Welcome to Goesting in Taal!

Connect with your Flemish friends, colleagues and family through language
Goesting in Taal aims to bridge the language gap between Dutch language learners and Flemish native speakers by helping students to get to know the everyday spoken Flemish language. This way, you can feel more relaxed and have more authentic conversations!

Hi, I am Sofie Begine.

Nice to meet you!

I'm the founder of Goesting in Taal and I am a language trainer working in the region of Brussels and Leuven.

I love sharing my passion for the Dutch language in all its variety with my students. I have given language trainings to people with many different backgrounds, from nurses to CEO's. In the past years I have been specialising in teaching Flemish informal language, because I realised how important spoken language is to not feel like an outsider in a Flemish environment.

If you have any questions about the Goesting in Taal project, feel free to contact me!

What we offer

Goesting in Taal wants to help you sound like a native speaker. How?

Hands-on selfstudy books
with audio

Survival guides and books to help you understand Flemish people better and to learn to talk like a native speaker.

Interactive
workshops & classes

Fun workshops for schools, companies and other organisations.
Open classes about spoken Flemish at Goesting in Taal Academy!

Online materials & blog

A platform full of information, videos and exercises about spoken Flemish. Check out our blog or subscribe to our newsletter to stay updated!

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Why this project?

As a Dutch language teacher working in Brussels and Leuven, I was often confronted with the difference between correct Dutch, the language we teach in classes, and the way Flemish people actually speak. The real language of everyday life, though it technically is not a "correct language".

I noticed that my trainees continued to have difficulties understanding their friends, neighbours and colleagues, even after many classes. After becoming aware of this fact, I started paying more attention to the way we speak in informal situations. And no wonder my students were having difficulties! The spoken Flemish language differs from the standard Dutch, not only in pronunciation, but also in vocabulary and grammar!

That is when I decided to develop tools to learn this wonderful and rich informal language.
The goal of this website is absolutely not to replace traditional Dutch courses. Knowing correct Dutch remains as important as ever to function in our society. Rather, this platform aimes to be  a complementary approach, and dare I say a necessary one. Not knowing the informal everyday language is as big a handicap as not knowing the standard language.

I hope this website and my books will offer you a way to break this language barrier once and for all!

Our books

Wa zegt ge? - Vlaamse spreektaal voor anderstaligen
Our all-in textbook!

Do you have difficulties understanding your Flemish colleagues or having spontaneous conversation with them, even after Dutch classes? Do you feel like the Dutch you learned in school is not the same Dutch you hear around you every day? Do you want to take down the language barrier between you and your colleagues, your friends or even your partner?

This book will help you discover the spoken Flemish language of everyday life!

(for A2 level and higher)
Including audio

For international students

Want to learn the everyday language of Flanders, with a focus on student life?
Then this survival guide is exactly what you need!

(beginners-A2 level)
Including audio

Spoken Flemish for the office

Do you work in an office surrounded by Flemish people? Then definitely check out this survival guide!

(beginners-A2 level)
Including audio

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