Learn Hardcore Indonesian: Ibu menulis anggaran di papan tulis, dan kupotret supaya tidak lupa. - Mother writes the budget on the board, and I photograph it so I don’t forget.

As a kinship term, Ibu = Mom/Mother. If the speaker is talking about their own mother, this fits.
As a respectful title, Ibu is used for an adult woman (often a teacher). In schools, students may refer to a female teacher simply as Ibu or Bu.
If you want to make “my mother” explicit: Ibuku or Ibu saya.

How is menulis formed, and what does the prefix do?

Root: tulis “write.”
Prefix: meN- (actor/active voice) + tulis → the initial t is dropped, giving menulis.
Meaning: “to write.”
Related form: menuliskan can mean “to write (something) down” or “write (something) for someone,” often emphasizing the written product or a beneficiary. In this sentence, plain menulis is the default and natural choice.

What exactly does anggaran mean?

Anggaran usually means “budget,” but it can also be “estimate.” Common compounds include:

Rencana Anggaran / Rancangan Anggaran: budget plan/draft
Anggaran Belanja: spending budget

Why is it di papan tulis and not pada papan tulis?

di marks a physical location: “at/on/in.” So di papan tulis = “on the board.”
pada is more formal/abstract (often “to/for/on” in non-physical senses) and is not used for simple physical locations.

What is kupotret? How is it built?

ku- is a bound 1st-person subject clitic meaning “I.”
It attaches directly to a verb base: ku- + potret → kupotret = “I photograph/take a picture (of it).”
The usual active form of the verb is memotret (meN- + potret → initial p drops), but with ku- you use the base, not the meN- form.

Is kupotret common in everyday speech? What are more natural alternatives?

ku- on verbs is stylistically literary/poetic or seen in formal writing and song lyrics. In everyday conversation you’d typically say:

aku memotret … (neutral)
saya memotret … (polite/formal)
Colloquial: aku ngefoto … or aku memfoto … Using dan kupotret is understandable but sounds a bit literary.

Why not kumemotret?

You don’t combine ku- with meN-. Either:

Use the clitic: kupotret, or
Use the meN- verb with a free pronoun: aku/saya memotret.

Do I need an object after kupotret? How do I say “I photographed it”?

The object can be omitted if context makes it clear. To be explicit:

Aku/Saya memotretnya = I photographed it.
Literary/clitic option: kupotretnya (I photographed it).
Or point to something: aku memotret itu (“I photographed that”).

What does supaya mean, and how does it compare to agar and biar?

All three mean “so that/in order that,” introducing a purpose clause:

agar: formal
supaya: neutral/standard
biar: informal/colloquial So you can say supaya tidak lupa, agar tidak lupa, or biar nggak lupa (colloquial).

Why is it tidak and not bukan? Can I say nggak?

tidak negates verbs and adjectives: tidak lupa = “not forget(ful).”
bukan negates nouns/pronouns: e.g., bukan anggaran (“not the budget”).
nggak/enggak/ga are informal variants of tidak: nggak lupa is fine in casual speech.

Whose memory is meant in supaya tidak lupa? Why is the subject omitted?

Indonesian often drops pronouns when they’re inferable. Here it most naturally means “so that I don’t forget,” because the speaker is the one taking the photo. You can make it explicit:

supaya aku/saya tidak lupa (so I don’t forget)
supaya kita tidak lupa (so we don’t forget)
supaya Ibu tidak lupa (so she doesn’t forget)

Is the comma before dan necessary?

It’s optional but acceptable. Indonesian style guides often allow a comma before dan when joining two independent clauses (especially if they have different subjects). You could also write it without the comma.

Should I use dan or a sequencer like lalu/kemudian?

dan just means “and.” If you want to emphasize sequence, lalu or kemudian (“then”) is often smoother:

Ibu menulis …, lalu aku memotret … is very natural.

How is tense expressed? Does this mean past?

Indonesian doesn’t mark tense on the verb. Context or time words do the job:

Past: tadi/sudah/baru saja → Ibu tadi menulis …
Progressive: sedang → Ibu sedang menulis …
Future: akan/nanti → Ibu akan menulis … The original likely reads as past from context.

Could I say menuliskan instead of menulis here?

You could, but menulis is the unmarked, most neutral choice. Menuliskan often highlights “writing (something) down” or “writing (something) for someone.” Both are grammatical with anggaran, but menulis anggaran is simpler and most common.

Is papan tulis a blackboard or a whiteboard?

It’s a generic “board for writing.” If you need to be specific:

papan tulis kapur = chalkboard/blackboard
papan tulis putih or simply whiteboard In everyday use, papan tulis can refer to either.

Why is di written separately here, but I’ve seen di- attached in forms like dipotret?

di (separate) is a preposition meaning “at/on/in.”
di- (attached) is the passive verb prefix: dipotret = “(to be) photographed.” So di papan tulis uses the preposition; dipotret uses the passive prefix.

What’s a very natural everyday rewrite of the whole sentence?

Two good options with different registers:

Neutral: Ibu menulis anggaran di papan tulis, lalu aku memotretnya supaya tidak lupa.
Colloquial: Ibu nulis anggaran di papan tulis, terus aku foto biar nggak lupa.