Beginner Help

[necro1188]

Hey guys,

As my first thread I would just like to say hello to everybody. I just started studying Chinese this week and I'm already running into a few problems.

My ultimate goal is to be able to read,write and speak Chinese. I've been listening to chinesePod along with other audio resources that I've found in the forums to work on my speaking habits. However, when it comes to reading and writing I have no idea where or what to start with. There just seems like there is wayyyy too much information and with little guidance I have no idea where to start. Now before you say "use the search function" I would like to point out that I have made an effort to search the forums with little results. So my question is where do I start learning when it comes to reading and writing. Keep in mind I just started learning this week and have no background in Chinese whatsoever. Below are a list of sources I'm currently using.

[wowokala]

Hi, there!

First, I'm a Chinese native-speaker, and similiar to you, I've got some troubles in learning English. As you know, learning a foreign language isn't an easy thing, especially things like Chinese which is totally different from Western Languages...So, what we need are just interest, confidence and persistence.

First of all , I'm still have no idea about your nationality, I mean your mother tongue...

But whatever, I can recommend you some easy "helpers" for the beginner. One is CCTV-10. This channel is mainly about education, science and some talk shows and conversation, and usually the interview is focus on some celebrities but not those movie stars, the interviewees are really classic and has a high reputation in China's society. So, the interviews are of high quality. So not only can you learn Chinese, but also get to know our country.

Another is CCTV-4, it's an international channel. And there is a programme to teach foreigner learning Chinese. It's hosted by Dashan, he is a native Canadian, but he is the most fluent chinese speaker that we've ever seen. He even can play the Chinese crosstalk

very well. So, I suggest you to watch his programme, and it's just for you beginner. The things he teaches is very simple, but really practical.

Hope you can enjoy this beautiful language.

[tooironic]

Could you elaborate as to your studying situation? Are you at uni, high school, or are you self-studying? That might help us steer you in the right direction.

[necro1188]

I am currently a junior in college and am focusing on self studies at the moment. On average I have around 6 hours per week to focus on studying Chinese which seems to be an OK amount of time. My main concern is not speaking Chinese but actually reading and writing it. I hope this helps. Thanks for the replies thus far!

[Chinese Learner]

I've always been told the key is understanding all the radicals. Once you have memorized those apparently you start to understand the logic behind characters. It's also good to study 'classical' as opposed to 'simplified' characters as well because that logic is more evident.

[simonlaing]

6 hours a week eh?

Well I have good news and bad news? The good news is that it is possible to learn chinese, the bad news is that other than a little grammar structure it has nothing to do with western foreign languages and takes a long time to learn.

For writing learner is right about first learning the radicals and using the radicals to learn characters. Whe you see the word 好 hao good, you should not see 5 strokes but 2 radicals 女 nu" woman/mother and 子 zi child/son. The chinese idea of happines or goodness is family mother and child.

You should try and learn the radicals earlier as it will help later. But if you want to jump into it you can make up your own names for them until you actually learn what they are called.

First semester chinese in college was 10 hours class work 20 hours homework and lab work outside of class. (And this was with a mediocre program). So be aware if you don't make progress fast it could be related to the amount of time you're spending on studying it.

Good luck,

SimoN:)

P.S. welcome to the world of Chinese

[necro1188]

is 6 hours a week too little to really learn a language? Seems like a fair amount of time for me. And also for this 6 hours how should time be distributed between writing, reading and speaking. (ex. 20% writing 10% reading 70% speaking)

[jww1066]

I have also just started studying and would love some advice from some experienced students. I'm not in school, and plan on teaching myself.

Based on my very positive experience when learning Spanish, I am planning on using Pimsleur Chinese and FSI Chinese to learn spoken Mandarin, but neither one teaches Chinese characters. Have other people generally been happy with Pimsleur and/or FSI Chinese or do they have significant weaknesses (other than not teaching characters)?

I have heard positive things about Assimil, which does include the characters, but I've never used it myself. Has anyone had luck with it?

I know that many people study the components of characters as part of the learning process, and am planning on using that process myself. Would this be easier or more difficult with simplified characters? I ask because it seems possible to me that the traditional characters might make it more obvious what the etymology of each character is, while it might be that the simplified characters obscure the etymological connections somewhat.

Thanks in advance,

James

[renzhe]

Congratulations on starting to learn Chinese. While it is certainly not the easiest undertaking, the sheer sense of satisfaction you get from being able to speak/understand it is greater than with any other language I've studied.

If you are self-studying, you will definitely need a textbook. Just ChinesePod alone (an awesome resource) is not enough. A textbook will introduce written characters to you, in a rough order of importance, and teach you the basics of writing them. Even if you're self-studying, it is essential to use a good textbook to guide you. New Practical Chinese Reader and Integrated Chinese are both very popular and very good choices recommended by the regular forum users.

6 hours a week is not a lot. I'd say it's about the minimum. If you can, try to spread the six hours around the week, doing some Chinese each day, and then do a few more hours on the weekends. If you only do Chinese once a week, you will forget much of what you learn, and waste time that way. You can listen to a podcast each day on the way to work, then review some characters in the evening, for example. As long as you are doing something to keep it fresh in your mind. Then you can do a lesson from the textbook you choose on the weekend.

Something you could try is a flashcard program using spaced repetition. Google mnemosyne, anki, supermemo or zdt, any of them will do. This will help you go through the characters you know in an efficient manner.

My advice to you is to stay determined, keep doing it often, and to use a variety of sources. Pimsleur, ChinesePod, CSL Pod, different reading materials, textbooks, character drilling, conversation, TV shows, anything you can get your hands on. Soon you'll find what works well for you. Don't expect a programme to do everything for you.

I'm a self-learner myself, and I've had good success through a combination of the following:

- Grammar: I follow the New Practical Chinese Reader (on book 4 now). I do a lesson each weekend. I start by reviewing the last lesson on Saturday, and do the new lesson on Sunday.

- Listening: ChinesePod on the way to work, and an episode of a Chinese soap opera in the evening.

- Speaking: My girlfriend is Chinese, I speak to her when I can. Not as often as I should, which is why I'm lagging in this area

- Vocabulary: I use Mnemosyne to organise my flashcards for both characters and words. I enter all the new words I encounter in the textbook, and some I encounter in TV shows and podcasts. Other than that, I use the HSK database you can download together with the program, which is based off the vocabulary lists available on this site.

- Reading: At the moment, I read comic books in Chinese whenever I'm bored. I'm building up the courage to start reading "射雕英雄传", a famous wuxia novel that's a bit beyond my ability at this moment.

So, most days I will do a podcast/TV show (skip them on busy days) and review the characters/words prepared by the flashcard program (I never skip this). On weekends, I'll watch a bit more, and I'll study from the textbook. That's half an hour to an hour on weekdays and about 5-6 hours on the weekends, as some sort of minimum.

But I got really far doing this for a bit over a year, so my biggest recommendation is to stick with it and not get discouraged. It's easy to get discouraged, but the results will come if you stick with it, even if it isn't always obvious ;)

[renzhe]

Based on my very positive experience when learning Spanish, I am planning on using Pimsleur Chinese and FSI Chinese to learn spoken Mandarin, but neither one teaches Chinese characters. Have other people generally been happy with Pimsleur and/or FSI Chinese or do they have significant weaknesses (other than not teaching characters)?

People have different tastes, so take it with a bit of salt, but I found Pimsleur boring to death and didn't have the patience to finish it. I also found it patronising. Other people have loved it, so it depends. I wouldn't dish out the cash without trying it out first and seeing if you like it. Even if you finish all the Pimsleur courses, your Chinese will be extremely elementary, though. It will set some basics, but it won't take you far.

I know that many people study the components of characters as part of the learning process, and am planning on using that process myself. Would this be easier or more difficult with simplified characters? I ask because it seems possible to me that the traditional characters might make it more obvious what the etymology of each character is, while it might be that the simplified characters obscure the etymological connections somewhat.

I don't think that simplified/traditional will make a huge difference there, to be honest. There are cases where this happens, but for the vast majority of characters, there will be no significant difference.

You should pick traditional/simplified based on your needs -- which will be more useful to you. Most people pick up the other set automatically once they get really good at reading.

[tooironic]

Stick with simplified. It's a whole less work, and once you're at a higher level you can pick up traditional relatively easily if you want. Though I guess it depends what your goals with the language are.

By the way, renhe, which soap opera do you watch? And where do you watch it (tudou, PPS, etc)? I'm curious myself, as I've always watched Chinese sitcoms (which are just as amusing hehe).

[lotus_girl]

Hi

Im also new here, and i've started to learn Chinese little more than 2 months ago.

And i simply love it!

At the very begginning the most important i think is to feel that you study becasue you enjoy it..

Writing is really not that difficoult as it would seem at first... but you definetely need lot of practise whenever you learn a new character. I would advice to get a program which displays the order of the strokes, casue its extremely important.

And as others said, you should practise every day as much as you can.

Personally, i learn around 3hours per day...sometimes more, sometimes less. i wish i had more time though!

I have classes two times a week, and beside i use things i find on the net. (there are many great materials for free)

Actually i only learn the radicals when i came across them in new words, and it seems ok for me.But we are all different.

Hope you will enjoy your Chinese study!

[renzhe]

Currently this one: http://www.chinese-forums.com/index.php?/topic/2-favourite-chinese-musician2426, before that I finished this one: http://www.chinese-forums.com/index.php?/topic/16390-%e9%86%89%e5%b3%a1%e5%bc%a0%e4%b8%89 .

I've also finished 好想好想谈恋爱, which was very high quality, but a bit difficult and girly. The one I'm watching now, 落地请开手机, is just right in terms of difficulty, and it's interesting enough to follow. I guess they aren't really traditional soaps, more like drama series, just one season, and a well-defined story with a beginning and an end.

I get them from verycd. I don't have many other choices here in Germany.

I'm always looking for interesting stuff to watch, so if you have good recommendations, I'm all ears! Especially good sitcoms, as they are easy to pop in and out of. I've seen some of 家有儿女, and it was somewhat amusing, but not enough to make me go through the entire thing.

[imron]

And where do you watch it (tudou, PPS, etc)?

Youku has lots of TV shows available for streaming. The picture quality isn't great, but it's passable. I've been watching quite a few shows on there recently.

You might also want to check out the Grand First Episode Project for some suggestions of shows to watch.