet paskaties uz vietniekvārdiem: [he, him, his].
Marks[He, him, his]… Jā. Es tos lietoju katru dienu. Un nekad nekļūdos.
LīgaTieši tā! „[He]“ ir tas, kas dara. „[Him]“ ir tas, ko redz.
MarksUn „[his]“ ir tas, kam manta pieder. Trīs formas, viens cilvēks. Interesanti!
LīgaTā ir maza trīs locījumu sistēma. Tu to lieto bez domāšanas. Vienmēr pareizi.
MarksTiesa, neviens nesaka „[him saw he]“. Tas skan pilnīgi nepareizi.
LīgaRedzi! Tava auss zina galotni. Latviešu valoda dara tāpat katram lietvārdam.
MarksTātad katrs lietvārds maina galotni? Gluži tāpat kā [he, him, his]?
LīgaJā, gluži tāpat. Mēs jautājam: kas? ko? kā? Trīs jautājumi, trīs galotnes.
MarksKas dara, ko redz, kā manta. Man patīk šie jautājumi. Tie ir skaidri.
LīgaLieliski! „Kas?“ ir nominatīvs. Tas ir tas, kas dara darbu.
MarksUn „ko?“ laikam ir tas, ko cilvēks redz vai lasa. Vai ne?
LīgaTieši tā, tas ir akuzatīvs. Un „kā?“ ir ģenitīvs, kam manta pieder.
MarksNominatīvs, akuzatīvs, ģenitīvs. Trīs grūti vārdi, bet viena viegla doma.
LīgaJā! Doma ir viegla, jo tu to jau zini. [He, him, his] tev to iemācīja.
MarksMan patīk šī doma, Līga. Es nesāku no nulles. Es sāku no sešiem vārdiem.
LīgaTieši tā, Marks! Rīt ņemsim īstus lietvārdus. Piemēram, draugs un grāmata.
MarksLabi! Es jau jūtos drošāk. Trīs jautājumi, trīs galotnes. Es sapratu galveno.
Dialogue 2Īsti lietvārdi: kas? ko? kā?
They drill real nouns, draugs, grāmata, skolotāja, māsa, suns, kaķis, choosing the ending by the question.
Transcript · Dialogue 2
LīgaSveiks, Marks! Šodien lietosim īstus lietvārdus. Sāksim ar vārdu „draugs“.
MarksLabi. „Draugs“ ir nominatīvs, vai ne? Tas ir tas, kas dara.
LīgaJā! Klausies teikumu: Draugs lasa grāmatu. Kas lasa?
MarksDraugs lasa. „Draugs“ atbild uz „kas?“. Tas ir nominatīvs.
LīgaPareizi! Un ko draugs lasa? Kāda ir vārda „grāmata“ galotne?
MarksDraugs lasa grāmatu. „Grāmatu“ atbild uz „ko?“. Galotne ir „u“.
LīgaĻoti labi! Nominatīvs ir grāmata. Akuzatīvs ir grāmatu. Dzirdi galotni?
MarksJā, „a“ kļūst par „u“. Grāmata, grāmatu. Maza maiņa, cita nozīme.
LīgaTagad cita persona. Klausies: Skolotāja lasa grāmatu. Kas lasa?
MarksSkolotāja lasa. „Skolotāja“ atbild uz „kas?“. Tas ir nominatīvs.
LīgaPerfekti! Tagad ģenitīvs. Klausies: māsas grāmata. Kā grāmata?
MarksMāsas grāmata. „Māsas“ atbild uz „kā?“. Tā ir māsas manta.
LīgaJā! „Kā?“ rāda, kam pieder. Māsas suns, māsas kaķis, māsas vārds.
MarksEs dzirdu galotni „s“. Māsa, māsu, māsas. Trīs galotnes, trīs jautājumi.
LīgaTieši tā! Un tas darbojas ar katru lietvārdu. Suns, suni, suņa.
MarksUn kaķis? Laikam kaķis, kaķi, kaķa. Tā pati sistēma, vai ne?
LīgaJā, gluži tā! Vispirms jautājums, tad galotne. Tas ir tavs plāns.
MarksSkaidrs! Man jāzina tikai jautājums. Kas? ko? kā? Galotne seko jautājumam.
LīgaLieliski, Marks! Tu ātri mācies. Rīt runāsim par vārdu secību.
MarksLabi! Draugs redz māsu. Māsa redz draugu. Es saprotu sistēmu.
Dialogue 3Eksāmenā: galotne, nevis vārdu secība
The exam point, word order moves, the ending stays. You will answer questions on this dialogue in E8.
Transcript · Dialogue 3
LīgaMarks, šodien svarīga doma. Eksāmenā vārdu secība var mainīties.
MarksKā tā? Angļu valodā secība rāda, kas ko dara. „[The man sees the dog.]“
LīgaJā, angliski secība ir likums. Latviski galotne ir likums. Klausies labi.
MarksLabi, es klausos. Bet man gribas lasīt no kreisās uz labo.
LīgaPirmais teikums: Vīrs redz suni. Kas redz? Ko redz?
MarksVīrs redz suni. „Vīrs“ ir kas. „Suni“ ir ko. Vīrs dara.
LīgaPareizi! Tagad otrs teikums: Suni redz vīrs. Kas redz tagad?
MarksHmm… secība mainījās. Bet „vīrs“ vēl ir kas. Vīrs dara arī tagad!
LīgaLieliski, Marks! Galotne nemainījās. „Vīrs“ paliek nominatīvs. Secība maldina.
MarksTātad man jāskatās galotne, ne vieta. „Suni“ ir „ko“, lai kur tas stāv.
LīgaTieši tā! Tās ir tavas angļu lamatas. Tu lasi vietu, ne galotni.
MarksEs sapratu. Vispirms jautāju: kāda galotne? Tad zinu, kas dara.
LīgaJā! Vēl viens teikums: Māsu redz draugs. Kas redz māsu?
MarksDraugs redz. „Draugs“ ir kas. „Māsu“ ir ko. Galotne „u“ rāda objektu.
LīgaPerfekti! Eksāmenā vienmēr meklē galotni. Tā tev dos pareizo atbildi.
MarksUn ģenitīvs? Ja es dzirdu „drauga“, tas ir „kā?“, vai ne?
LīgaJā! „Drauga suns“ nozīmē, kam suns pieder. Galotne „a“ rāda „kā?“.
MarksSkaidrs! Kas, ko, kā. Es meklēju galotni, ne vārda vietu.
LīgaTu esi gatavs, Marks! Vēl mazliet treniņa, un eksāmens būs viegls.
MarksPaldies, Līga! Galotne pār vietu. Tas ir mans jaunais likums.
Dialogue 4Ziņa no valodas centra (voicemail)
The exam voicemail from the scenario. A monologue: one voice, Ilze from the centre. Listen for the endings.
Transcript · Dialogue 4 (voicemail)
IlzeLabdien! Šī ir automātiska ziņa no Sparrow valodas centra.
IlzeJūsu gramatikas nodarbība sākas rīt pulksten desmitos no rīta.
IlzeValodas centrs ir liela balta māja pie parka.
IlzeJūsu skolotāja būs Līga. Viņa jums labprāt palīdzēs.
IlzeRīt mēs mācīsimies trīs locījumus: nominatīvu, akuzatīvu un ģenitīvu.
IlzeAtcerieties trīs jautājumus: kas? ko? kā?
IlzeKas dara darbu. Ko cilvēks redz vai lasa. Kā manta un galotne.
IlzeEksāmenā galotne ir svarīga. Vārdu secība var mainīties.
IlzeTāpēc vienmēr meklējiet galotni, ne vārda vietu.
IlzeŅemiet līdzi grāmatu, pildspalvu un labu garastāvokli.
IlzeUz redzēšanos rīt! Veiksmi ar locījumiem!
Gloss: ziņa (message) · nodarbība (class) · rīt (tomorrow) · pulksten desmitos (at ten o'clock) · māja (house) · vārdu secība (word order) · galotne (ending).
04Vocabulary for this session
Twenty terms. The first eleven are the grammar words you need to talk about cases. The rest are the example nouns we decline. Every term is glossed in English, with one example at your level and one collocation (a natural pairing).
| Term | Meaning (plain words) | Example (A2) | Collocation |
|---|---|---|---|
| kas? | [who?, asks for the doer] | Kas lasa grāmatu? | kas dara |
| ko? | [whom / what?, asks for the done-to] | Ko tu redzi? | ko redzēt |
| kā? | [whose / of what?, asks for the owner] | Kā tā grāmata? | kā manta |
| nominatīvs | [the kas-case (the doer's form)] | „Draugs“ ir nominatīvs. | nominatīvs atbild uz kas |
| akuzatīvs | [the ko-case (the object's form)] | „Draugu“ ir akuzatīvs. | akuzatīvs atbild uz ko |
| ģenitīvs | [the kā-case (the owner's form)] | „Drauga“ ir ģenitīvs. | ģenitīvs atbild uz kā |
| locījums | [a case, one job-ending of a noun] | Latviešu valodā ir daudz locījumu. | mainīt locījumu |
| galotne | [the ending, the part that changes] | Galotne rāda darbu teikumā. | pareiza galotne |
| lietvārds | [a noun, a thing, person or place] | „Suns“ ir lietvārds. | katrs lietvārds |
| teikums | [a sentence] | Šis teikums ir īss. | pilns teikums |
| jautājums | [a question] | Man ir viens jautājums. | uzdot jautājumu |
| grāmata | [a book] | Draugs lasa grāmatu. | laba grāmata |
| māsa | [a sister] | Māsa redz kaķi. | jaunā māsa |
| draugs | [a friend] | Draugs zvana māsai. | labs draugs |
| skolotāja | [a teacher (a woman)] | Skolotāja lasa vārdu. | laba skolotāja |
| vārds | [a word or a name] | Šis vārds ir grūts. | jauns vārds |
| suns | [a dog] | Suns redz māsu. | liels suns |
| kaķis | [a cat] | Kaķis guļ mājā. | mazs kaķis |
| vīrs | [a man] | Vīrs redz suni. | jauns vīrs |
| māja | [a house] | Māja ir liela un balta. | balta māja |
Note: kā? and ka are different words, the long ā matters. And māja (a house, kas?) vs mājā (in a house, kur?): one long ā is a whole new case. Listen to the last vowel.
05Exercises
Eight sets. Every one checks itself: type or choose, then press the button. The page tells you if you are right. Do them in order, they get harder.
E1 · gap-fill
Choose the ending by the question
Read the sentence. Look at the question in brackets. Write the noun with the right ending.
Example: Es redzu ______ (draugs, ko?) → draugu. The question is ko?, so the ending is -u.
- Es lasu (grāmata, ko?).
- lasa grāmatu (draugs, kas?).
- Tā ir grāmata (māsa, kā?).
- Māsa redz (suns, ko?).
- lasa vārdu (skolotāja, kas?).
- Es zinu (vārds, ko?).
- Tas ir suns (vīrs, kā?).
- Draugs redz (kaķis, ko?).
- guļ mājā (kaķis, kas?).
- Tā ir māja (draugs, kā?).
Show answers
1 grāmatu · 2 draugs · 3 māsas · 4 suni · 5 skolotāja · 6 vārdu · 7 vīra · 8 kaķi · 9 kaķis · 10 drauga
E2 · matching
Term ↔ meaning
Pick the meaning of each grammar term from the menu.
Example: galotne → "the ending". Chosen for you below.
kas?,
ko?,
kā?,
nominatīvs,
akuzatīvs,
ģenitīvs,
lietvārds,
teikums,
jautājums,
locījums,
E3 · dialogue completion
Finish Līga's lines
Write the missing word. Use the question word as your clue.
Example: „Kas lasa?“, the answer names the doer, so the clue word is kas.
- Līga: „ dara darbu? Tas ir nominatīvs.“
- Līga: „Draugs redz . Tas ir akuzatīvs.“ (māsa, ko?)
- Marks: „„Grāmatu“ atbild uz „?“.“
- Līga: „Māsas ir liels.“ (kā manta, suns kas?)
- Marks: „Nominatīvs, akuzatīvs, .“
- Līga: „Vispirms , tad galotne.“
- Marks: „„Drauga“ atbild uz „?“.“
- Līga: „Katrs maina galotni.“
Show answers
1 kas · 2 māsu · 3 ko · 4 suns · 5 ģenitīvs · 6 jautājums · 7 kā · 8 lietvārds
E4 · transformation
Make the accusative (ko?) or the genitive (kā?)
You are given the nominative (kas?). Write the form asked for.
Example: draugs → ko? → draugu. draugs → kā? → drauga.
- grāmata → ko? →
- grāmata → kā? →
- māsa → ko? →
- māsa → kā? →
- suns → ko? →
- suns → kā? →
- kaķis → ko? →
- vīrs → ko? →
- vīrs → kā? →
- vārds → ko? →
Show answers
1 grāmatu · 2 grāmatas · 3 māsu · 4 māsas · 5 suni · 6 suņa · 7 kaķi · 8 vīru · 9 vīra · 10 vārdu
E5 · reading 1 (an email)
Read the email, then answer
Read this short email from Marks to his teacher. Then choose the right answer.
Sveika, Līga! Paldies par stundu. Man patīk jaunā tēma. Tagad es saprotu trīs jautājumus: kas, ko, kā. Mājās es lasu grāmatu. Grāmata ir laba. Es meklēju galotni katrā teikumā. Kaķis guļ pie manis. Kaķis ir kluss. Mana māsa arī mācās latviešu valodu. Māsa saka, ka galotne ir grūta. Es saku: nē, galotne ir viegla! Vīrs blakus lasa avīzi. Es viņam palīdzu. Rīt es zvanīšu draugam. Draugs grib mācīties kopā. Es esmu gatavs eksāmenam. Uz redzēšanos! Marks.
1. Ko Marks lasa mājās?
2. Kas guļ pie Marka?
3. Ko dara māsa?
4. Kā Marks sauc galotni?
5. Kam Marks rīt zvanīs?
6. Ko Marks meklē katrā teikumā?
E6 · error-spotting
Fix the endings
Each sentence has one wrong ending (an English-style flat noun). Write the correct word.
Example: „Es redzu draugs.“ → the object needs ko?, so write draugu.
- Es lasu grāmata. → (ko?)
- Māsa redz suns. → (ko?)
- Tā ir māsa grāmata. → (kā?)
- Draugs redz kaķis. → (ko?)
- Es zinu vārds. → (ko?)
- Tas ir vīrs suns. → (kā?)
- Skolotāja lasa grāmata. → (ko?)
- Es redzu māsa. → (ko?)
Show answers
1 grāmatu · 2 suni · 3 māsas · 4 kaķi · 5 vārdu · 6 vīra · 7 grāmatu · 8 māsu
E7 · reading 2 (a notice)
Read the notice on the centre door
A different genre: a notice pinned to the door of the Sparrow centre. Read it, then answer.
PAZIŅOJUMS. Valodas centrs „Sparrow“. Centrs ir liela balta māja pie parka. Gramatikas stunda: rīt pulksten desmitos. Skolotāja: Līga. Tēma: locījumi. Mēs mācāmies trīs jautājumus, kas, ko, kā. Ņemiet līdzi grāmatu un pildspalvu. Lūdzu, nāciet laikā. Kaķis dzīvo centrā; nebaidieties, kaķis ir draudzīgs. Suns nedrīkst iekšā. Jautājumi? Zvaniet skolotājai. Mēs labprāt palīdzēsim. Uz redzēšanos centrā!
1. Kur ir centrs?
2. Kas ir skolotāja?
3. Ko ņemt līdzi?
4. Kas dzīvo centrā?
5. Kāda ir tēma?
6. Kas nedrīkst iekšā?
E8 · listening review (Dialogue 3)
Replay Dialogue 3, then answer
Play Dialogue 3 again. Write short answers. One word is enough.
Example: „In „Vīrs redz suni“, who does the seeing?“ → vīrs.
- „Suni redz vīrs.“ Kas redz? →
- „Vīrs redz suni.“ Ko redz vīrs? →
- Kāda galotne rāda „ko?“ vārdā „suni“? →
- „Māsu redz draugs.“ Kas redz? →
- „Drauga suns.“ Uz kuru jautājumu atbild „drauga“? →
- Ko Marks meklē eksāmenā, vietu vai galotni? →
Show answers
1 vīrs · 2 suni · 3 i · 4 draugs · 5 kā · 6 galotni
06Say it aloud
First, tune your ear. Then speak. The exam has a speaking part too, and you need 9 points there as well.
Listen and tell apart (the ending is the meaning)
English reduces the last syllable to nothing. Say photograph, then photography, feel the vowel move and drop. Latvian does the opposite: it keeps the last vowel, and puts the grammar there. Say each pair. The only difference is the ending, and the ending is the case.
māsa / māsu
kas? / ko? (doer / done-to)
draugs / drauga
kas? / kā? (doer / owner)
grāmata / grāmatu
kas? / ko?
māja / mājā
kas? / kur? (a house / in a house)
In māja / mājā only the last vowel gets longer, and that long ā is a whole new case (the place-case, kur?). Your English ear wants to skip it. Do not. Hold the ā.
Role-play cards
Work with the AI partner or a classmate. Use the useful phrases. Keep it short.
Role-play 1
At the language centre desk
Situation You arrive at the Sparrow centre for the grammar class.
Your role You are Marks, an English speaker.
Your goal Say who you are and what class you want. Ask where the teacher is.
Useful phrases
- Labdien! Es esmu Marks.[Hello! I am Marks.]
- Es meklēju gramatikas stundu.[I am looking for the grammar class.]
- Kur ir skolotāja?[Where is the teacher?]
Role-play 2
Drill a partner on kas / ko / kā
Situation You test a classmate on the three questions.
Your role You are the teacher for two minutes.
Your goal Say a noun; ask kas? ko? or kā?; check the ending.
Useful phrases
- Vārds ir „draugs“. Kā ir akuzatīvs?[The word is "friend". What is the accusative?]
- Pareizi! Galotne ir „u“.[Correct! The ending is "u".]
- Vēl viens lietvārds: „grāmata“.[One more noun: "book".]
Role-play 3
Who did what? (word order)
Situation Your partner reads a sentence with moved word order.
Your role You are the reader who trusts the ending, not the place.
Your goal Say who does the action and how you know.
Useful phrases
- „Suni redz vīrs.“ Kas dara?["Suni redz vīrs." Who does it?]
- Vīrs dara, jo galotne ir „s“.[The man does it, because the ending is "s".]
- Es lasu galotni, ne vietu.[I read the ending, not the place.]
Role-play 4
Talk about your family and pets
Situation You tell the teacher about people and animals at home.
Your role You are Marks, describing your day.
Your goal Use kas / ko / kā with māsa, suns, kaķis, draugs.
Useful phrases
- Māsa redz kaķi.[My sister sees the cat.]
- Tas ir māsas suns.[That is my sister's dog.]
- Draugs zvana māsai.[A friend calls my sister.]
Your AI conversation partner
Copy a prompt into the Sparrow Buddy chat. It plays Līga, speaks A2 Latvian, and gently fixes your endings. It is your conversation partner, talk back to it.
You are Līga, my Latvian teacher at the Sparrow centre. Speak ONLY simple Latvian (A2), short sentences. Give me a noun (draugs, grāmata, māsa, suns, kaķis) and ask me kas? ko? or kā? Check my ending, recast it once if it is wrong, and ask one more. One question per turn.
You are Līga. We do the word-order game in Latvian at CEFR A2. Say a short sentence like „Suni redz vīrs“ and ask me: kas dara? If I answer by position and get it wrong, gently recast: read the galotne. Praise me when I read the ending. Ask one question each turn, only in Latvian.
You are Līga at the Sparrow centre. Roleplay: I arrive for the grammar class. Speak only A2 Latvian, short lines. Ask me who I am and what I want. Keep it to the scenario, recast my mistakes softly, and finish every turn with one question.
07Writing · Rakstītprasme Uzdevums 1
This is the real exam format: a short message. Keep it simple. Show that you can use kas / ko / kā correctly.
The task
Write a short message (35–45 words) to your teacher Līga. Say:
who you are (kas?);
what you are reading now (ko?);
whose book it is (kā?);
one thing about your dog or cat.
Use at least four nouns from the bank. Underline each ending you chose.
Word bank for this session: kas · ko · kā · nominatīvs · akuzatīvs · ģenitīvs · locījums · galotne · lietvārds · teikums · jautājums · grāmata · māsa · draugs · skolotāja · vārds · suns · kaķis · vīrs · māja
Show a model answer
Sveika, Līga! Es esmu Marks. Tagad es lasu grāmatu. Grāmata ir laba. Tā ir māsas grāmata (kā?, ģenitīvs). Mājās man ir suns. Es redzu suni katru dienu (ko?, akuzatīvs). Suns ir liels un draudzīgs. Man patīk latviešu valoda. Paldies par stundu! Uz redzēšanos! Marks.
40 words. Endings used: grāmatu (ko), grāmata (kas), māsas (kā), suni (ko), suns (kas).
40 words. Endings used: grāmatu (ko), grāmata (kas), māsas (kā), suni (ko), suns (kas).
Self-check (tick all four before you send)
Did I say who I am with a kas-form (nominative)?
Did I write what I read with a ko-form (accusative, -u)?
Did I show whose book with a kā-form (genitive)?
Did I avoid English articles (no "the", no "a")?
05BPractice lab: drill it until it is automatic
The exam is fast. You will not have time to think "which case is this?". You need the ending to jump out at you the way him jumps out when someone says "him saw he". These ten small tools train exactly that speed. Every one checks itself. Click, choose, and the tool tells you at once. Do a few, then come back tomorrow and do them again.
Only words the lesson has already taught appear here: draugs, grāmata, māsa, suns, kaķis, vīrs, vārds, skolotāja, māja, and the three questions kas? ko? kā?. Nothing new to learn, everything to make automatic. Work with the sound on for tool 3, it speaks the words out loud.
Tool 1 · Name the case
A Latvian form appears. Ask yourself: is this the doer (kas?), the done-to (ko?) or the owner (kā?). Press the button. The bar fills as you get them right.
Worked example: drauga is the owner form, so the answer is kā? — the -a ending is the genitive.
Tool 2 · Swap the ending
Pick a noun, then pick a question. The tool builds the right form and keeps the stem still. This is the move you make when you write.
Nominative (kas?). This is the doer's form — like English he.
Tool 3 · Listen and tell apart
Your English ear wants to drop the last vowel. Do not. Press a word to hear it, then decide which case you heard. The only difference is the ending, and the ending is the case.
Pair: māsa (kas?) vs māsu (ko?). Which one was the done-to?
Worked example: in māja (a house) vs mājā (in a house), only the last vowel gets longer, and that long ā is a whole new case.
Tool 4 · Who does it? (word order moves)
The words move, but the ending stays. Read the ending, not the place. Click the noun that does the action.
Worked example: in "Suni redz vīrs", the doer is vīrs — the -s ending is kas?, wherever the word stands. The -i on "suni" is ko?.
Tool 5 · Sort into three baskets
Click a word, then click the basket it belongs to: kas?, ko? or kā?. Get all nine right.
kas? (doer)
ko? (done-to)
kā? (owner)
Worked example: grāmatu goes in the ko? basket — the -u ending marks the object.
Tool 6 · Build a good sentence
Pick a doer and a done-to. The tool checks the endings: the doer needs kas? (nominative), the done-to needs ko? (accusative). Then it reads your sentence back.
Worked example: draugs (kas?) + māsu (ko?) → "Draugs redz māsu." A friend sees a sister. Both endings are right.
Tool 7 · Speed drill
Press start. A form flashes. Tap its question before the bar empties. This builds the automatic reflex the exam needs.
Tip: do not translate to English first. See the ending, tap the question. Speed comes from skipping the translation step.
Tool 8 · Whose is it? (the kā? case)
The owner form answers kā?. Read the little phrase and click the noun that owns the thing.
Worked example: "māsas suns" = the sister's dog. māsas is kā? (owner); the dog belongs to the sister. It is like English his.
Tool 9 · Spot the English trap
English keeps nouns flat, so the object often loses its -u. Is the sentence right or wrong? If it is wrong, type the correct word.
Worked example: "Es redzu draugs" is wrong. The object needs ko?, so write draugu. The flat -s is an English habit.
Tool 10 · Your score today
This ring fills with everything you got right in the tools above. Press it to update. Aim for green before you take the writing task.
Green means the endings are becoming automatic. If the ring is low, redo tool 1 and tool 7, they build the fastest.