Students learn to communicate in Chinese on a variety of topics. Conversational drills are combined with intensive reading and written work. Traditional characters are used in the elementary courses, and simplified characters are introduced at the end of the intermediate level.
This course is designed to raise students’ levels of speaking, listening, reading and writing to an individualized level, enabling them to understand and appreciate more aspects of modern Chinese culture. Satisfactory completion fulfills the foreign language requirement.
Basic Chinese
Regardless of whether you’re just traveling to Zhong Guo or planning on working with Chinese people, you’ll need to know some basic vocabulary. Getting familiar with the names of everyday objects and the words to describe them will allow you to get around without a problem.
One of the most important aspects of learning Chinese is that it’s a tonal language, meaning that changes in pitch when pronouncing different vowel sounds determine the word’s meaning. This can make a very similar sounding word mean completely different things. For example, the word “mother” (ma ma) can have up to five different intonations, ranging from meaning “numb” to meaning “horse.”
Understanding the basics of this complicated and beautiful language will open the door for your child to connect on a deeper level with people across Asia and around the world. This type of understanding will help them become true citizens of the world, able to build bridges and work with diverse people from all walks of life.
Intermediate Chinese
If you already have some Chinese, this free course from Seton Hall will help you build on it. It includes video lectures and audio podcasts, short plays and interactive exercises that will help you achieve an intermediate ability in the language. You’ll be able to carry on lengthy conversations and write simple personal letters, narratives and descriptive texts in both simplified and traditional characters. In addition, you’ll be able to increase your cultural knowledge of China.
Mandarin is one of the hardest languages for English speakers to learn, primarily because of its complex grammar. This free course from edX covers the basics of intermediate Chinese grammar, with the goal being to understand how words combine and form phrases.
It’s a hugely valuable skill that will pay dividends, whether you want to travel or just work with people from one of the world’s fastest-growing economies. This MOOC, which is free to enroll in but does require at least six hours of study time per week, will have you ready to pass a HSK test in less than four months.
Advanced Chinese
If you are a Chinese learner who has advanced from intermediate level, the next step is to move towards advanced Chinese. While this might seem difficult, there are tools that can help you make the leap from intermediate to advanced.
For example, focusing on reading will help you improve your pronunciation. Moreover, reading can also help you understand the meaning of new words and phrases. Try to guess the meaning of new words before you look up them in a dictionary. This will help you learn faster and better.
Another useful tool is to read a lot of Chinese books. For instance, you can start by reading a book like “The Graded Chinese Reader 2000 Words”. You can also choose to read a short story in a Chinese newspaper or even watch a movie in Chinese. These will help you improve your Chinese vocabulary and pronunciation, as well as develop your ability to communicate with others. Know more on this at lingua cinese mandarino lezioni online sul web.
Chinese for Travelers
When traveling to China or even another country with a large Chinese-speaking population, knowing some basic Mandarin phrases can help you get around. This will make your trip much more enjoyable and may prevent some miscommunication and frustration.
As an added bonus, learning Chinese gives you access to a vast consumer market. With the rise of China as a global power, being able to communicate with this audience is critical to your career success.
Mandarin Chinese is a tough language for English speakers to learn, with its unfamiliar words, tenses and tone-based pronunciation. However, if you’re willing to work hard and dedicate time to learning the language, you will be well on your way to becoming fluent in this incredible language.