Plan Books Films Songs

Plan: books, films and songs you bring, with questions on them

Source of truth: this wiki page.

Written 2026-10-06.

What the owner asked

at later stages, can ask students to see particular films / listen to songs and then ask them questions on them (the films / songs will not be provided), including questions on the culture.

can add a couple no copyright books in pdf format, that users can download and read along, while the app asks questions based on the page they are on. there can be multiple levels of these books. the books must be interesting and varied in terms of theme.

Then:

or we can ask users to get the books on their own as well. all these and the songs and the movies are optional and the user will get to choose from a carousel as per their interests. the catalogue will be curated (as we will need to ask questions).

Then:

Easy A1–A2 reading: we can only give books at B1 level and only for people who have learnt the script. a little mature but beginner friendly books can be added as well. Guaranteed access: user gets to choose whether they want to read one of them or not or which one. music and movies: for every level. at B1 level, we will ask to watch a movie without subtitle, this bunch of final movies (from which the user will select) will be among the greatest movies in that language. again, user gets to choose whether they want to do it or not.

Decided with the owner:

• Learners get the works themselves. The app ships no PDFs, video or audio.
• Everything is a choice: whether to take any item, and which. A work a learner cannot get is simply one they do not pick.
• Songs and films at every level.
• Books at B1 only, and only for learners who learn the script. Besides books written for young readers, a little more mature books that are still friendly to a beginner.
• Book questions are keyed to chapters, since editions differ.
• The B1 finale: a film watched without subtitles, chosen by the learner from a set of the greatest films in the language.

What exists

• Reading passages (ADR-0019): a deck of short texts with questions. The same question kinds suit questions on a work the app does not hold.

• The rules for culture content (#99):

  • names and titles are fine;
  • lines are quoted only from public-domain works;
  • every checkable claim has a source;
  • a speaker reviews it before it ships;
  • religion, caste and politics are handled with care.

  #103 (films) and #104 (literature) track parts of this.

• #169 starts a course from the words in famous titles. This plan is the other end: whole works, once a learner can follow them.

The shelf

1. A carousel per course, "Beyond the course", on the Decks tab, off the path. Everything on it is optional and never holds back the path.
2. Filtered by interest:
   • the learner picks themes they like: folk tales, humour, adventure, romance, history, nature, music, cinema, and so on;
   • the carousel shows matching items at or below their level first.
3. Each item:
   • its kind (book, film or song);
   • title, its own name, creator and year;
   • level, themes and length;
   • a line on why it is worth it;
   • where to find it: a link to a free copy for public-domain works (Wikisource, Project Gutenberg), or "find it where you watch or buy";
   • nothing is played, downloaded or quoted, apart from public-domain lines.
4. Curated: an item is on the shelf only once its questions are written, sourced and reviewed by a speaker.
5. A choice, never a task: nothing on the shelf is assigned, counted as overdue, or needed for a milestone. Taking an item, and which one, is the learner's call.

Questions

• Books, by chapter:
  • the learner says which chapter they have read up to, and the app remembers it;
  • each chapter has its questions: what happens, words and phrases from it, and its culture.
• Films: by part, e.g. the first and second halves, or as a whole. A film's level says whether it is watched with subtitles; the finale says "without subtitles".
• Songs: as a whole: what it is about, its words, its place in the culture.
• Answered by choosing, since the app cannot check what was read, watched or heard. A question on a word can also be typed.
• Words worth keeping can join the learner's cards on a tap, with the chapter or song as their source, as import-text.md's words do.

Levels

Level	Songs	Films	Books
A1	Well-known, slow, clear songs	Simple, well-known films, with subtitles	None
A2	Popular songs	Films with subtitles	None
B1	Popular and classic songs	Films; subtitles optional	For learners who learn the script: short novels and stories, young readers' and a little more mature but beginner-friendly
End of B1		The finale: one of the language's greatest films, watched without subtitles

• No books before B1, and none for a learner who learns without the alphabet (ADR-0023): there is no simple reading for them before then.
• The finale is a set of five or so of the greatest films in the language, each with questions on the whole film, by part, on its words and on its culture. The learner picks one, or none. It is offered once the B1 mark is reached.
• "Greatest" comes from sources the catalogue names, such as national film awards and critics' polls, not from the app's own taste.

The format

• A kind: shelf file per course lists the items, each with:
  • its id, kind, title, own name, creator and year;
  • level, themes and length;
  • its source for the facts given;
  • a free link where there is one.
• Each item's questions are a passage deck (ADR-0019). Its passage is the chapter, part or song's name and a short note, not its text. A book's questions name their chapter.
• The validator checks:
  • every item has questions and a source;
  • every chapter named exists in the item;
  • no question quotes a work not marked public domain (by a flag the reviewer sets).

What it takes

1. The format and the validator.
2. The app:
   • the carousel and the interest picker;
   • an item's page;
   • chapter progress;
   • the questions;
   • adding a word to cards.
3. Content, per course:
   • a first shelf of about six songs and films across the levels and themes, and two or three books at B1;
   • the finale's set of greatest films;
   • each with its questions, sourced and reviewed.
4. Tests:
   • the format and the validator;
   • filtering by interest and level;
   • chapter progress;
   • the questions;
   • a word joining the cards.

Order

After the B1 plans (b1-plans.md), whose levels the items carry, and after deck downloads, which the shelf's files come with.

To decide

• The first items per course, and who suggests them.
• The finale's sources for "greatest", per language.
• The themes offered in the interest picker.
• Films: questions by part, or for the whole film only.

Estimate

Part	Hours
Format and validator	2–3
The app: carousel, interests, item page, chapters, questions	6–8
Each item: facts, questions, sources	2–5, a book more than a song

Confidence: medium for the app; low for content, which depends on review.

See also: Roadmap · Plans-Index · Home